When American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum L.), and hobblebush (Viburnum alnifolium Marsh.) become dense in the understory they interfere with regeneration of other species. This review identifies threshold levels that causeproblems in regenerating desirable hardwoods in northeastern North America, and summarizes methods for controlling the interference in conjunction with a reproduction method cutting. It also forwards some ideas about management based on information in published sources.

Several woody species may inhibit regeneration of desirable northern hardwoods. This includes a dense understory of American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) that commonly occurs in stands infected with beech bark disease. Root injuries during logging and by natural causes alsopromote new suckers that, along with some stump sprouts, often maintain or increase the abundance of beech saplings. Additionally, browsing deer primarily bypass beech in favor of more palatable species. Where any of these factors has resulted in a dense understory of small beech, overstorycutting will promote its development, increase ground-level shading, and lead to a site conversion to beech. Similarly, striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum L.) often interferes with hardwood regeneration after overstory cutting. This species persists in heavy shade, grows rapidly afterrelease, and produces abundant seed. When dense, striped maple may interfere with the regeneration of other species. Hobblebush (Viburnum alnifolium Marsh.), a shrub, reproduces by rhizomes to form thickets when damaged during overstory cutting. Heavy shade by these thickets may preventregeneration of trees. This review summarizes characteristics of these three species with respect to their interference with desirable hardwoods in northeastern North America. It highlights the limited information about striped maple and hobblebush, and the abundance of sources that deal withAmerican beech.

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