Vegetation response to midstorey mulching and prescribed burning for wildfire hazard reduction and longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) ecosystem restoration

Brockway, Dale G.; Outcalt, Kenneth W.; Estes, Becky L.; Rummer, Robert B.

doi:10.1093/forestry/cpp010

Cited by 32 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Forest thinning treatments can elicit a variety of vegetation responses depending on the method used [18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. As mastication deposits the plant biomass on the forest floor instead of removing it from the system, a physical barrier may be present and potentially altering seed bank compositions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While highly variable in their ecological responses, mastication treatments often create an open canopy allowing for the inclusion of light, enhance soil moistures and increase plant available N and vegetation cover [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]49], which in turn increase the potential for seed rain and overall storage in the seed bank. Through understanding soil seed bank compositions we can begin to predict the potential future of the aboveground vegetation community and effects of a forest thinning treatment on the vegetation community as a whole.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A heterogeneous deposition of masticated materials, or mulch, can lead to variable responses in understory plant cover [18][19][20][21][22][23]. At stand level scales, such as over an entire thinning project, mulching has been shown to increase plant diversity and cover due to an increase in light and the maintenance and enhancement of soil moisture [16,18,20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, when looking at the system at a finer spatial scale (e.g., m2), the heterogeneity of forest floor fuel depths can have a range of positive and negative effects on the understory vegetation community [16,[18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. Yet defining a vegetation community solely as the active aboveground composition is often incomplete as other species may be waiting to emerge from the belowground seed bank following environmental or structural shifts [25] such as a fuel thinning treatment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of Mastication: Soil Seed Bank Responses to a Forest Thinning Treatment in Three Colorado (USA) Conifer Forest Types

Faist

Stone

Tripp

2015

Forests

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Mastication is a forest fuel thinning treatment that involves chipping or shredding small trees and shrubs and depositing the material across the forest floor. By decreasing forest density mastication has been shown to lessen crown fire hazard, yet other impacts have only recently started to be studied. Our study evaluates how mastication treatments alter the density and composition of soil seed banks in three Colorado conifer forest types. The three forest types were (1) lodgepole pine, (2) ponderosa pine and (3) pinyon pine-juniper. Results showed that masticated sites contained higher seed bank densities than untreated sites: a pattern primarily driven by treatment effects in ponderosa pine forests. The seed bank was dominated by forbs regardless of forest type or treatment. This pattern of forb dominance was not observed in the aboveground vegetation cover as it demonstrated more even proportions of the functional groups. Graminoids showed a higher seed density in treated sites than untreated and, similarly, the identified non-native species only occurred in the treated ponderosa pine sites suggesting a potential belowground invasion for this forest type. These results suggest that presence of masticated material might not be creating a physical barrier hindering the transfer of seeds as predicted. OPEN ACCESSForests 2015, 6 3061

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Impacts of Mastication: Soil Seed Bank Responses to a Forest Thinning Treatment in Three Colorado (USA) Conifer Forest Types

Faist

Stone

Tripp

2015

Forests

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“…Not only is frequent prescribed burning essential for seedbed preparation, it is also crucial for discouraging the growth of woody competitors that prevent establishment, impair development and impede recruitment into the canopy (Brockway et al, 2009;Outcalt and Brockway, 2010). A strong relationship exists between fire and understory conditions in longleaf pine forests (Outcalt, 2000(Outcalt, , 2006, with more frequently burned stands having fewer woody plants and many herbaceous species (Glitzenstein et al, 2003).…”

Section: Contrasting Dynamics On Differing Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of reproduction cutting methods on structure, growth and regeneration of longleaf pine forests in flatwoods and uplands

Brockway

Outcalt

2017

Forest Ecology and Management

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a b s t r a c tThough longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) forests have been primarily managed with even-aged methods, interest is increasing in uneven-aged systems, as a means of achieving a wider range of stewardship goals. Selection silviculture has been practiced on a limited scale in longleaf pine, but difficulty with using traditional approaches and absence of an evaluation across a range of site types has left managers in doubt concerning its suitability. This study was conducted to quantify the effects on stand dynamics of applying single-tree selection, group selection, irregular shelterwood and uniform shelterwood in longleaf pine forests on flatwoods and uplands of the southeastern United States. Selection treatments reduced stand basal area to $11.5 m 2 ha À1 and shelterwood treatments left a basal area of $5.8 m 2 ha À1 . In spite of initial decreases in tree density and standing volume, growth rates were normal in all stands (1-5% per year), as were subsequent increases in basal area and tree density. Despite the continuing abundance of saw-palmetto (Serenoa repens W. Bartram) cover and absence of prescribed fire during the eight post-treatment years, significant increases in pine regeneration were observed in all treated stands in the flatwoods. Because of a multi-year drought in the uplands, pine seedling numbers dramatically declined, no matter which reproduction approach was employed. Although seedling numbers eventually began to recover, they were again precipitously depressed by a wildfire in 2013. Even with such losses, sufficient pine seedlings remained in each treatment to foster successful stand regeneration. Single-tree selection produced less overall change in the forest ecosystem than group selection, which caused less alteration than shelterwood treatment. Single-tree selection appears to be an effective way for achieving stand regeneration, while maintaining a continuous canopy cover that aids in the control of woody competitors and supports an array of resource values. Selection silviculture seems to be a lower risk approach for guiding forests along a trajectory of gradual improvement, with adjustments provided by frequent surface fires and periodic tree harvest. Long-term observation will be required to verify that selection can sustain forest ecosystems on sites characterized by differing environments.Published by Elsevier B.V.

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Fire exclusion alters forest evapotranspiration: A comprehensive water budget analysis in longleaf pine woodlands

Brantley,

Stuber,

Holder

et al. 2024

Ecological Monographs

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Forests are critical to water resources, but high evapotranspiration (ET) can reduce water yield. Thinning and prescribed fire reduce forest density and often reduce ET, promoting higher water yield. However, results from such treatments have been inconsistent, possibly because of unknown interactions among individual ET components. We compare water budget components of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) woodlands with frequent prescribed fire to the water budget components of fire‐excluded stands. We hypothesized that fire exclusion would result in higher ET due to increased midstory transpiration (Et) and interception (Ei), and higher evaporation from litter (Ilitter). Reference plots were burned every two years while treatment plots had fire excluded for 15–20 years. Fire treatments were repeated in two sites representing a soil moisture gradient, noted as mesic and xeric. We measured woody Et using sap flux, and we modeled groundcover Et using physiological models. We measured Ei of canopy and groundcover layers, modeled Es litter biomass, and constructed a total component‐based water budget for each site and treatment. Compared with reference plots, midstory Et was 300%–800% higher in fire exclusion plots. Groundcover Et was ~80% less than reference treatments, countering the effects of midstory growth on total ET. Stand Ei followed similar trends, with groundcover Ei in reference plots countering the effects of midstory and litter Ei in fire exclusion plots. As expected, total ET in the xeric site was 18% higher in fire exclusion plots. However, ET in the mesic site was 16% lower in the fire exclusion plots due to high groundcover Et and Ei in reference plots. Thus, our results show that fire exclusion changes total forest ET, but the size and direction of the effect vary depending on the balance between midstory and groundcover transpiration and interception. These results highlight the importance of groundcover in ecosystem function in low‐density forests and may help explain inconsistent results from studies of water yields following thinning and fire. While prescribed fire is a valuable tool in forest management, we suggest that the effects of fire on ET are complex and require careful accounting of all water fluxes within a forest ecosystem.

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Vegetation response to midstorey mulching and prescribed burning for wildfire hazard reduction and longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) ecosystem restoration

Cited by 32 publications

References 30 publications

Impacts of Mastication: Soil Seed Bank Responses to a Forest Thinning Treatment in Three Colorado (USA) Conifer Forest Types

Impacts of Mastication: Soil Seed Bank Responses to a Forest Thinning Treatment in Three Colorado (USA) Conifer Forest Types

Influence of reproduction cutting methods on structure, growth and regeneration of longleaf pine forests in flatwoods and uplands

Fire exclusion alters forest evapotranspiration: A comprehensive water budget analysis in longleaf pine woodlands

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