The effects of selective harvesting on upland oak/hickory forests David Dyson and Jessi Ouzts Independent Study Project, Advent 2005 Introduction Coarse woody debrisHickory seedlings Streamside management zoneCompartment 10 – Severe basal damage due to skidding Slash and tulip poplar seedlings Residual trees Sampling Methods Compartment 10 harvest: 50 acres: Logged in March, 2004 Total stumpage value: $15,700 Original BA = 114 Current BA = 80 Compartment 6 harvest: 29 acres Logged February-April, 2005 Total stumpage value: $13,900 Original BA = 109 Current BA = 93 Objectives of this study: To assess and compare residual damage of low-impact harvesting on two recently logged sites on the Domain. To assess forest structure and dynamics after selective harvest. Used a grid overlaid on a topographic map to determine sampling points. In the field, sampled within concentric 1/100 th and 1/1000 th acre plots Determined slope/aspect, elevation, percent cover. In 1/100 th acre recorded dbh and damage level of trees over 2” dbh In 1/1000 th acre recorded all tree species less than 2” dbh Results Figure 3. Post harvest - diameter class distribution of all trees over 2” dbh Key Points Logging at Compartment 6 left a more even diameter class distribution Logging at Compartment 10 left a bell curve distribution, removing more trees in the higher and lower d-classes Commercial species were found on both Compartment 10 and Compartment 6, primarily in the form of oaks. Liriodendron tulipifera and Carya sp. were present in smaller numbers in the overstory. Acer rubrum, Sassafras albidum, and Liriodendron tulipifera dominated the seedling class. Damage percentage was determined by recording visible incidents of major basal and trunk damage (major = cut through bark and deep into heartwood). It was estimated at 22% for Compartment 10 and 17% for Compartment 6. Economically, Compartment 10 (the larger of the two) brought in more board foot volume and more revenue. Figure 4. Compartment 6 with sampling points. Post harvest counts of seedlings per acre by species showed Acer rubrum, Liriodendron tulipifera, Sassafras albidum in the highest numbers, with Quercus alba and Q. prinus found in slightly lower densities. A. rubrum and Quercus alba seedlings were more abundant in Compartment 6. L. tulipifera and Q. prinus were found more in Compartment 10. The post harvest tree stem count by species showed highest frequencies of Acer rubrum, Oxydendrum arboreum and Quercus alba in Compartment 10, while Nyssa sylvatica dominated the understory, predominantly in Compartment 6. Figure 7. Post-harvest diameter distribution of commercial species in Compartment 6. Figure 8. Post-harvest diameter distribution of commercial species in Compartment 10. Figure 6. Compartment 10 with sampling points. Figure 5. Map showing study sites on Sewanee Quad. Figure 10. Harvesting data from Compartments 6 & 10. Figure 9. Comparison of residual damage in Compartments 10 and 6. Figure 2. Comparison of pre- to post-harvest BA and SPA on Compartment 6. Figure 1. Comparison of pre- to post-harvest Basal Area (BA) and Stems per Acre (SPA) on Compartment 10.