Abstract
Abstract - Treatments were the following hardwood basal areas (square feet per acre) and spatial arrangements: 0, 15-grouped, 15-scattered, 30-scattered, and an untreated control. Pine basal area was reduced by harvesting to 60 square feet per acre in all treatments except the control. After six growing seasons, pine regeneration ranged from 8,890 stems per acre in the 0-hardwood treatment to 0 stems per acre in the control, and stems were 6.2 times taller in the 0-hardwood treatment than in the 30-scattered treatment. Height growth of pine regeneration was acceptable in the 0-hardwood and 15-grouped treatments, but was inadequate elsewhere. Oak regeneration averaged 1,510 stems per acre after 6 years with no significant differences among treatments. Coverage of understory vegetation was greatest in the 0-hardwood treatment and declined as hardwood retention increased. Volume growth of merchantable pines surviving the 6-year period was 34 percent higher in the 0-hardwood treatment than in the 15- and 30-scattered treatments. However, high rates of postharvest mortality resulted in no significant differences in rates of net growth among treatments.
Parent Publication
Citation
Shelton, Michael G. 2004. Effects of Retaining a Hardwood Component During the Application of Uneven-Aged Silviculture in a Shortleaf Pine-Oak Stand: 6-Year Results. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-74. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. pp. 297-304
