Decade-long bird community response to the spatial pattern of variable retention harvesting in red pine (Pinus resinosa) forests

As atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations continue to rise and global temperatures increase, there is growing concern about the sustainability, health, and carbon sequestration potential of forest ecosystems. Variable retention harvesting (VRH) has been suggested to be a potential method to increase forest biodiversity, growth, and carbon (C) sequestration. A field trial was established in an 88-year-old red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) plantation in southern Ontario, Canada, using a completely randomized design to examine the response of tree productivity and other forest values to five harvesting treatments: 33% aggregate retention (33A), 55% aggregate retention (55A), 33% dispersed retention (33D), and 55% dispersed retention (55D) in comparison to an unharvested control (CN). In this study, we explored the impacts of VRH on aboveground stem radial growth and annual C increment. Standard dendrochronological methods and allometric equations were used to quantify tree- and stand-level treatment effects during a five-year pre-harvest (2009–2013) and post-harvest (2014–2018) period. Tree-level growth and C increment were increased by the dispersed retention pattern regardless of retention level. At the stand level, the total C increment was highest at greater retention levels and did not vary with retention pattern. These results suggest that the choice of retention level and pattern can have a large influence on management objectives as they relate to timber production, climate change adaptation, and/or climate change mitigation.

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Wood 13C, 18O and radial growth responses of residual red pine to variable retention harvesting

Tree Physiology ◽

10.1093/treephys/tpp119 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 30 (3) ◽

pp. 326-334 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

M. D. Powers ◽

K. S. Pregitzer ◽

B. J. Palik ◽

C. R. Webster

Keyword(s):

Radial Growth ◽

Red Pine ◽

Growth Responses ◽

Variable Retention ◽

Variable Retention Harvesting

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Ecological forestry to enhance stand complexity: Songbird community response in a red pine (Pinus resinosa) forest

10.31274/etd-180810-3424 ◽

2013 ◽

Author(s):

Eddie Lee Shea

Keyword(s):

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Community Response ◽

Red Pine ◽

Ecological Forestry

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Biomass growth response to spatial pattern of variable-retention harvesting in a northern Minnesota pine ecosystem

Ecological Applications ◽

10.1890/13-1173.1 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 24 (8) ◽

pp. 2078-2088 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Brian J. Palik ◽

Rebecca A. Montgomery ◽

Peter B. Reich ◽

Suzanne B. Boyden

Keyword(s):

Spatial Pattern ◽

Growth Response ◽

Biomass Growth ◽

Variable Retention ◽

Variable Retention Harvesting

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Assessing the short-term impacts of variable retention harvesting (VRH) and climatic drivers on carbon sequestration and growth of a red pine (Pinus resinosa) plantation in southern Ontario, Canada

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-13539 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jessica Zugic ◽

Michael F. J. Pisaric ◽

Shawn M. McKenzie ◽

M. Altaf Arain ◽

William C. Parker

Keyword(s):

Carbon Sequestration ◽

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Red Pine ◽

Total Precipitation ◽

Southern Ontario ◽

Post Harvest ◽

Variable Retention ◽

Climatic Drivers ◽

The Impact

<p>Variable retention harvesting (VRH) is a silvicultural management practice that has been utilized to promote biodiversity, growth, and carbon sequestration in managed forests. VRH has been implemented as a climate mitigation strategy in response to increased climate warming and more erratic precipitation patterns which are occurring due to anthropogenic production of greenhouse gases. The aim of this study is to determine the impact of VRH and climate change on the inter-annual growth and carbon sequestration in a 20 ha red pine (Pinus resinosa) plantation forest located in southern Ontario, Canada over a 5-year period (2014-2018). The VRH treatment was implemented in 2014 within twenty, 1-hectare plots, which were subjected to one of four experimental thinning treatment types; 33% and 55% crown retention in an aggregated pattern (33A and 55A, respectively); and 33% and 55% crown retention in a dispersed pattern (33D and 55D, respectively), while four plots were maintained as unharvested control (CN) plots. In each plot, approximately sixty 5 mm increment cores were collected from residual trees during the spring and summer of 2019. These cores were processed for annual incremental growth according to standard dendrochronological methods to identify the climatic drivers on growth. Biomass and carbon sequestration were estimated using a species-specific allometric growth equation to quantify the impact of the different VRH treatments on red pine growth. Results of climate-growth assessments indicate that red pine growth in this region is dependent on maximum temperatures and total precipitation during the summer growing season. These relations were best captured in the May-July standard precipitation evapotranspiration index with a 3-month memory (SPEI3). May to August average maximum temperature and May to June total precipitation are also important drivers of red pine growth in all plots. We found that the dispersed crown retention patterns are the only VRH treatments that result in an increase in post-harvest growth; 8.12 &#177; 9.83% increase for 33D and 7.52 &#177; 5.71% increase for 55D. This suggests that dispersed retention may spatially optimize growth for the climatic conditions and be best suited for managing these forests under changing climatic conditions in the future. Aggregated treatments are found to have significantly less growth post-harvest; 33A had an average of 0.34 kg less biomass post-harvest (2.50 &#177; 1.94% decrease) and 55A had an average of 0.44 kg less biomass post-harvest (6.36 &#177; 3.82 % decrease). Our control sites showed that post-harvest growth showed an average of 0.56 kg less biomass post-harvest (6.01 &#177; 3.39% decrease). Within the aggregated treatments, exterior trees demonstrated increased growth, annual biomass accumulation, and carbon sequestration compared to trees growing in the interior of the aggregated plots. Our results suggest that dispersed crown retentions are most optimal when the goal of VRH is to increase growth or carbon sequestration. This research is ultimately important in informing future forest management practices in similar plantation forests across southern Ontario and elsewhere in the Great Lakes region and northeastern North America.&#160;</p>

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Variable retention harvesting in the Douglas-fir region

Ecological Processes ◽

10.1186/s13717-019-0205-5 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Jerry F. Franklin ◽

Daniel C. Donato

Keyword(s):

Douglas Fir ◽

Variable Retention ◽

Variable Retention Harvesting

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A red pine provenance test in northwestern Ontario: 48-year results

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc86348-3 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 86 (3) ◽

pp. 348-353 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Ali A Rahi ◽

Colin Bowling ◽

Dale Simpson

Keyword(s):

Significant Variation ◽

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Red Pine ◽

Provenance Trial ◽

Maritime Provinces ◽

Poor Growth ◽

Breast Height ◽

Seed Sources ◽

Northwestern Ontario ◽

Provenance Test

Survival, total height and diameter at breast height (DBH) were measured in the fall of 2005 in a 48-year-old red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) provenance trial growing in northwestern Ontario. There was significant variation in both height and diameter among the 23 provenances. Generally, westerly provenances performed well while those from the Maritime Provinces exhibited relatively poor growth. Considering that the plantation is at the northern biological range of red pine, survival was high, averaging 96% after 48 years. Provenances with the best growth rates exceeded a volume of 420 m3 ha-1. Some provenances from Minnesota and Wisconsin as well as Fort Frances, Ontario exhibited superior growth and should be considered as seed sources for future planting programs in northwestern Ontario. Key words: red pine, provenance test, survival, diameter, height, volume, Northwestern Ontario

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THE SEED PRODUCTION CAPACITY AND EFFICIENCY OF RED PINE CONES (PINUS RESINOSA AIT.)

Canadian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1139/b56-003 ◽

1956 ◽

Vol 34 (1) ◽

pp. 27-36 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

L. A. Lyons

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Production Efficiency ◽

Production Capacity ◽

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Proximal Part ◽

Red Pine ◽

First Year ◽

Tree Crown ◽

Second Year ◽

Pine Cones

The seed capacity of red pine cones varies from about 30 to over 110, depending on the size of the cone and its position in the tree crown, and is determined by the number of ovules that are structurally complete at the time of pollination. These ovules occur in a central "productive" region and constitute less than one-half of the total. The remaining ovules, most: of which are in the proximal part of the cone, never become structurally perfect, and do not contribute to seed production. Abortion of ovules in the productive region usually reduces seed production efficiency to 50–60%, and is accompanied mainly by withering of the nucellus in the first year and failure to produce archegonia early in the second year. The extent of ovule abortion during the first year varies indirectly with cone size, seed capacity, and height in tree.

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Growth of Clumped vs. Equally Spaced Trees

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc58023-1 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 58 (1) ◽

pp. 23-25 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

W. M. Stiell

Keyword(s):

Basal Area ◽

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Red Pine ◽

Form Class ◽

Significant Tendency ◽

Made In ◽

Crown Size

Fifteen-year results are presented for a thinning experiment made in 13-year-old red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.), designed to compare growth of trees in 4-tree clumps with that of uniformly spaced trees, in both cases growing at 890 stems/ha. By the end of the period, average crown size, form class and height were about the same for both stands, but growth by trees in clumps had been less for dbh and for basal area and total volume per hectare. Clumped trees had a significant tendency to lean away from each other. It was concluded that control of inter-tree spacing at planting or thinning is justified to the extent that clumps of more than three adjacent trees be avoided.

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