A Growth and Yield Model for Thinned Stands of Yellow-Poplar

Abstract

Simultaneous growth and yield equations were developed for predicting basal area growth and cubic-foot volume growth and yield in thinned stands of yellow-poplar. A joint loss function involving both volume and basal area was used to estimate the coefficients in the system of equations. The estimates obtained were analytically compatible, invariant for projection length, and numerically equivalent with alternative applications of the equations. Given estimates of basal area and cubic-foot volume from these equations, board-foot volumes can also be calculated. As an adjunct to the stand-level equations, compatible stand tables were derived by solving for the parameters of the Weibull distribution from attributes predicted with the stand-level equations. This procedure for estimating the parameters of the diameter distributions of the stands before thinning gave reasonable estimates of number of trees, basal area, and cubic-foot volume per acre by diameter class. The thinning algorithm removes a proportion of the basal area from each diameter class and produces stand and stock tables after thinning from below that am consistent with those generated before thinning.

Citation

Knoebel, Bruce R.; Burkhart, Harold E.; Beck, Donald E. 1986. A Growth and Yield Model for Thinned Stands of Yellow-Poplar. Supplement to Forest Science, Vol. 32, No. 2, June 1986