Plant Community Structure and Composition in Uneven-aged Stands of Loblolly-Shortleaf Pine at Four Basal Area Levels

Abstract The effects of overstory pine basal area on plant community structure and composition were assessed in uneven-aged stands of loblolly and shortleaf pines (Pinus taedaL. and P. echinata Mill.) in southern Arkansas. Basal area treatments were 40, 60, 80, and 100 ft2/ac for the merchantable pine component (>3.5 in. dbh) and were maintained on a 6 yr cutting cycle using single-tree selection. Assessments of plant communities were made 10 yr after a single hardwood control treatment. The four levels of pine basal area had no effect on percent ground cover of most plants <3 ft tall, but ground cover from graminoids decreased as pine basal area increased. Vertical cover above loft height increased 33% as overstory basal area increased from 40 to 100 ft2/ac, but basal area had no effect on horizontal cover in height zones between 0 and 10ft. It is concluded that uneven-aged stands of loblolly-shortleaf pine with merchantable basal areas of from 40 to 100 ft²/ac may support similar plant species in the understory and consequently probably provide similar habitat requirements for a variety of game and nongame wildlife. South. J. Appl. For. 19(2):84-88.

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Altitudinally coordinated pattern of plant community structure in the Shivapuri National Park, Nepal

Banko Janakari ◽

10.3126/banko.v18i1.2161 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 11-17 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Shalik Ram Sigdel

Keyword(s):

Community Structure ◽

Species Diversity ◽

Plant Species ◽

Plant Community ◽

National Park ◽

Climatic Factors ◽

Flower Colour ◽

Basal Area ◽

Plant Community Structure ◽

Closed Canopy

Study on plant community structure was undertaken in different altitudinal ranges of Shivapuri National Park. The general objective of this study is to analyse different plant community structure in Shivapuri National Park with regards to altitudinal variation. The forest was divided into three distinct altitudinal ranges on the basis of dominancy. In each altitudinal range standard quadrats method was applied for vegetation analysis. The highest number of species was found in site II. All the ecological parameters of the plant species were higher in site II except Basal Area of tree that was highest in site III. The pattern of distribution of plant species was not uniform according to altitude. At higher elevation, the forest was mature with almost closed canopy and trees were large; so the tree density was low. Species richness was highest in site II. Species diversity among tree and shrub species was higher in site I. But for herb species diversity was higher in site II for both seasons. Such type of variations may be due to nature of soil i.e. acidity, nutrient availability and other micro-climatic factors. The most noteworthy thing was that variation in flower colour of Rhododendron arboreum i.e. deep scarlet at low altitude, but it gradually changed into pinkish white as altitude increased. Key words: Altitude, Density, Plant community, Species diversity doi: 10.3126/banko.v18i1.2161 Banko Janakari, Vol. 18, No. 1, 11-17

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The effects of partial cutting on forest plant communities of western hemlock Sitka spruce stands in southeast Alaska

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x01-143 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 31 (12) ◽

pp. 2067-2079 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Robert L Deal

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Community Structure ◽

Plant Community ◽

Basal Area ◽

Plant Species Richness ◽

Plant Community Structure ◽

Old Growth ◽

Partial Cutting ◽

Southeast Alaska ◽

Clear Cutting

The effects of partial cutting on plant species richness, community structure, and several understory species that are important for deer forage were evaluated on 73 plots in 18 stands throughout southeast Alaska. These partially cut stands were harvested 1296 years ago when 1696% of the former stand basal area was removed. The species richness and community structure of understory plants were similar in uncut and partially cut plots. However, plots where more than 50% of the basal area was cut had a significantly different plant community structure. Species composition and abundance also appeared to be distinctly different between hemlock-dominated and spruce-dominated stands. Partial cutting did not significantly change abundance for most of the important forage species for deer. The similarity in plant community structure between partially cut and uncut old-growth stands may be related to forest stand structures. The heterogeneous stand structures that develop after partial cutting are more similar to old-growth stands than to the uniform young-growth stands that develop after stand replacing disturbances such as clear-cutting.

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