Transcript Silviculture and management tools slides final

Silviculture and
Management Tools:
Summary
SRS-4158 TAV Synthesis
September 11, 2012 - Atlanta
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Silviculture
oThe practice of establishing and maintaining
forest health, diversity, and values in 3 settings,
1. pine forests with a longleaf component
2. land being restored to longleaf pine
3. agroforestry settings with a longleaf component
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Management tools
oThe mechanical, chemical, mathematical means
to accomplish silvicultural activities.
Topic defined
 Themes
o We need tools that predict outcomes of
management―MODELS
• Growth and yield models
• Fire effects models on growth, fuel, wildlife, etc.
o We need tools that provide guidelines for
management―GUIDELINES
• Decision support systems (i.e., management keys)
• Integration and synthesis of research results
◊◊◊ This is research ready to use by practitioners ◊◊◊
o These tools must be compatible with adaptive
management.
Overview of comments
• MODELS
of management outcomes
o Growth and yield models
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Finish this effort and update regularly
Include economics
Compare commercial appeal of longleaf and loblolly pines
Describe products on a weight basis
Provide versions for the small, as well as large landowner
Compare loblolly and longleaf pines emphasizing the edge of the
species’ range, and site quality (e.g., East TX, Piedmont)
• Compare plantation and natural stands of longleaf pine
• Pine straw production
o Fire effects models
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Growth & mortality responses to season of fire
Fire effects on growth & mortality by stand age
Fire effects on growth & mortality by site (e.g., upland, flatwoods)
Longer-term “fire and fire surrogate” studies
Overview of comments
 GUIDELINES compatible with adaptive management
◊◊◊ This is research ready to use by practitioners ◊◊◊
o 8 major activities
• Prescribed fire
• Fire surrogates
• Herbicide use
• Stand conversion
• Uneven-aged management
• Stocking levels and thinning
• Wildlife management
• Pine straw management
o Response to variables
• Site quality/soil type (e.g., dry, mesic, wet sites)
• Setting (e.g., agroforestry, urban interface,
private versus public land, upland versus flatwood sites)
• Landowner objectives (e.g., tree health/vigor/growth, pine
straw, native warm season grasses, TES, wildlife, rare plants)
Overview of comments
● GUIDELINES
compatible with adaptive management
o Decision support systems should contain,
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research ready to use by practitioners,
response patterns or ranges,
the mechanisms of response, and
methods to monitor responses.
Overview of comments
 Prescribed
fire and fire surrogates
o Season/frequency to address competition
obstacles
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sand pine
saw palmetto
cane
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hardwoods
loblolly encroachment
o Season/frequency for the establishment of fireadapted/ tolerant longleaf forests
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Plantation transition to uneven-aged stands
Fire reintroduction in old stands
Fire reintroduction that minimizes surface root damage
Groundlayer establishment
Steps to get an effective fuel system across a variety of fuel beds
o Season/frequency for the maintenance of fireadapted/ tolerant longleaf forests
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Temp./duration effects on longleaf bud & root system development
Mountain longleaf pine
Groundlayer maintenance
Silviculture specifics
 Prescribed
fire and fire surrogates
o Wildlife management
• Fire size effects on wildlife
• Fire season/interval effects on rare plants and wildlife
habitat
o Urban interface
• Season/ignition pattern near urban areas
• How smoke differs between prescribed fire and wildfire
o Fire surrogates
• Silvopasture settings
• Alternatives to fire in stands raked for pine straw
• Where there is a fire sensitivity (e.g., surface roots,
urban areas, rare plants)
Silviculture specifics
 Herbicide
use
o Longleaf pine tolerance to herbicides
o Formulations/applications to address obstacles
• Velpar ULW (granular) for turkey oak
• Midstory hardwood control
• Aggressive hardwood control (e.g., yaupon, sweetgum)
• Cost-effective invasive control (e.g., cogongrass, tallow tree)
• Control of saw palmetto, gallberry, titi, fetterbush, sand
and pond pines
o Sequence of treatments to prepare old
agriculture fields, pastures, and turfgrass fields
o Herbicides for site preparation
• Minimum impact with maximum effectiveness (e.g., spot
and strip applications)
• Preservation and promotion of fuel cycle
Silviculture specifics
 Stocking
levels and thinning
o Planting densities that yield desired stocking
levels
• Problem sites characterized by high mortality (e.g., wet,
prolonged drought, high vegetative competition)
• Where loblolly encroachment is high and longleaf pine
dominance is desired
o Stocking levels and thinning for non-timber values
• Pine straw production
o Delayed thinning
o Thinning while sustaining pine straw production
• Wildlife needs (e.g., RCW, wild turkey)
• Biodiversity
• Native warm season grasses for cattle management
Silviculture specifics
 Stocking
levels and thinning
o Stocking levels and thinning for timber values
• Where loblolly encroachment is high, longleaf dominance
is required, and desirable loblolly timber products can be
harvested during intermediate thinning
• Old, overstocked longleaf pine stands
Silviculture specifics
 Stand
conversion
o Across a variety of restoration settings
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Loblolly pine  longleaf pine dominance
Slash pine  longleaf pine dominance
Stand conversion for shortleaf pine dominance
Bedded sites
o Descriptions of activities are needed
Decision support system, “recipe book”, management key
• Amounts of overwood and underplanted seedlings
• Gap size
• Stand improvement
o Mechanical control of understory and midstory
o Overwood longleaf pines after seedlings are established
• Expectations beyond the bolting stage
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Silviculture specifics
 Uneven-aged
management
(continuous canopy forestry)
o How to manage mixed loblolly-longleaf stands
o How to transition from a plantation to an
uneven-aged stand
• Application of the Pro-B selection method for thinning
that leads to an uneven-aged structure
• Pro-B for management of RCW habitat (now, it is mostly
even-aged)
• Pro-B for management of recreation areas (these require
minimal impact)
o Gap size and distribution for group selection
Silviculture specifics
 Other
management needs
o Wildlife management
• Groundlayer management (“of equal importance as
trees”)
• Fire size effects on wildlife
• Emerging challenges
o No habitat change but “herps” population is decreasing
o Management for multiple wildlife priorities (e.g., RCW and
either quail or gopher tortoise)
o Pine straw management
• Thinning regimes that sustain pine straw production
• Simultaneous groundlayer restoration
• Raking methods
Silviculture specifics
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Native warm season grasses
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Wood quality
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◦ Setting-specific species choices (e.g., under pine straw
management, pasture conversion)
◦ Establishment methods
◦ Effect of setting (e.g., under silvopasture or pine straw
management; plantation versus natural stands; by
stocking, site, and state)
◦ A need for markets
Longleaf genetics
◦ Effect on C-sequestration
◦ G x E interaction effects on tree performance
◦ Mountain pine
Root system function
◦ Nutrition needs of, and best soil types for longleaf pine
◦ Compatibility between longleaf root system and soil (e.g.,
low OM sites, nutrient deficiencies)
◦ Mycorrhizae
◦ Surface longleaf roots and reintroduced fire
Fundamental information gaps
 Research-based guidelines and models are needed to restore 3
longleaf settings.
1. pine forests with a longleaf component
2. land being restored to longleaf pine
3. agroforestry settings with a longleaf component
• 8 major silvicultural activities need attention.
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Prescribed fire
Fire surrogates
Herbicide use
Stand conversion
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Uneven-aged management
Stocking levels and thinning
Wildlife management
Pine straw management
• Recommendations will vary by site characteristics, landowner
objectives, and obstacles.
• Guidelines will benefit from basic information about 4 topics,
native warm season grasses and longleaf pine wood quality,
genetics, and root system function.
Summary