Assessing Soil Compaction Following a Winter Harvest of Northern Hardwoods
| Authors: | Matthew C. Kelly, Rafia Rahman, Alexander C. Helman |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Type: | Proceedings - Paper |
| Station: | Northern Research Station |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-GTR-P-211-paper40 |
| Source: | In: Kern, Christel C.; Dickinson, Yvette L., eds. Proceedings of the first biennial Northern Hardwood Conference 2021: Bridging science and management for the future. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-211. Madison, WI: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 197–202. |
Abstract
Harvesting during winter is encouraged as a best management practice to protect soils during logging operations. We assessed the effects of machine traffic and slash volume on soil bulk density following a winter harvest of a northern hardwood forest on unfrozen cobbly silt loam soils. Soil samples were extracted from areas representing four levels of machine traffic (i.e., high, medium, low, and none) and two levels of overstory treatment (i.e., clearcut and partial cut). Results indicate that even low levels of traffic increased bulk density at the 0–5 cm depth. However, at the 5–10 cm depth, increases in bulk density were detected only in high traffic areas (i.e., >7 passes). No significant effects of slash volume on bulk density were detected. The mitigating effects of snow depth require further research.