Treesearch

Understanding how trees respond to drought is critical to understanding forest sensitivity to global climate change, which can help inform forest policy and management decisions. However, mechanisms governing carbon fixation and water fluxes in response to increased temperatures and water limitation in regions with Mediterranean climates, with wet winters and dry summers, remain only partially understood. We tested the effect of increased vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and decreased rainfall on water and carbon fluxes of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) trees using the Soil-Plant-Atmospher...

The interest in non-formaldehyde adhesives has reinvigorated studies using proteins from plant and animal sources, with an emphasis on plant-based sources, especially the oilseed plants such as soybean. Although animal-based sources have received much less attention, and ovalbumin from egg whites has not been studied at all, it provides a surprising low viscosity and high wet strength as a wood adhesive. Of the animal and plant proteins used in the past, egg protein has been used for centuries as a binder in tempera, for book illumination, and for gilding, but not as a water-resistant wood...

Maleic acid (MA), a solid dicarboxylic acid can be obtained from renewable lignocellulose, was used to extract lignin through flow through (FT) process for the first time. Due to the high boiling point and flash point of MA, the FT process was carried out at atmospheric pressure without VOCs release and explosion risk. 50 wt% MA aqueous solution could extract 60 % lignin from birch wood, and the dilution factor for precipitating lignin was only 3. MA-extracted lignin preserved more than 80 % of β–O–4 bonds and a monophenol yield (＞30 %) comparable to that of milled wood lignin was obtained...

Height growth in trees is expensive in terms of the amount of stem tissue required to maintain productive tissue in sunlight. However, shifting allocation from stem support to leader growth and foliage production may allow trees to minimize shading effects on photosynthesis, especially for shorter trees within the population. This hypothesis was evaluated with data collected in competition studies for red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii [Mirb.] Franco), and red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.). Stem allocation per unit height growth was defined as a...

Over the past several decades, concern about loss of forest-based ecosystem services has caused all fifty states to adopt programs to lower property taxes on enrolled private forestland. Although there has been a moderate amount of research on the effectiveness of these preferential forest property tax programs (PFPTPs), most studies only assess individual states, explore perceptions without an empirical basis, or present seemingly contradictory findings. This manuscript presents a systematic review of literature to determine the strength of evidence supporting PFPTPs’ effectiveness at...

Aims. Canadian goldenrod (Solidago canadensis) invasion is degrading the coastal shelterbelt forests of subtropical China, but few studies have quantified the role of this invader in structuring understory plant diversity and soil properties. Methods. Understory species richness, Margalef index, Pielow index, community stability index, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), C:N ratio, pH, bulk porosity (BP), and aeration porosity (AP) were assessed by deriving three categories of goldenrod invasion in coastal shelterbelt forests of Zhejiang, China, that is,...

Researchers have documented that vacant lot greening can reduce communitylevel crime and violence. Busy Streets Theory (BST) suggests that residents who are involved in the greening process can help to improve physical environments and build social connections that deter crime and violence. Yet few researchers have explored how community engagement in the greening process may affect crime and violence outcomes. We applied BST to test the effects of communityengaged vacant lot greening compared to vacant lots that received either professional mowing or no treatment, on the density of...

1. Lure attraction strength for red turpentine beetle, Dendroctonus valens (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) observed previously in US Pacific Northwest ponderosa pine forests is (–)-β-pinene+ethanol > (+)-3-carene+ethanol, but untested elsewhere in its western US range. Thus, both were tested with (–)-β-pinene, (+)-3-carene, ethanol, and a blank in Oregon and California sites burned by wildfire, whereas in Arizona the first four lures were tested in a thinned-unburned site. 2. The D. valens responses in burned Oregon and California sites were similar, (–)-β-pinene+ethanol > (–)-β-pin...

Context. Public-private partnerships are needed to conserve landscapes, waterscapes, and seascapes. Landscape conservation design (LCD) translates shared objectives into spatial priorities to guide conservation efforts and foster collaboration among partners at the landscape level. Objective. We examined LCD projects in the eastern United States to identify implementation and coordination challenges and propose solutions that facilitate integration across projects in instances when coordination and continuity of conservation efforts is paramount. Methods. We apply a scale dynamics approach...

Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are derived from natural populations of plants or fungi, or farmed in forests. Harvesters and producers often benefit from NTFPs by selling them to generate income. This article explores research on the producers, production, marketing, and sales of NTFPs in the United States, including the continuum of production from wild-harvesting to forest farming of NTFPs, and their costs and benefits. Specific examples are presented, but the concepts and generalizations are broadly applicable to many NTFPs throughout the U.S. and other parts of the world. Integratin...