Forest Vegetation Management and Solving the Bark Beetle Epidemic

Why Manage Forests? Important part of our state’s environment and economy. Forests provide clean air and water, homes for wildlife, beautiful scenery, places for recreation and products we all use every day. When they are not well managed, forests are often unhealthy and unproductive because of overcrowding, disease, insects, and competition for light, water and nutrients.

Management of Vegetation Includes… Young and old trees Shrubs Herbaceous plants

Reasons for Management Economic return from timber harvesting Maintain or enhance wildlife habitat Improve aesthetics Restore the forest Maintain a certain stand characteristic Recover from a specific event (wildfire, pest infestation, etc.) Management goals vary from organization to organization and from place to place. Management may look different to a forester, a wildlife specialist, a fire fighter, etc. Refer to reading, so what is a healthy forest.

In the Field of Forestry… Vegetation Management is called Silviculture

Management Styles Trees grow and die without our management But the number of trees on every acre and the ratio of live tree versus dead tree can be influenced by our management 2 Management Styles: Passive Management Active Management

Passive Management Let nature run its course Not decide which trees should survive or regenerate

Active Management An active role in influencing forest stand density and health Examples: thinning trees, pest management, controlled burns

Forest Management Methods Harvesting Trees Trees are harvested for a variety of reasons… Improving health of the forest Controlling types of trees that grow in an area Attracting certain types of wildlife Providing a source of income Producing products (paper, lumber, etc.) Improving access to area for hikers, hunters, and other recreational users

Types of Harvesting Include… Thinning Harvest Harvesting Trees Types of Harvesting Include… Thinning Harvest Crowded trees increases competition for resources (nutrients, water, light) Remove a portion of trees so there is less competition (typically remove younger trees) Improves the growth of the forest’s understory (wildflowers and native weeds) Decreases wildfire intensity Understory growth is increased due to more light hitting the forest floor. This growth provides more food and cover for animals such as quail and rabbits.

Removes all trees in a given area Used most frequently in pine forests Clearcut Harvest Removes all trees in a given area Used most frequently in pine forests Efficient way to convert unhealthy stands to healthy, productive forests since allows forest managers to control the tree species that grow Figure. Clear-cut immediately after harvest. No trees are left standing.

Clearcut Harvest Continue Unattractive for a short period of time…but effective method for creating habitat for a variety of wildlife species Animals that eat insects, such as turkeys and quails, and those that eat annual and perennial plants, such as bears and deer, thrive in recently clearcut areas. Many creatures also find shelter from weather and predators in the low growing grasses, bushes and briar thickets that follow this type of harvest. In addition, clearcutting is an important forest management tool because it can be used to create edges – areas where two habitat types or two ages of the same habitat meet. Because edges provide easy access to more than one habitat, they usually have more diverse wildlife communities than large blocks of a single habitat.

Seed Tree Harvest Five or more scattered trees per acre are left in the harvested area to provide seeds for a new forest stand.  Trees selected based on their growth rate, form, seeding ability, wind resistance and future marketability. Wildlife benefit from seed tree harvests in much the same way as they do from a clearcut harvest, except that they also reap the benefits of the seed trees themselves. If left on site indefinitely, seed trees eventually may become snags or downed logs, which are important habitat components for woodpeckers and many other species. Seed trees are also excellent food sources and nesting sites for hawks and other birds. One disadvantage to seed tree harvests is that the remaining trees are at increased risk of damage from wind, lightening, insect attack and logging of nearby trees. This type harvest may also require the landowner to make future investments in thinning and competition control because of uncontrolled reseeding.

Good seed trees: Which 2 would you leave? Possible 1, 6, 10, 14 Which 2 would you leave? Discuss which trees would obviously not make good seed trees (Numbers 3,5,7,9 and 11 seem to be good trees, but aren't very tall. This may be because of some genetic weakness. Numbers 2, 8, and 13 are crooked and malformed. Number 12 appears to be stunted.) Ask students to evaluate and compare the good trees, then ask them to select the two trees best suited to reseed the area.  (Used mostly in pine stands, this system involves a specialized program of timber harvesting and prescribed burning to imitate the natural pine regeneration process. One of the first things a manager does is decide how long he wants to maintain the stand. This decision is based on the tree species, economics, and the owner's objectives. The length of time between establishing the stand and the final harvest is called the rotation or rotation age. In the early life of the stand, a seed tree system is just about the same as any other type of pine management. The stand will be protected from wildfire, insects, and disease; thinning/improvement cutting will be done; and prescribed burning will probably be conducted every 3-5 years. About five years before the end of the rotation, prescribed burning is done more frequently. This keeps brush growth to a minimum and begins to expose patches of mineral soil on the forest floor, creating a good environment for seed to germinate and grow. On every acre, 10-12 of the very best trees are selected and clearly marked. These are the seed trees which will become the parents of the new forest. When the rotation age is reached, all trees are harvested for market except for the seed trees. The seed produced by these remaining trees are scattered by the wind and begin to grow. When enough young pines are established to adequately restock the forest, the seed trees are harvested and the cycle begins again.)

Shelterwood Harvest Mature trees are removed in two or three harvests over a period of 10 to 15 years. Allows regeneration of medium to low shade-tolerant species because a “shelter” is left to protect them. . Many hardwoods, such as oak, hickory and cherry, can produce and maintain seedlings or sprouts in light shade under a partially cut stand. However, the young trees will not grow and develop fully until the remaining overstory trees are removed. Not recommended for trees with shallow root systems because the remaining trees are more susceptible to wind damage after neighboring trees are removed. Another disadvantage to shelterwood cuts is that they require more roads to be built through the forest, and increase the risk of soil disturbance and damage to the remaining trees during harvesting.

Group Selection Harvest Small-scale clearcut where groups of trees in a given area are harvested over many years so that the entire stand has been cut within 40 to 50 years. Size of the group cut determines the tree species that are likely to return after the harvest. Group selection provides ideal pockets of young vegetation for grouse, deer and songbirds. But because it requires intensive management and frequent access to all areas of the property, it can be an expensive forest regeneration method.

Single Tree Selection Harvest Removes individual trees that are ready for harvest, of low value or in competition with other trees. With single-tree selection, the forest continuously produces timber and constantly has new seedlings emerging to take the place of harvested trees. Single-tree selection harvesting is best in small or confined areas for a variety of reasons. One is that this harvesting method requires more roads. In addition, surrounding trees can be damaged during harvests, and frequent use of logging equipment in a given area may compact the soil. Sun-loving trees, which are an important source of food for wildlife, do not regenerate well with single-tree selection, so forest managers must use mechanical or chemical controls to prevent shade-tolerant species from taking over the site.

Forest Management Methods Prescribed Burns Reduces the amount of leaves, branches and dead trees accumulated on the forest floor that could fuel a wildfire. Removal of this “litter layer” also promotes the growth of new forage and plants Promotes the health of the forest by controlling the spread of disease and insect infestations, and reducing plant competition for nutrients, water and sunlight.

Forest Management Methods Reforestation Process of growing trees on an area that previously has been harvested or cleared Natural regeneration - relies on nature to return an area to forestland after trees are harvested. Artificial regeneration - human intervention in sowing seeds or planting seedlings

Mention Natural seeding requires seeds to be deposited by wind, fire, birds, etc.

Solving the Bark Beetle Epidemic What needs to be done with all the dead trees? Will the dead trees increase the intensity of wildfires? What management methods should be used? No Easy Answers!

Forest Management and the Bark Beetle Difficult challenge to manage bark beetles and vegetation. Federal and State land managers know what make stands susceptible to bark beetles. Unfortunately, having this knowledge does not mean that they are able to prevent outbreaks.

Examples of Management Activities Being Implemented in California: Preventative measures most effective way to prevent infestation Chemicals too expensive and not practical Examples of Management Activities Being Implemented in California: Thinning in dense stands Removing dead and infested trees Infested green material is buried, chipped, or burned

Unfortunately…this epidemic may be too big for humans to control Too many trees have died or have already become infested

Forest Managers are Asking How do we manage the forestland after this major disturbance passes? How do we prevent against similar outbreaks? Will our forests as we know them be changed forever in the midst of a changing climate?