Module 5 - Silvicultural Treatments II

What is harvesting & when does it occur?

Harvesting is the removal of trees from a forest stand and occurs throughout a rotation, not just at the end (can include intermediate harvests)

What are the purposes of harvesting?

Produce timber/products; support regeneration; improve forest structure, health, and composition

What are the five steps of harvesting?

Felling (cut tree), Extraction (skid logs), Processing (delimb, buck into logs), Loading (stack/load onto trucks), Trucking (transport to mill)

What is milling?

Process of converting rough logs into usable finished wood products (lumber)

What are the main steps of milling?

Debarking; Metal detecting; Merchandising; Head rig sawing; Resawing; Edging & trimming; Finishing (grading, drying, planing)

What are the environmental impacts of harvesting?

Soil compaction & erosion; water sedimentation, debris, temperature increase; forest damage from skid trails; mitigated by BMPs like proper roads, skid trails, avoiding wet seasons, riparian buffers

What is site preparation?

Treatments to prepare a site for successful regeneration, occurring at the end of one rotation/start of next

When and why is site preparation used?

Used only when necessary to ensure successful germination and seedling growth; may occur before or after harvest

What are the four goals of site preparation?

Manage logging slash; prepare seedbed; remove competing vegetation; improve site conditions (amelioration)

What are the pros of logging slash?

Protects seedlings; adds nutrients; provides wildlife habitat; supplies seeds

What are the cons of logging slash?

Fire hazard; hinders planting; harbors pests/diseases; aesthetic/recreation issues

What are slash disposal methods?

Burning; scatter and lop (chop and spread for faster decomposition)

What is seedbed preparation?

Treatments to create optimal conditions for germination and growth (burning or mechanical methods)

What are the negative effects of competing vegetation?

Competes for light, water, nutrients; overtops seedlings; root competition; allelopathy

What methods control competing vegetation?

Grazing; mechanical removal; girdling; herbicides; prescribed burning

What is site amelioration and when is it used?

Improving site conditions after regeneration begins (fertilization, irrigation), used on poor or harsh sites

What is artificial regeneration?

Planting trees from an external source

What are the two main approaches to artificial regeneration?

Direct seeding and planting seedlings

What are types of direct seeding?

Broadcast (large areas); strip (rows/bands); spot (specific locations)

What are types of planting stock?

Bare root; containerized; vegetative propagated (cuttings/tissue culture)

When is artificial regeneration used instead of natural?

When natural regeneration cannot achieve desired species, quality, or density

When is direct seeding used?

After fires; when seeds are abundant; when species are hard to transplant

When is planting used?

When high survival (>90%) is needed and control over spacing, species, and genetics is desired

What factors affect artificial regeneration success?

Climate; soil conditions; light; seed quality; wildlife browsing; pests and disease

What are desirable characteristics of planting stock?

Healthy; vigorous; adapted to site; proper size; uniform

What are intermediate treatments and when do they occur?

Treatments during the middle of a rotation that do not aim to regenerate trees

What are release operations?

Free young desirable trees from competition by removing undesirable vegetation

What is Timber Stand Improvement (TSI)?

Treatment to improve species composition and forest quality by removing larger undesirable trees

What is salvage cutting?

Removal of dead or damaged trees after disturbance when value exceeds cost

What is sanitation cutting?

Removal of trees to prevent spread of pests or disease

What is thinning?

Reducing stand density to improve growth and increase tree diameter (DBH)

What is pruning?

Removing lower branches to reduce knots and increase timber value

What are the two types of forest fire?

Prescribed fire (intentional) and wildfire (unintentional)

What is the fire triangle?

Heat + Fuel + Oxygen

What environmental factors affect fire behavior?

Fuel, weather, and topography

What are the four sources of fuel for forest fires?

Grass/herbaceous plants; shrubs; timber litter; logging slash

What fuel characteristics affect fire?

Moisture; size and shape; fuel load; horizontal distribution; vertical arrangement

What are the goals of prescribed fire?

Reduce fuel loads; control understory/exotics; prepare seedbed; promote fire-adapted species; improve wildlife habitat

What are concerns with prescribed fire?

Smoke pollution; visibility issues; risk of escape

What are the four types of wildfires?

Surface fires; ground fires; crown fires; mass fires (firestorms/conflagrations)

What are concerns about wildfires?

Property damage; loss of life; habitat destruction; air pollution; economic loss

Are wildfires ever beneficial?

Yes, low-intensity surface fires can be natural and beneficial

What is a healthy forest?

A resilient, functioning ecosystem that maintains biodiversity and meets management goals

What are the three major threats to forest health?

Human impacts; invasive plants; invasive pests and diseases

Why are invasive plants a problem?

Outcompete native species; suppress regeneration; alter ecosystems

Examples of invasive plants

Autumn olive; kudzu; Chinese tallow; Brazilian pepper

Why are invasive pests a problem?

Kill trees by disrupting systems and spread rapidly

Examples of invasive pests

Emerald ash borer; gypsy moth; hemlock woolly adelgid; spotted lanternfly

Why are invasive diseases a problem?

Trees lack defenses and entire species can be wiped out

Examples of invasive diseases

Chestnut blight; Dutch elm disease; laurel wilt

What are the four invasive species management strategies?

Prevention; monitoring; control/treatment; quarantine/removal

When should invasive species management occur?

Throughout the entire forest rotation with continuous monitoring and control