Soil solution and sugar maple response to NH4NO3 additions in a base-poor northern hardwood forest of Québec, Canada

Improving estimates of the nutrient content of boles in forest ecosystems requires more information on how the chemistry of wood varies with characteristics of the tree and site. We examined Ca and Mg concentrations in wood at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest. Species examined were the dominant tree species of the northern hardwood forest and the spruce-fir forest. The concentrations of Ca and Mg, respectively, in lightwood of these species, mass weighted by elevation, were 661 and 145 µg/g for sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.), 664 and 140 µg/g for American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), 515 and 93 µg/g for yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt.), 525 and 70 µg/g for red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.), 555 and 118 µg/g for balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.), and 393 and 101 µg/g for white birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.). There were significant patterns in Ca and Mg concentrations with wood age. The size of the tree was not an important source of variation. Beech showed significantly greater concentrations of both Ca (30%) and Mg (33%) in trees growing in moist sites relative to drier sites; sugar maple and yellow birch were less sensitive to mesotopography. In addition to species differences in lightwood chemistry, Ca and Mg concentrations in wood decreased with increasing elevation, coinciding with a pattern of decreasing Ca and Mg in the forest floor. Differences in Ca and Mg concentration in lightwood accounted for by elevation ranged from 12 to 23% for Ca and 16 to 30% for Mg for the three northern hardwood species. At the ecosystem scale, the magnitude of the elevational effect on lightwood chemistry, weighted by species, amounts to 18% of lightwood Ca in the watershed and 24% of lightwood Mg but only 2% of aboveground biomass Ca and 7% of aboveground Mg.

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Chemical changes in soil and soil solution after calcium silicate addition to a northern hardwood forest

Biogeochemistry ◽

10.1007/s10533-009-9397-6 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 100 (1-3) ◽

pp. 3-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Youngil Cho ◽

Charles T. Driscoll ◽

Chris E. Johnson ◽

Thomas G. Siccama

Keyword(s):

Soil Solution ◽

Calcium Silicate ◽

Hardwood Forest ◽

Northern Hardwood Forest ◽

Chemical Changes ◽

Northern Hardwood

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Species enrichment in a transitional landscape, northern lower Michigan

Canadian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1139/b94-030 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 72 (2) ◽

pp. 217-226 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Samuel M. Scheiner ◽

Conrad A. Istock

Keyword(s):

Sugar Maple ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Vascular Plant ◽

Hardwood Forest ◽

Northern Hardwood Forest ◽

The South ◽

White Pine ◽

Forest Diversity ◽

Northern Hardwood ◽

Group I

The hemlock – white pine – northern hardwood forest region of North America is a transition between the deciduous forests to the south and the boreal forests to the north. In a survey of vascular plant communities in northern lower Michigan we examined species diversity and landscape pattern. Surveying 47 sites we found 483 vascular plant species: 37 tree species, 67 shrub species, 4 vine species, and 375 herbaceous species; there was a mean of 74.3 ± 4.2 species per site. Mean Jaccard similarity among sites was 0.22 ± 0.01 and mosaic diversity, a measure of landscape complexity, was 3.01 ± 0.03. Using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis, two distinct groups of communities were differentiated: group I consisted of communities on mesic upland to wet lowland sites dominated by sugar maple, beech, hemlock, cedar, tamarack, and spruce; group II consisted of communities on xeric to dry-mesic upland moraines and level plains dominated by pines, red oak, birch, and aspen. Each group encompassed a separate south to north transition. Contrary to continental trends, species richness was greatest in sites with the greatest percentage of northern species. The region is more species-rich than adjacent regions to the south and north. We present four hypotheses to explain this species enrichment. Key words: boreal forest, deciduous forest, diversity, hemlock – white pine – northern hardwood forest, transition zone.

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Validation and refinement of allometric equations for roots of northern hardwoods

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x07-032 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 37 (9) ◽

pp. 1777-1783 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur ◽

Steven P. Hamburg ◽

Ruth D. Yanai

Keyword(s):

Sugar Maple ◽

Lateral Roots ◽

Fagus Grandifolia ◽

Allometric Equations ◽

Hardwood Forest ◽

Northern Hardwood Forest ◽

Sampling Effort ◽

Betula Alleghaniensis ◽

Northern Hardwood ◽

Mean Error

The allometric equations developed by Whittaker et al. (1974. Ecol. Monogr. 44: 233–252) at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest have been used to estimate biomass and productivity in northern hardwood forest systems for over three decades. Few other species-specific allometric estimates of belowground biomass are available because of the difficulty in collecting the data, and such equations are rarely validated. Using previously unpublished data from Whittaker’s sampling effort, we extended the equations to predict the root crown and lateral root components for the three dominant species of the northern hardwood forest: American beech ( Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), yellow birch ( Betula alleghaniensis Britt), and sugar maple ( Acer saccharum Marsh.). We also refined the allometric models by eliminating the use of very small trees for which the original data were unreliable. We validated these new models of the relationship of tree diameter to the mass of root crowns and lateral roots using root mass data collected from 12 northern hardwood stands of varying age in central New Hampshire. These models provide accurate estimates of lateral roots (<10 cm diameter) in northern hardwood stands >20 years old (mean error 24%–32%). For the younger stands that we studied, allometric equations substantially underestimated observed root biomass (mean error >60%), presumably due to remnant mature root systems from harvested trees supporting young root-sprouted trees.

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Ecological Aspects of Forest Management Planning: A Northern Hardwood Forest Case Study

Northern Journal of Applied Forestry ◽

10.1093/njaf/12.3.121 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 121-126 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Louise M. Tritton ◽

Paul E. Sendak

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Sugar Maple ◽

Hardwood Forest ◽

Northern Hardwood Forest ◽

Timber Production ◽

Forest Management Planning ◽

Northern Hardwood ◽

Crown Dieback

Abstract In a stand managed for timber production, increased crown dieback and mortality of trees generally signal a need for reevaluating site conditions, management objectives, and harvesting practices. In this paper, we describe a case study of a northern hardwood forest stand intended for timber production but showing crown dieback and mortality. Plans for a diameter-limit cut were confounded by the presence of diseased and poor quality trees (especially sugar maples), a history of high-grading, and fair to poor site characteristics for sugar maple growth over much of the area. After evaluating the site, we suggested a revised management plan including a shelterwood cut favoring regeneration of both yellow birch and sugar maple. Forest management decisions based on ecological and economic considerations can promote both the long-term health and productivity of forest stands. However, management for long-term health and productivity are not likely to be accomplished under current market conditions in much of New England. North. J. Appl. For. 12(3):121-126.

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