Treesearch

We established a field experiment in an even-aged, second-growth northern hardwood forest in north-central Wisconsin, testing the response of tree regeneration to deer exclusion and group-selection harvesting where small (50 m2), medium (200 m2), and large (380 m2) gaps were created. We measured occurrence and height of saplings 9 years post-treatment and modeled incoming solar radiation in gaps to assess light distribution across the gap environments. Densities of tolerant and midtolerant saplings were similar in medium and large gaps but tolerant saplings outnumbered midtolerants...

For over 60 years, northern hardwood stands across the Great Lakes region have primarily been managed using single-tree selection (Tubbs 1977) in which a thinning is applied uniformly across a stand to reach a desired target basal area and diameter distribution. While this form of silviculture can create high quality, shade-tolerant trees, it can also create stands that lack diversity of structure and function (Neuendorff 2007). Increasingly, foresters are looking to manage northern hardwood stands for greater diversity and increased resilience to stressors such as climate or insect...

Forest managers and researchers have proposed group selection as a complementary system to conventional, uneven-aged management in temperate hardwood forests with the goal of counteracting declines in forest diversity (Eyre and Zillgitt 1953, Leak and Sendak 2002, Neuendorff et al. 2007). The intended goals for group openings in this selection system are to establish new age classes and use opening size to influence essential resources and microclimates in openings to complement the desired species composition of regeneration (Coates and Burton 1997, Grubb 1977, Lhotka et al. 2018). Yet...

Accelerating changes due to climate, invasive insects, plants, and diseases; and social values in northern hardwood forests make understanding and predicting impacts of natural and human variables ever more complex. Yet policy-makers are disinvesting in forestry research. We believe that science-management collaboration can help bridge the resulting gap. We give examples of advances in sustainable forestry from such collaboration and identify common elements of successful collaborations. Then we propose a new, three-tiered approach to science-management collaboration to reverse the trend...

Concerning trends in natural tree regeneration emerged over the last few decades following a long history of single-tree selection silviculture in northern hardwood forests. Regeneration in these systems varies geographically and is often inadequate. For example, sapling classes may be understocked, absent, or dominated by a few relatively undesirable species (e.g., American beech [Fagus grandifolia], ironwood [Ostrya virginiana]). Multiple interacting factors may explain these troubling regeneration patterns, including silvicultural practices that provide insufficient light/disturbance,...

Long-term implementation of uniform silvicultural systems can reduce species (Crow et al. 2002, Leak and Sendak 2002, Schulte et al. 2007) and structural (Angers et al. 2005, Hupperts et al. 2018, Montes et al. 2005) diversity. Diversity loss leads to less resilient forest ecosystems (Holling 1973), especially with increasing challenges due to climate change. Implementation of natural disturbance-based management could be beneficial for biodiversity by emulating natural stand conditions that prevailed before the species decline (Hupperts et al. 2018). Therefore, we sought to answer the...

The history of Menominee Tribal Enterprises (MTE) is a fascinating and romantic story about our forest and how the Menominee people have successfully managed it for eons. Today, these management practices have resulted in an extraordinary, healthy, and productive emerald forest whose boundaries can be seen from space. The picture from space clearly shows more than a geographic boundary. It is silent testimony of a resilient culture that responsibly cared for their land, for the benefit of mankind and the planet itself. There is no story quite as powerful and compelling as MTE. That...

Managing northern hardwood forests using high frequency, low intensity silvicultural systems—such as single-tree selection—favors shade-tolerant species and can reduce tree species diversity. Management decisions among family forest owners (FFOs) can affect species and structural diversity within northern hardwood forests at regional scales. We surveyed FFOs in the western Upper Peninsula (WUP) of Michigan to understand likely future use of three silvicultural treatments: single-tree selection, shelterwood, and clearcut. Our results indicate FFOs were most likely to implement single-tree...

Every time natural resource managers design and apply a treatment to a forest stand, then observe or monitor outcomes of that treatment, they learn about how a system responds based on numerous factors. Lessons from silvicultural treatments implemented within an agency or company can provide a wealth of knowledge within it, there are relatively few opportunities for practitioners to share those lessons across administrative boundaries. We created the Great Lakes Silviculture Library in 2015 to provide a platform for practitioners to share these lessons more broadly.

Arborists and urban foresters are in the tree business for many personal reasons. Working to build and maintain the tree canopy brings us joy in our service to communities. A healthy tree spreading its beauty and shade on a hot summer day reminds us why we are in this profession, especially when we see people cooling off underneath. Recent studies and findings from the Forest Service have expanded our understanding of the importance of the many benefits that city trees provide. In our gut we knew these to be true, but now we have the science to back it up—and these findings reinforce the...