Forestry

Land cover

• http://www.envirothonpa.org/documents/2-2_Landcovermap_11x17.pdf

Forest Cover62 Distinct tree areas!

Factors Determining Forests

• Temperature, Rainfall and Topography• Plant hardiness zones become harsher as one

progresses further north in latitude or higher in elevation

• Elevation, slope and the direction a slope faces all effect the microclimate for plants on any site

• Water and eroding soil both move down slope with gravity= deeper and moister at the base of the slope

• South facing slopes receive more direct sunlight than north facing = warmer and drier.

Northern Hardwood• 2nd most common• Beech, birch, sugar maple, Canadian hemlock,

white pine• If in south, then on northern slopes• Best area for Wild Black Cherry• Understory: moosewood, witch hazel, mountain

holly, shadbush (serviceberry)

Oak Forest

• Most of PA• Red & white oak, tulip tree, red maple, hickory• On ridges white, black, and chestnut oak• Dense mountain laurel and black huckleberry• In 1904 chestnut blight intro’d in NY, by 1910

PA forests decimated

Mixed Mesophytic Forest

• Southern PA (common in Smoky Mountains)• Tuliptree, sugar maple, beech, basswood, red

oak, cucumber tree, yellow buckeye, Ohio buckeye, white ash, black cherry

• Understory: flowering dogwood, pawpaw, umbrella tree, redbud, witch hazel

Unique Areas• Coastal Plain Forest

– Near SE Delaware River– Sweetgum, willow oak, southern red oak, sweetbay magnolia,

• Peat Moss Areas– Support tamarack, black spruce– Due to glaciation

• Serpentinite rock– South central PA– Pitch Pine, VA pine, red cedar, scrub oak, blackjack oak,

sassafras• Shale & Limestone Barrens

– Drought tolerant– Eastern red cedar, VA pine, Table mountain pine, yellow oak,

post oak, hackberry, sumac

Unique Areas

• Beech Maple Forest– Western edge of PA

• Riparian Areas– Periodic flooding– Sycamore, Silver maples, box elder, American elm,

slippery elm black willow, green ash, black ash, black walnut, red maple

• River birch in east, not west• Pumpkin ash only in Lake Erie Swamp forest

Forestry Facts

• 16.7 million acres of forest land consist mostly of mixed-oak (54 percent) and northern hardwoods (32 percent) forest-type groups

• 58% of state is forest, 70% is privately owned• 97% of state’s forest is timberland• Overall growth-to-removals public land: 2.7:1;

private ownerships: 1.8:1

Forest Facts

• Top species by volume: – Red maple– Black Cherry– Northern Red Oak– Sugar Maple & Chestnut Oak (tied)

Forest Facts

• Top Trees by Number – Red Maple – Black Birch – Black Cherry – Beech – Sugar Maple

Forest Facts

• Stable forest, gains and loses are balanced• Main loss (67%) is development

(nonreversible los)• Aging forest, over 40% is over 80 years• Private lands are losing stock, public are stable• Regeneration not favorable for oak due to

deer, crowding

Forest Facts

• Forest is an acre of land stocked at least 10% by trees

• Trees are plants that can reach at least 15 ft tall• 2.3 billion trees of at least 5 in. dbh in PA• Small net increase in forest size since 2004 (1%)• Relatively even aged forest of about 80-100

years

Forest Facts• Comparisons of net growth and removals

provide an indicator of sustainability• Ratio of average annual net growth to

removals (G:R)– 2:1 means forest is growing twice as much as is

being harvested• All major species in PA have ratios greater

than 1:1. – White and red pines, hemlocks, red oaks,

hickories, soft (red) maple, and yellow poplar over 2:1

PA Forestry

• 30% of PA economy is based on forestry • 16.7 million Acres of forest cover, 58% of the State• Produces more than a billion board feet of

hardwood and three-quarters of a million cords of pulpwood

• Most of PA white pine & hemlock forests cut by early 1900s

• Now even aged mixed hardwoods • 90% of PA trees are hardwoods

Forest Management

• Forests change constantly• Timbering mimics the natural disturbances

that sustained forests in the past • Clear cutting and selection cutting are

effective for PA forests – Clear cut- produces even aged forest, promotes

black cherry and oak which are shade intolerant – Selection cutting- produces uneven aged forest,

works best for shade tolerant sugar maple, beech, and hemlock

Forest Management

• Diameter cutting is destructive- Because forests are even aged, smaller ones are of a different species, inferior, or poorly located, so it can’t regenerate

• Tree planting isn’t necessary in PA- forests naturally regenerate

• Poor visual impacts are temporary (3-5 years)• Good planning reduces poor visuals

Forest Management

• Timbering has little effect on water, does not cause flooding- forest soil is absorbent, (disturbed soil is a concern)

• Less than 1% of PA land is harvested each year • Ecosystem management- ecological approach

to resource management

State Regulation of Timber Management

• Must have erosion control and sediment plan• Stream crossing requires permits • Crossing wetlands requires state and federal

permits • Fish habitat must be maintained

Best Management Practices (BMPs)

• Scientific tools and methods designed to maintain sustainable forests

• Represent the minimum management guidelines for planning, forest operations, and forest values

• Often focus on water and wetland quality

Benefits of PA Forests

• Economic- 30% of PA economy, 4th largest state industry, produce 1 bill. Board feet per year

• Environmental- reduce erosion, improve water and air quality, increase biodiversity

• Aesthetic- beauty and peace

Intermediate Forest Treatments

• Cleanings- similar to weeding, removes undesirable species, not done after sapling stage

• Thinning and improvement cuts- control stand density, when done in latter stages they produce merchantable volume, removes poor competitors

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Timber Sizes

• Cords– measures four feet high by four feet wide by eight

feet long (4 ft. x 4 ft. x 8 ft.) and has a volume of 128 cubic feet

• Board Foot– Measures one square foot one inch thick

Tree terms

Saw log- 6-8 inches for soft wood, 10-12 inches for hardwoods

Cut types

More Cut Types

• Selection cut- promotes uneven aged stands• Selective cut- removes oldest, most valuable

trees, bad for forest growth• Shelterwood retains 30-70% of canopy • Clear cutting is good for PA forests because it

allows sun loving trees like black cherry and oak to regenerate

Stand Types

Forest Structures

Fires• 98% of PA fires ignited by humans, mostly

burning debris

Forest Affect on Water

• Incepts & infiltrates water• Trees Consume Storm Water • Removes Pollutants • Phytoremediation – examples trees in parking

lots • Riparian Buffers

Forestry Problems

• Skidding is the process of dragging logs from the stumps to a central location, called a log landing, where they are loaded onto trucks and transported to the mill.

• Log landings create large areas of unprotected, exposed soil

• Roads disturb soil, increase erosion • Sewage removal • Pesticide use

Forest Fragmentation • Increases spread of invasives• Decreases mobility and habitat size of natives

Mixed-oak forests

• Contain primarily the oaks; including northern red oak, chestnut oak, white oak, scarlet oak; along with the maples, yellow-poplar, ash, hickories, and miscellaneous deciduous species.

• The understory vegetation is mountain laurel and blueberry.

Northern hardwood forests

• Contain primarily black cherry, the maples, American beech, the birches

• Understory composition often comprised of ferns, striped maple and beech brush.

• Hemlock and eastern white pine are common to both forest types and both produce valuable wood products

Succession

Forest Types

• Forest Openings- herbaceous rather than woody growth; insects, small mammals

• Brush stage- small, dense, woody vegetation; browse and fruit, nesting cover

• Pole timber- less wildlife value, more timber value

• Mast/Mature timber- (mast is the fruit of woody plants) high protein and fat for animals,

Tree Types

• Large old- nesting cavities, roosting, mast• Snags and cavity- dead but standing, perches,

cavities• Evergreens- cover from cold and snow• Vines, shrubs, fruit- form understory• Riparian- form fish and wildlife habitats, act as

sponges

Special Habitats

• Wetlands- most productive, but least common in PA; greatest biodiversity

• Seep Springs- Snow free in winter, providing water and food

• Cliffs- secure nesting and unique habitats• Caves- shelter, nesting, and roosting

Biodiversity Levels

Factors the Increase Extinction

• Specializers • Sought by People• Rare• Codependent • Top of the Food Chain • Low Reproduction Rate

Tree Anatomy