Early regeneration response to aggregated overstory and harvest residue retention in Populus tremuloides (Michx.)-dominated forests

Research Highlights: Black spruce (Picea mariana Mill.) and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) both regenerated vigorously after wildfire. However, pure semi-upland black spruce stands are at increasing risk of changing successional trajectories, due to greater aspen recruitment. Background and Objectives: Black spruce and aspen are found across the boreal forest with black spruce dominating lowlands and aspen being common in uplands. Both species are well adapted to wildfire with black spruce holding an aerial seedbank while aspen reproduce rapidly via root suckering. In the summer of 2016, the Horse River wildfire burned 589,617 hectares of northern Alberta’s boreal forest. Methods: We assessed early regeneration dynamics of both pure aspen and pure black spruce forests. For black spruce, 12 plots were established in both bog and semi-upland habitats to assess seedling regeneration and seedbed availability. For aspen, 12 plots were established in each of the low, moderate, and high burn severities, as well as 5 unburned plots. Results: Post-fire black spruce regeneration densities did not differ between bog and semi-upland habitats, but were positively correlated with forb cover and charred organic matter seedbeds. Aspen regeneration within pure black sprue stands was substantial, particularly in semi-upland habitats, indicating a potential shift in successional trajectory. Fire severity did not significantly affect aspen regeneration in pure aspen stands, but regeneration density in all severity types was >90,000 stems ha−1. Aspen regeneration densities were negatively related to post-fire forb and shrub cover, likely due to competition and cooler soil temperature.

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The effect of boreal jack pine harvest residue retention on soil environment and processes

Forest Ecology and Management ◽

10.1016/j.foreco.2021.119517 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 497 ◽

pp. 119517

Author(s):

K.L. Webster ◽

P.W. Hazlett ◽

G. Brand ◽

S.A. Nelson ◽

M.J. Primavera ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Jack Pine ◽

Soil Environment ◽

Harvest Residue ◽

Residue Retention

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Early regeneration and growth dynamics of Populus tremuloides suckers in relation to fire severity

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x03-123 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 33 (10) ◽

pp. 1998-2006 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

G. Geoff Wang

Keyword(s):

Populus Tremuloides ◽

Fire Severity ◽

Growth Dynamics ◽

Basal Area ◽

Height Growth ◽

Analysis Of Covariance ◽

Total Variance ◽

First Year ◽

The Third ◽

Early Regeneration

Four boreal mixedwood stands burned by the 1999 Black River wildfire in southeastern Manitoba were sampled to determine the effect of fire severity on density and diameter and height growth of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) suckers during the first three postfire years. Analysis of covariance, using prefire aspen basal area as the covariate, indicated that fire severity significantly affected postfire aspen sucker density, with significantly lower density found on severely burned plots. Changes in aspen sucker density over the three postfire years depended on fire severity, with significant changes observed only on scorched and lightly burned plots. Sucker mortality was positively related to the initial sucker density, with more than 80% of the total variance being explained. Fire severity significantly affected the growth of dominant aspen suckers in the first, but not the second and the third, postfire years. The first year of growth initially increased and then remained stable with the increase in density, while the second and third years of growth were not affected by density. Since fire severity within and (or) among burned stands is inherently heterogeneous, the effect of fire severity must be taken into account in predicting postfire density and growth of aspen suckers.

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Response of mineral soil carbon storage to harvest residue retention depends on soil texture: A meta-analysis

Forest Ecology and Management ◽

10.1016/j.foreco.2017.10.028 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 408 ◽

pp. 9-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Xiaohua Wan ◽

Liangjian Xiao ◽

Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur ◽

Chris E. Johnson ◽

Zhiqun Huang

Keyword(s):

Soil Carbon ◽

Carbon Storage ◽

Soil Texture ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Mineral Soil ◽

Soil Carbon Storage ◽

Harvest Residue ◽

Residue Retention

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Long-Term Harvest Residue Retention Could Decrease Soil Bacterial Diversities Probably Due to Favouring Oligotrophic Lineages

Microbial Ecology ◽

10.1007/s00248-018-1162-8 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 76 (3) ◽

pp. 771-781 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Yaling Zhang ◽

Manyun Zhang ◽

Li Tang ◽

Rongxiao Che ◽

Hong Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Bacterial ◽

Harvest Residue ◽

Residue Retention

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Effects of fire severity on early development of understory vegetation

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x04-177 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 254-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

G. Geoff Wang ◽

Kevin J Kemball

Keyword(s):

Plant Community ◽

Diversity Index ◽

Fire Severity ◽

Species Abundance ◽

Understory Vegetation ◽

Entire Study ◽

Dominant Component ◽

Regeneration Response ◽

Understory Plant ◽

Early Regeneration

Four boreal mixedwood stands burned by the 1999 Black River wildfire in southeastern Manitoba were sampled to examine the effects of fire severity on early regeneration dynamics of understory vegetation. In each stand, three fire severity classes (scorched, lightly burned, and severely burned) were identified based on the degree of forest floor consumption, and six plots per severity class were randomly selected. Variation in fire severity significantly affected the initial regeneration of the understory plant community. Regeneration response after fire was largely controlled by interactions between fire severity and species' regeneration strategy. Establishment of invaders, seed bankers, and sprouters was best on severely burned, lightly burned, and scorched plots, respectively. Species richness and Shannon's diversity index was reduced by severe fire only in the first postfire year. However, the effects of fire severity on species abundance and composition persisted through the entire study period (19992002). Rapid changes in the understory plant community were only observed during the initial 3 postfire years, regardless of fire severity. At the end of the study, herbaceous plants were the most dominant component, with woody plants being a codominant component on scorched plots, and nonvascular plants being a codominant component on severely burned plots.

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Ground Beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) Response to Harvest Residue Retention: Implications for Sustainable Forest Bioenergy Production

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11010048 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 48 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Steven M. Grodsky ◽

Rebecca R. Hernandez ◽

Joshua W. Campbell ◽

Kevin R. Hinson ◽

Oliver Keller ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Groups ◽

Ground Beetle ◽

Woody Biomass ◽

Ground Beetles ◽

Forest Harvesting ◽

Biomass Harvest ◽

Clear Cut ◽

Operational Variables ◽

Harvest Residue ◽

Residue Retention

Research Highlights: Our study adds to the scant literature on the effects of forest bioenergy on ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) and contributes new insights into the responses of ground beetle species and functional groups to operational harvest residue retention. We discovered that count of Harpalus pensylvanicus (DeGeer)—a habitat generalist—increased owing to clear-cut harvests but decreased due to harvest residue reductions; these observations uniquely allowed us to separate effects of additive forest disturbances to demonstrate that, contrarily to predictions, a generalist species considered to be adapted to disturbance may be negatively affected by altered habitat elements associated with disturbances from renewable energy development. Background and Objectives: Despite the potential environmental benefits of forest bioenergy, woody biomass harvests raise forest sustainability concerns for some stakeholders. Ground beetles are well established ecological indicators of forest ecosystem health and their life history characteristics are connected to habitat elements that are altered by forest harvesting. Thus, we evaluated the effects of harvest residue retention following woody biomass harvest for forest bioenergy on ground beetles in an operational field experiment. Materials and Methods: We sampled ground beetles using pitfall traps in harvest residue removal treatments representing variable woody biomass retention prescriptions, ranging from no retention to complete retention of all merchantable woody biomass. We replicated treatments in eight clear-cut stands in intensively managed loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) forests in North Carolina and Georgia. Results: Harvest residue retention had no effect on ground beetle richness and diversity. However, counts of H. pensylvanicus, Anisodactylus spp., and “burrower” and “fast runner” functional groups, among others, were greater in treatments with no woody biomass harvest than those with no harvest residue retention; all of these ground beetles may confer ecosystem services in forests. We suggest that H. pensylvanicus is a useful indicator species for burrowing and granivorous ground beetle response to harvest residue reductions in recently harvested stands. Lastly, we propose that retaining 15% retention of total harvest residues or more, depending on regional and operational variables, may support beneficial ground beetle populations.

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Herbivory and advance reproduction influence quaking aspen regeneration response to management in southern Utah, USA

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/cjfr-2016-0010 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 46 (5) ◽

pp. 674-682 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Justin M. Britton ◽

R. Justin DeRose ◽

Karen E. Mock ◽

James N. Long

Keyword(s):

Populus Tremuloides ◽

Stand Structure ◽

Site Index ◽

Site Preparation ◽

Quaking Aspen ◽

Preparation Technique ◽

Primary Control ◽

Before And After ◽

Regeneration Response ◽

Management Recommendations

Recent concern regarding the potential decline of quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) forests in the western United States has sparked concern over whether the species can be effectively regenerated. Using a retrospective approach, we quantified the response of regenerating aspen stems to an ordinary set of silvicultural treatments conducted over approximately the past decade in southern Utah, USA. A suite of variables describing stand structure and composition, stand vigor, physiographic factors, herbivore pressure, and treatment types were measured to predict the possible controls, as well as their relative importance, on aspen regeneration. Results suggested that aspen regeneration was most strongly related to browsing pressure, site preparation technique, and the presence of advance reproduction before treatment, which is a novel finding. Secondary predictors included elevation, site index, and overstory conditions, which are generally characteristics of stand vigor. Management recommendations based on our results should recognize the strong primary control that browsing pressure exerts on regeneration. First, the height of advance reproduction is inherently dependent on antecedent herbivory and also indicative of present browsing and should be assessed before treatment. Second, the most effective site preparation techniques, namely broadcast burning and browsing reduction, will directly reduce browsing pressure, assuming ungulate populations are not too large. Any management targeting timely and effective aspen regeneration should incorporate monitoring and (or) controlling browsing pressure, both before and after treatment.

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