Compatible growth and yield models for loblolly pine

Abstract

Past studies in loblolly pine mensuration have resulted in the development of numerous analytic models for growth and yield. Most have treated growth and yield as essentially independent phenomena with no attempt to develop models that possess the logical compatibility which must exist between growth and yield observations. The present study develops models intended to express realistically the relationships between growth and yield. As an initial step, previously-used basal area and cubic-foot yield models were examined and screened for use in the analysis. The yield models selected for use were differentiated with respect to age to produce models for cubic­foot and basal area growth. The resulting growth models, together with the selected model for cubic-foot yield, were then fitted to data obtained in the five-and-ten-year remeasurements of 102 permanent sample plots located in three states. Equations were developed for cubic-foot yield, basal area growth, cubic-foot growth, basal area pro­jection, and cubic-foot volume projection. Three of these equations can be used to predict total per acre production for various rotation ages and thinning regimes.

Citation

Clutter, Jerome. 1963. Compatible growth and yield models for loblolly pine. Forest Science. 9(3): 354-371.