Treesearch

Multidecadal responses to early competition control are poorly documented in naturally regenerated southern pine stands. This study examined the effects of the following early herbicide treatments in thinned southern pine stands through age 31: (1) no control (CK), (2) herbaceous vegetation control only (HC), (3) woody vegetation control only (WC), and (4) total (woody  herbaceous) vegetation control (TC). Previously reported (through age 13) early competition control effects on net (standing  harvested) pine growth and yield were sustained from ages 15–31, where the CK treatment...

Seedling mortality due to meadow vole herbivory is often thought to be small scale in nature in hardwood afforestation efforts. However, in some instances, this source of mortality may play a more important role than typically realized. A total of 1,440 bare-root Nuttall oak (Quercus texana Buckley), Shumard oak (Quercus shumardii Buckley), and swamp chestnut oak (Quercus michauxii Nutt.) seedlings were planted in February 2008 on a northwest Mississippi site. Plots received treatment with one of four mechanical site preparation methods. Also, all plots received an initial post planting...

Understanding the spatial distribution of soil lead has been a focus of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study since its inception in 1997. Through multiple research projects that span spatial scales and use different methodologies, three overarching patterns have been identified: (1) soil lead concentrations often exceed state and federal regulatory limits; (2) the variability of soil lead concentrations is high; and (3) despite multiple sources and the highly heterogeneous and patchy nature of soil lead, discernable patterns do exist. Specifically, housing age, the distance to built structures,...

Littleleaf disease is the most significant disease of shortleaf pine and has decimated shortleaf pine forests in the Piedmont region of the Southeast. This study used the littleleaf disease hazard soil rating method to evaluate the littleleaf hazard of Piedmont sites owned by Auburn University in the Auburn, Alabama area. The results indicate that a few of these stands are suitable for shortleaf pine management. Furthermore, soil cores were an accurate replacement for soil profiles, and soil series descriptions from the NRCS soil survey were not adequate for remotely assessing a site’s...

Silvicultural practices and human-induced alterations to natural disturbance regimes have contributed to a dramatic decline in shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) across most of the Upper West Gulf Coastal Plain (UWGCP). The increased preference for faster-growing loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) in natural-origin stands, coupled with the spread of loblolly plantations and less fire on the landscape, have selected against shortleaf pine. While many are interested in reversing shortleaf’s decline, remarkably little is known about the composition and structure of historical UWGCP natural-origin pine...

Shortleaf pine woodland communities were more extensive in the southeastern Missouri Ozarks prior to Euro-American settlement than today. In 2000, the Missouri Department of Conservation initiated a shortleaf pine woodland restoration project on state land in the Ozarks of southeast Missouri at an area called the Midco Pine Flats Restoration Area. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate shortleaf pine woodland restoration efforts at Midco over the 14-year period from 2000-2013. Our analysis suggested that treatments impacting both the overstory and understory, including mechanical...

A study was established in North Carolina to evaluate the viability of underplanting shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.) seedlings beneath a residual hardwood overstory as a method of reestablishing the shortleaf pine component to Central Appalachian Piedmont sites. Twenty-eight treatment plots were harvested to retain one of four residual overstory basal areas (RBA): 0, 15, 30, or 45 square feet per acre. Three shortleafpine stock types were established within the RBA treatment plots; bareroot stock (BR), and containerized stock with small plugs (SP), and large plugs (LP). Overstory...

The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) is implementing a demonstration project in the Albemarle Sound for the National Monitoring Network for U.S. coastal waters and their tributaries. The goal of the National Monitoring Network is to provide information about the health of our oceans and coastal ecosystems and inland influences on coastal waters for improved resource management.

Shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.) ecosystem restoration has been a major management goal in the Ouachita National Forest since the early to mid-1990s. Restoration efforts have focused on periodic prescribed burning and thinning operations to restore disturbance dependent vegetation communities suitable for the recovery of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker, as well as other species able to utilize open forests and woodlands. Questions exist about how frequent burning will affect recruitment of shortleaf pine regeneration into larger age and size classes. Determining shortleaf...

Climate change has emerged as a key issue facing agriculture and water resources in the US. Long-term (1968-2012) temperature, precipitation and streamflow data from a small (7.3 km2) watershed in east-central Pennsylvania was used to examine climatic and hydrologic trends in the context of recent climate change. Annual mean temperatures increased 0.38°C per decade, which led to an expansion of the growing season, and increased evapotranspiration (+37.1 mm per decade). Additionally, mean annual precipitation also increased while the overall change in streamflow decreased. In general, the...