Sapwood taper models and implied sapwood volume and foliage profiles for coastal Douglas-fir

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 849-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Maguire ◽  
João L.F. Batista

Sapwood dimensions lend insight into the functional and ecophysiological structure of trees and can therefore be profitably applied in various types of growth analyses and simulation models. Ten taper models were fitted to sapwood data from the stems of 134 Douglas-fir (Pseudotsugamenziesii (Mirb.) Franco) trees and were compared by various fit statistics, residual behavior, and validation performance on 21 additional trees. The recommended model was a variable exponent model with six parameters and three basic tree-level predictors: diameter, height, and height to crown base. The resulting equation can be applied for estimating sapwood area at crown base, leaf area, sapwood volume, and vertical foliage distribution on standing trees. Ten sample plots are examined to demonstrate that sapwood taper models allow more explicit portrayal of stand structure in dimensions that have a direct functional link to various growth and developmental processes.

1987 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 236-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Maguire ◽  
David W. Hann

Two basic taper models were analyzed for their ability to predict sapwood area at crown base. Sapwood areas were estimated on stem cross sections by measuring sapwood radii on the longest and perpendicular to longest axes and by assuming conformity to an ellipse. These data were collected on 2 to 14 points along the stems of 72 Douglas-fir trees in southwestern Oregon. Across the range in diameter at breast height, total height, and height to crown base, quadratic–quadratic segmented polynomials (T. A. Max and H. E. Burkhart. 1976. For. Sci. 25: 283–289) provided more consistent monotonie taper from breast height to crown base than F. A. Bennett and B. F. Swindel models (1972. USDA For. Serv. Res. Note SE-179). A model for predicting breast height sapwood area from only diameter at breast height, total height, and height to crown base is also presented.


1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (11) ◽  
pp. 1991-2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Maguire ◽  
William S. Bennett

Total amount and vertical distribution of foliage represent important aspects of forest stand structure and its influence on dry matter productivity, forest microclimate, watershed properties, and habitat structure. Variation in foliage distribution was analyzed on trees and plots in a series of even-aged Douglas-fir (Pseudotsugamenziesii (Mirb.) Franco) stands scheduled for management under a wide range of silvicultural regimes. Branch-level foliage mass and foliage area equations were developed from a sample of 138 branches. These equations were applied to 27 trees on which the diameter and height of all live primary branches were measured, allowing estimation of both the total amount of foliage and its vertical distribution. A β-distribution was fitted to data describing the vertical distribution of foliage on each tree, and the resulting parameter estimates were modelled as functions of tree height, diameter at breast height, crown length, and relative height in the stand. Foliage area distribution tended to be shifted downward relative to foliage mass because of the expected increase in specific leaf area with depth into the crown. Similarly, the relative foliage distribution in terms of both mass and area was shifted downward as the tree became more dominant, or as relative height in the stand increased. In contrast, foliage on trees of similar relative height was shifted upward in response to the lower stand densities imposed by precommercial thinning. On the stand level, relative vertical distribution of foliage in the canopy was more peaked than would be implied by assuming a constant leaf area/sapwood area ratio throughout the composite tree crowns. Between-stand variation in vertical foliage distribution was dictated by differences in stand top height, height to crown base, and number of trees per hectare.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 2602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence Schimleck ◽  
Joseph Dahlen ◽  
Seung-Chul Yoon ◽  
Kurt Lawrence ◽  
Paul Jones

Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and NIR hyperspectral imaging (NIR-HSI) were compared for the rapid estimation of physical and mechanical properties of No. 2 visual grade 2 × 4 (38.1 mm by 88.9 mm) Douglas-fir structural lumber. In total, 390 lumber samples were acquired from four mills in North America and destructively tested through bending. From each piece of lumber, a 25-mm length block was cut to collect diffuse reflectance NIR spectra and hyperspectral images. Calibrations for the specific gravity (SG) of both the lumber (SGlumber) and 25-mm block (SGblock) and the lumber modulus of elasticity (MOE) and modulus of rupture (MOR) were created using partial least squares (PLS) regression and their performance checked with a prediction set. The strongest calibrations were based on NIR spectra; however, the NIR-HSI data provided stronger predictions for all properties. In terms of fit statistics, SGblock gave the best results, followed by SGlumber, MOE, and MOR. The NIR-HSI SGlumber, MOE, and MOR calibrations were used to predict these properties for each pixel across the transverse surface of the scanned samples, allowing SG, MOE, and MOR variation within and among rings to be observed.


1999 ◽  
Vol 29 (12) ◽  
pp. 1993-1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara L Gartner ◽  
Jeffrey J Morrell ◽  
Camille M Freitag ◽  
Rachel Spicer

Heartwood durability of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco var. menziesii) was studied as a function of vertical and radial position in boles of trees with a wide range of leaf area/sapwood area ratios. Six 34-year-old trees were harvested from each of three plots established 14 years before: very dense, thinned, and thinned and fertilized. Heartwood samples from three radial positions and five heights were incubated with the decay fungus Postia placenta (Fr.) M. Larsen et Lombard. There were no significant differences in wood mass loss (decay resistance) by vertical or radial position. One could expect that trees with high leaf area/sapwood area could have the carbon to produce heartwood that is more resistant to decay than trees with lower leaf area/sapwood area. However, we found no relationship between leaf area above node 20, sapwood area there, or their ratio, and the decay resistance of outer heartwood at that node. These results suggest that, for young Douglas-fir trees, heartwood durability does not vary with position in the bole or with environments that alter the tree's balance of sapwood and leaf area. We suggest that young stands may thus be robust with respect to the effect of silvicultural regimes on heartwood durability.


Symmetry ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martynas Narmontas ◽  
Petras Rupšys ◽  
Edmundas Petrauskas

In this work, we employ stochastic differential equations (SDEs) to model tree stem taper. SDE stem taper models have some theoretical advantages over the commonly employed regression-based stem taper modeling techniques, as SDE models have both simple analytic forms and a high level of accuracy. We perform fixed- and mixed-effect parameters estimation for the stem taper models by developing an approximated maximum likelihood procedure and using a data set of longitudinal measurements from 319 mountain pine trees. The symmetric Vasicek- and asymmetric Gompertz-type diffusion processes used adequately describe stem taper evolution. The proposed SDE stem taper models are compared to four regression stem taper equations and four volume equations. Overall, the best goodness-of-fit statistics are produced by the mixed-effect parameters SDEs stem taper models. All results are obtained in the Maple computer algebra system.


2005 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 203-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel W. Gilmore ◽  
Eric K. Zenner

Abstract Leaf area is an important determinant of plant productivity. Because foliage is difficult to measure directly, allometric relationships often are used to predict branch-level and tree-level attributes such as total mass, needle mass, crown biomass, and projected leaf area. Two modeling approaches (i.e., the “crown weighing” and the “branch summation” approach) and two model forms (i.e., a nonlinear model form and a linear logarithmic model form) have generally been used to develop allometric relationships. It is unclear, however, whether these approaches result in similar predictions, which of these model forms provides us with the better predictions, and whether allometric equations developed for the same tree species in one region can be safely applied in another region. To investigate these questions, allometric equations to predict branch-level attributes (mass and leaf area) were constructed for balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.) in Minnesota. The “branch summation” approach was used to construct equations to predict crown biomass and projected leaf area from sapwood area, dbh, and crown length. These predictions were compared to those from the crown weighing approach. No statistically significant differences were detected. Results also indicated that the logarithmic form of the allometric model was the model of choice over the nonlinear form. Furthermore, branch-level and tree-level equations developed for balsam fir from north-central Minnesota differed from those of other regions within the range of data for the trees sampled. This reinforces the need for developing localized allometric equations.North. J. Appl. For. 22(3):203–210.


2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 1448-1461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Kuehne ◽  
Aaron R. Weiskittel ◽  
Shawn Fraver ◽  
Klaus J. Puettmann

Thinning is believed to accelerate the development of late-successional attributes, thereby enhancing stand structural heterogeneity in young, secondary forests. By making use of a large-scale experiment implemented in 40- to 60-year-old coastal Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco) forests, we addressed the following objectives: (i) determine the effect of three thinning treatments on the temporal dynamics (first 11 years after thinning) of key forest structure measures, (ii) evaluate the relationships between spatially explicit structural diversity measures and spatially nonexplicit stand metrics, and (iii) test the relationships between stand structure and observed periodic stand volume growth, ingrowth, and mortality. Treatments consisted of high-density, moderate-density, and variable-density thinnings-from-below, as well as a control. Differences in stand structural heterogeneity between treatments were mostly nonsignificant. However, our results suggest that variable-density stands displayed structural enrichment as tree size and tree species diversity increased throughout the study period as a result of continuous ingrowth of species other than Douglas-fir. Simple spatially nonexplicit metrics could not be used to reliably model spatially explicit structural diversity measures. The inclusion of structural and species diversity measures only rarely improved accuracy of sample plot level growth, ingrowth, and mortality prediction models. Despite the short-term nature of this study, we conclude that variable-density thinning shows promise in increasing structural heterogeneity in young even-aged stands. The inclusion of structural diversity measures in growth and mortality models may be beneficial, but further work is needed to clarify the underlying relationships, particularly at the individual-tree level.


1994 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 860-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Don Minore ◽  
Howard G. Weatherly

Whole-tree harvest of Pacific yew (Taxusbrevifolia Nutt.) to provide bark for production of the new anticancer drug taxol may adversely affect stand structure where yews provide thermal cover, browse, or riparian benefits. Harvesting only a portion of the bark on standing trees would maintain existing stand structure if the affected trees continued to grow, but partial bark removal seldom has been applied because its long-term effects are unknown. We measured 121 yews that had been scarred by windthrow or logging damage 3–92 years ago and found that their growth did not differ significantly from the growth of nearby unscarred yews. Radial growth of the scarred trees was strongly correlated with growth before scarring; it was slightly associated with overstory canopy density, elevation, and the amount of bark removed. Partial bark removal from one side of the tree probably will not seriously affect the growth of Pacific yew if less than 50% of the bark is removed.


1985 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 985-988 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ram Oren ◽  
Walter G. Thies ◽  
Richard H. Waring

Total stand sapwood basal area, a measure of competing canopy leaf area, was reduced 30% by laminated root rot induced by Phellinusweirii (Murr.) Gilb. in a heavily infected 40-year-old coastal stand of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsugamenziesii (Mirb.) Franco) compared with that of a similar uninfected stand. Annual basal area increment per unit of sapwood area, an index of tree vigor, was expected to increase in uninfected trees in the infected stand as surrounding trees died from root rot; vigor of the uninfected trees did increase by an average of 30%, offsetting the reduction in canopy leaf area. This increase, although less than might be expected in an evenly spaced thinned stand, was sufficient to maintain stand basal area growth at levels similar to those of unthinned forests. These findings indicate that increased growth by residual trees must be taken into account when the impact of disease-induced mortality on stand production is assessed.


2008 ◽  
Vol 38 (9) ◽  
pp. 2476-2486 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marilyn L. Cherry ◽  
Vikas Vikram ◽  
David Briggs ◽  
Daniel W. Cress ◽  
Glenn T. Howe

We studied wood stiffness (estimated by modulus of elasticity, MOE), wood density, wood moisture content, and growth in a progeny test (50–130 families per trait; 1–3 sites) of coastal Douglas-fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii (Mirb.) Franco). We measured MOE directly using lumber bending tests (MOEbl) and indirectly using tools (HM200 and ST300) that can be used to measure acoustic velocity in logs (VelHM) or standing trees (VelST). Acoustic MOEs in logs and standing trees (MOEHM and MOEST) were obtained from the velocities and green wood density. For backward selection, we estimated genetic gains in MOEbl of 8.6%–12.3%. Relative efficiencies (REs), the relative gains in MOEbl expected from indirect selection for correlated traits, were 78%–93% for the HM200 traits, 57%–58% for the ST300 traits, 38% for the basic wood density of basal discs (Denbd), and 98% for the oven-dry density of logs estimated from the lumber (Denol). The HM200 is an efficient tool for improving MOEbl, but gains will be lower using the ST300 on standing trees. Indirect selection on Denbd should be used with caution because the RE was low and Denbd was negatively correlated with growth (–0.49 to –0.73).


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