Fine root growth and mortality in different-aged ponderosa pine stands

2008 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 1797-1806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris P. Andersen ◽  
Donald L. Phillips ◽  
Paul T. Rygiewicz ◽  
Marjorie J. Storm
Keyword(s):  
Root Growth ◽  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Standing Crop ◽  
Fine Root ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Root Production ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Pine Stands

Root minirhizotron tubes were installed at two sites around three different age classes of ponderosa pine ( Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.) to follow patterns of fine root (≤2 mm diameter) dynamics during a 4 year study. Both sites were old-growth forests until 1978, when one site was clear-cut and allowed to regenerate naturally. The other site had both intermediate-aged trees (50–60 years) and old-growth trees (>250 years old). Estimates of fine root standing crop were greatest around young trees and least around intermediate-aged trees. Root production was highly synchronized in all age classes, showing a single peak in late May – early June each year. Root production and mortality were proportional to standing root crop (biomass), suggesting that allocation to new root growth was proportional to root density regardless of tree age. The turnover index (mortality/maximum standing crop) varied from 0.62 to 0.89·year–1, indicating root life spans in excess of 1 year. It appears that young ponderosa pine stands have greater rates of fine root production than older stands but lose more fine roots each year through mortality. The results indicate that soil carbon may accumulate faster in younger than in older stands.

scholarly journals Stocking Control Procedures for Multiaged Ponderosa Pine Stands in the Inland Northwest

2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin L. O'Hara ◽  
Narayanan I. Valappil ◽  
Linda M. Nagel
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Stand Density ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Basic Unit ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Inland Northwest ◽  
Control Procedures ◽  
Pine Stands

Abstract Multi-aged management of forest stands in western North America is a viable option in many areas where traditional even-aged management is undesirable. Procedures for guiding stocking control for multi-aged ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) stands were developed using the PP-MASAM model (Ponderosa Pine–Multi-aged Stocking Assessment Model). These procedures allow the user to divide stands into components such as age classes or canopy strata that are the basic unit for growing space allocation. Growing space is represented by leaf area index. Stocking regimes are assessed over a single cutting cycle through projections of volume increment, stand density, and tree vigor. The approach is flexible for guiding stocking in ponderosa pine stands for diverse structural objectives including retention of ancient trees, development of presettlement structures, stands with two to four age classes, or stands with short or long cutting cycles. Example stocking regimes and internet links are provided to access the model. West. J. Appl. For. 18(1):5–14.

Effect of thinning on production and mortality of fine roots in a Pinusradiata plantation on a fertile site in New Zealand

1987 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 919-928 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Santantonio ◽  
E. Santantonio
Keyword(s):  
Fine Roots ◽  
Standing Crop ◽  
Fine Root ◽  
General Pattern ◽  
Minor Component ◽  
Root Decomposition ◽  
Root Production ◽  
Soil Core ◽  
Stem Wood ◽  
Small Roots

The effects of heavy thinning (60% reduction in basal area) on fine (< 1 mm diam.) and small roots (1–5 mm diam.) were evaluated during the 2nd year following treatment by periodic soil core sampling in a 12-year-old plantation of Pinusradiata D. Don. Data from these samples enabled us to estimate monthly standing crops of live and dead fine roots and seasonal rates of fine-root decomposition. We used a compartment-flow model to estimate production and mortality of fine roots with monthly resolution from these data. The general pattern of production and mortality was modal and out of phase with soil temperature. On an area basis, thinning reduced the overall standing crop of live fine roots from 1.38 to 0.55 Mg/ha; the standing crop of dead fine roots remained unchanged at 4.37 Mg/ha. The standing crop of live small roots declined from 1.03 to 0.54 Mg/ha. Annual production of fine roots was estimated at 2.2 and 1.9 Mg•ha−1•year−1 in the control and thinned treatment, respectively, and mortality was estimated at 2.1 and 2.0 Mg•ha−1•ear−1 in the control and thinned treatment, respectively. Thinning shortened mean fine-root longevity from 6.2 to 2.5 months. With respect to total dry matter production, fine-root production remained a minor component following a heavy thinning. It accounted for only 4.6 and 6.1% of the stand total in the control and thinned treatments, respectively. These results indicate that on a fertile site with a mild climate the opportunity to shift production from fine roots to another component, such as stem wood, is likely to be small.

Relationships among litterfall, fine-root growth, and soil respiration for five tropical tree species

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (10) ◽  
pp. 1954-1965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar J. Valverde-Barrantes
Keyword(s):  
Soil Respiration ◽  
Root Growth ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Fine Root ◽  
Tropical Tree ◽  
Root Production ◽  
Fine Root Production ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Tropical Tree Species ◽  
Fine Root Growth

Although significant advances have been made in understanding terrestrial carbon cycling, there is still a large uncertainty about the variability of carbon (C) fluxes at local scales. Using a carbon mass-balance approach, I investigated the relationships between fine detritus production and soil respiration for five tropical tree species established on 16-year-old plantations. Total fine detritus production ranged from 0.69 to 1.21 kg C·m–2·year–1 with significant differences among species but with no correlation between litterfall and fine-root growth. Soil CO2 emissions ranged from 1.61 to 2.36 kg C·m–2·year–1 with no significant differences among species. Soil respiration increased with fine-root production but not with litterfall, suggesting that soil C emissions may depend more on belowground inputs or that both fine root production and soil respiration are similarly influenced by an external factor. Estimates of root + rhizosphere respiration comprised 52% of total soil respiration on average, and there was no evidence that rhizosphere respiration was associated with fine-root growth rates among species. These results suggest that inherent differences in fine-root production among species, rather than differences in aboveground litterfall, might play a main role explaining local-scale, among-forest variations in soil C emissions.

Prescribed-fire effects on fine-root and tree mortality in old-growth ponderosa pine

1991 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 626-634 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Michael Swezy ◽  
James K. Agee
Keyword(s):  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fine Root ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Fire Severity ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Prescribed Burn ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Root Dry Weight

Old-growth Pinusponderosa Dougl. stands were surveyed at Crater Lake National Park to investigate potential accelerated mortality of large pines due to prescribed burning. Mortality of P. ponderosa greater than 22 cm diameter at breast height was higher in burned areas (19.5%) than in unburned areas (6.6%), and early-season burns had over 30% mortality. Mortality was associated with fire severity, as measured by scorch height and ground char, season of burning, and tree vigor. Pines of high, moderate, and low vigor were subjected to a prescribed burn in June; half of the trees had debris raked from tree bases as an additional treatment. Lethal heat loads (>60 °C) occurred in >75% of samples at the soil surface and at 5 cm soil depth, with duration exceeding 5 h. Burning reduced fine-root dry weight 50–75% 1 and 5 months after burning; raking and burning reduced fine-root dry weight more than burning alone after 1 month and had similar effects to burning after 5 months. A low-vigor tree that had been raked and burned died by the beginning of the fourth dry season after burning. Present fuel loads may be too high to burn during spring if old-growth P. ponderosa are to be protected.

"Black Bark" Ponderosa Pine: Tree Grade Definition and Value Comparison with Old-Growth Trees

1994 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Willits
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Control Sample ◽  
Small Diameter ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Pine Tree ◽  
Common Grade ◽  
Small Diameter Trees ◽  
Crown Characteristics ◽  
Eastern Washington

Abstract A ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) tree grade has been developed to separate lower value, small-diameter trees typical of young-growth stands from small-diameter old-growth trees. The tree grade uses a combination of bark, limb, and crown characteristics to identify the "black bark," trees. The tree grade was tested in two shop type mills and one dimension mill in southern Oregon and eastern Washington. Significant differences in value were found between the sample of black bark pine and the grade 5 control sample. Differences in value increased with diameter because of increased opportunities to recover high-quality lumber from the larger old-growth trees. The dimension mill recovered more lumber volume from the smaller diameter logs because of fewer sawlines and smaller rough-green sizes. Even though the shop mills recovered lower volumes, they did recover higher value by producing Shop and Common grade lumber rather than standard Dimension grades. Overall the differences compensated for each other, and both mill types recovered roughly equal value from logs of similar grade and size. West. J. Appl. For. 9(1): 8-13.

Comparison of forest age estimators using k-tree, fixed-radius, and variable-radius plot sampling

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 942-951
Author(s):  
Brent D. Burch ◽  
Andrew J. Sánchez Meador
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Pattern ◽  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Sampling Methods ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Variable Radius ◽  
Plot Sampling ◽  
Age Patterns ◽  
Fixed Radius ◽  
The Mean

Quantifying the age characteristics of a forest can provide valuable information about the forest’s impact on the environment. For instance, the age of a forest can affect the ecosystem’s carbon exchange, soil enzyme activity, and biodiversity. In this paper, we investigate the use of different sampling methods to estimate the age characteristics of three simulated ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex P. Lawson & C. Lawson) forests having different spatial and age patterns. This includes estimating the mean tree age and the age-class distribution of the trees in the forest. The trees in the sample are selected using k-tree sampling, fixed-radius plot sampling, or variable-radius plot sampling, and we compare the properties of the resulting estimators via design-based and model-based approaches. Analyses of the different sampling methods applied to the three forests suggest that the estimator associated with k-tree sampling, with the addition of a few extra trees per plot, is feasible for forests having a spatially mosaic or random spatial pattern. The estimator associated with fixed-radius plot sampling performed well for the forest having a clustered spatial pattern.

Exploring Tree Age & Diameter to Illustrate Sample Design & Inference in Observational Ecology

2015 ◽  
Vol 77 (3) ◽  
pp. 206-210
Author(s):  
Grant M. Casady
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Observational Studies ◽  
Sampling Design ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Guided Inquiry ◽  
Undergraduate Biology ◽  
Statistical Framework ◽  
Statistical Knowledge ◽  
Hands On

Undergraduate biology labs often explore the techniques of data collection but neglect the statistical framework necessary to express findings. Students can be confused about how to use their statistical knowledge to address specific biological questions. Growth in the area of observational ecology requires that students gain experience in sampling design and the scope of inference relevant to observational studies. I developed a laboratory-based guided inquiry that illustrates these concepts by comparing ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) trees in northeastern Washington State. This approach presents a hands-on experience whereby students apply the statistics they learn in the classroom to a field-based investigation, giving students an appreciation of the design and interpretation of observational studies in ecology.

scholarly journals Improved Equations for the Density Management Diagram Isolines of Ponderosa Pine Stands

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Woongsoon Jang ◽  
Martin W Ritchie ◽  
Jianwei Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Ponderosa ◽  
Ponderosa Pine ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Stand Density ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Research Station ◽  
Fixed Effects Model ◽  
Stand Volume ◽  
Pine Stands

Abstract This study was conducted to improve estimation of concomitant variables for implementation of a stand density management diagram (SDMD) for ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Laws.) in northern California and Oregon. In traditional SDMD, isolines for variables such as stand volume are presented in such a way that uncertainty with estimation is not available. We developed the new top height and stand volume equations, as well as aboveground biomass and percent canopy cover, for building isolines in the SDMD using high-quality data collected from well-managed even-aged stands. The data were selected from the USDA Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Research Station database. A total of 829 observations (from 113 plots across 15 sites in Oregon and California) were used for model construction. In addition, covariance-variance structures of all of the estimated parameters were provided so that users can evaluate the uncertainty associated with predictions. The model validation results indicated that the predictions made from fixed-effects model forms performed better than the current volume equation of SDMD, as well as those from mixed-effects model forms using the population average effect. The proposed equations provide enhanced predictions and additional useful information about managed ponderosa pine stands, including their uncertainty.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document