Fuel characterization in the southern Appalachian Mountains: an application of Landscape Ecosystem Classification

Prescribed fire has been widely used in the south-eastern United States to meet forest management objectives, but has only recently been reintroduced to the southern Appalachian Mountains. Fuel information is not available to forest managers in this region and direct measurement is often impractical owing to steep, remote topography. The objective of the present study was to determine whether landscape ecosystem classification (LEC) site units support different types and amounts of fuel in the Chauga Ridges, a subregion of the Blue Ridge Mountain Province. Ecosystem classification identifies vegetation assemblages that are the expressive result of soils, physiography and vegetation, and recur predictably on the landscape. Four fuel complexes were identified using LEC units and field measurements of fuel characteristics. Fuel bed depth, duff (Oe + Oa) thickness, 1000-h fuel loading, and Rhododendron maximum, R. minus, and Vaccinium spp. ground cover were discriminating fuel characteristics of xeric, intermediate, submesic, and mesic site units. Discriminant function analysis provided an overall 64% cross-validation success rate using 138 undisturbed, randomly located plots. This method of characterizing fuel complexes may also be possible in other forested ecosystems where LECs or other ecological vegetation classifications have been developed.

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An Examination of Selected Historical Rainfall-Induced Debris-Flow Events within the Central and Southern Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States

Open-File Report ◽

10.3133/ofr20091155 ◽

2009 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Gerald F. Wieczorek ◽

L. Scott Eaton ◽

Benjamin A. Morgan ◽

R.M. Wooten ◽

M. Morrissey

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Debris Flow ◽

Appalachian Mountains ◽

Eastern United States ◽

Southern Appalachian Mountains ◽

Southern Appalachian

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Forest dynamics and climate sensitivity of an endangered Carolina hemlock community in the southern Appalachian Mountains, USA

Botany ◽

10.1139/cjb-2015-0222 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 94 (4) ◽

pp. 301-309 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

David A. Austin ◽

Saskia L. van de Gevel ◽

Peter T. Soulé

Keyword(s):

Appalachian Mountains ◽

Hemlock Woolly Adelgid ◽

Tree Age ◽

Northern Red Oak ◽

Eastern United States ◽

White Oak ◽

Southern Appalachian Mountains ◽

Southern Appalachian ◽

High Elevations ◽

Mountain Laurel

During the last century, the eastern United States has functionally lost two major tree species (American chestnut and American elm), two more, eastern and Carolina hemlock, will likely be functionally extinct during much of their ranges by 2050. Carolina hemlock forests are geographically limited to high elevations in the southern Appalachian Mountains and are considered to be endangered. We collected forest stand, composition, and tree age data at the beginning of a hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) infestation. Prior to the arrival of HWA, Carolina hemlocks were healthy and densely populated in the overstory and understory. While Carolina hemlock regenerated successfully and continuously from 1850 to 2010, the development of this Carolina hemlock forest will be altered by the HWA and may result in an increase in the density of northern red oak, white oak, mountain laurel, and Catawba rhododendron. Carolina hemlocks prefer cool, wet summers with older trees experiencing greater reductions in radial growth than younger trees during droughts. This study demonstrates that dendrochronological techniques can provide critical annual information on Carolina hemlock forest development and tree age–climate response. Our results provide a multicentury perspective for conservation efforts and management of Carolina hemlock forests in the southern Appalachian Mountains.

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