scholarly journals An Overview of The Efficacy of Vegetation Management Alternatives for Conifer Regeneration in Boreal Forests

2011 ◽  
Vol 87 (02) ◽  
pp. 175-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Wiensczyk ◽  
Kathie Swift ◽  
Andrée Morneault ◽  
Nelson Thiffault ◽  
Kandyd Szuba ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Treatment Efficacy ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Thermal Treatments ◽  
Mechanical Site Preparation ◽  
Cover Cropping ◽  
Broad Array ◽  
Physical Treatments ◽  
Management Alternatives

In this paper, we discuss the broad array of treatments that could be used to control competitive vegetation in conifer plantations in the boreal forests of Canada. We present vegetation management alternatives screened based on their treatment efficacy, which we defined as their ability to (a) control competitive vegetation and (b) not cause undue damage to conifer seedlings. The treatments reviewed range from pre-harvest (preventative) to post-plant release (reactive) treatments, and are organized into five categories: (i) silvicultural and harvest systems, (ii) physical treatments such as mechanical site preparation, cutting, girdling and mulching; (iii) thermal treatments such as prescribed fire and steaming; (iv) cultural treatments such as seedling culture, cover cropping, and grazing; and (v) chemical and biological spray treatments. We based our assessment of treatment efficacy on previous reviews, expert opinion, and published literature. We conclude on the need to further assess the effectiveness of forest vegetation management strategies in the context of multi-purpose plantations that consider ecological, social and silvicultural objectives.

scholarly journals Trade-Offs among Release Treatments in Jack Pine Plantations: Twenty-Five Year Responses

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 370
Author(s):  
Holly D. Deighton ◽  
Frederick Wayne Bell ◽  
Nelson Thiffault ◽  
Eric B. Searle ◽  
Mathew Leitch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Forest Diversity ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Jack Pine Forests ◽  
Stand Yield ◽  
Forest Managers

We assessed 27 indicators of plant diversity, stand yield and individual crop tree responses 25 years post-treatment to determine long-term trade-offs among conifer release treatments in boreal and sub-boreal forests. This research addresses the lack of longer-term data needed by forest managers to implement more integrated vegetation management programs, supporting more informed decisions about release treatment choice. Four treatments (untreated control, motor-manual brushsaw, single aerial spray, and complete competition removal) were established at two jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) sites in Ontario, Canada. Our results suggest that plant diversity and productivity in boreal jack pine forests are significantly influenced by vegetation management treatments. Overall, release treatments did not cause a loss of diversity but benefitted stand-scale yield and individual crop tree growth, with maximum benefits occurring in more intensive release treatments. However, none of the treatments maximized all 27 indicators studied; thus, forest managers are faced with trade-offs when choosing treatments. Research on longer term effects, ideally through at least one rotation, is essential to fully understand outcomes of different vegetation management on forest diversity, stand yield, and individual crop tree responses.

The Hidden Half: Linking microbial communities to habitat condition and vegetation management in UK blanket bogs

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Burn ◽  
Andreas Heinemeyer ◽  
Thorunn Helgason ◽  
David Glaves ◽  
Michael Morecroft
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Equation Model ◽  
Habitat Condition ◽  
Blanket Bog ◽  
The Uk

<p>Peatlands are globally valued for the ecosystem services they deliver, including water quality regulation and carbon sequestration. In the UK, blanket bogs are the main peatland habitat and previous work has linked blanket bog management, especially rotational burning of heather vegetation on grousemoors, to impacts on these ecosystem services. However, we still lack a mechanistic, process-level understanding of how peatland management and habitat status is linked to ecosystem service provision, which is mostly driven by soil microbial processes.</p><p>Here we examine bacterial and fungal communities across a spectrum of “intact” to degraded UK blanket bogs and under different vegetation management strategies. Sites included grousemoors under burnt and alternative mown or uncut management along with further locations including 'near intact', degraded and restored sites across a UK climatic gradient ranging from Exmoor (South UK), the Peak District (Mid) to the Flow Country (North). Moreover, an experiment was setup at the University of York with peat mesocosms taken from all sites and management/habitat conditions to allow a comparison between field and controlled conditions and assessing root-mediated processes. Using a structural equation model, we linked grousemoor management to specific fungal/bacterial functional groups, and have started to relate this to changes in water quality provision and carbon cycle aspects. This represents a significant step in the effort to use microbial communities as indicators of peatland habitat condition in UK upland blanket bogs. </p><p> </p>

Trade-offs and Synergies Between Economic Gains and Plant Diversity Across a Range of Management Alternatives in Boreal Forests

2018 ◽  
Vol 151 ◽  
pp. 162-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Si Chen ◽  
Chander Shahi ◽  
Han Y.H. Chen ◽  
Praveen Kumar ◽  
Zilong Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Management Alternatives

Vegetation Dynamics in Changing Environments.

1993 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 104 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Archer
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Broad Array ◽  
Landscape Response ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Local Ecosystem ◽  
Induced Changes

Human-induced changes in atmospheric chemistry and meteorology have the potential to alter a broad array of ecosystem processes over a range of temporal and spatial scales. These may have direct and indirect effects that could influence management strategies and landscape response to disturbances associated with natural events and land use. The extent to which forecasted global changes are effective in altering local ecosystem properties will depend upon a variety of factors. In this paper, I address species life history traits and community and landscape properties that can be used by land managers to evaluate potential manifestations of global change on a local scale.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Two Management Strategies for Harvested Emergent Vegetation on Immature Mosquito Abundance and Water Quality

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 139-151
Author(s):  
William E. Walton ◽  
Kevin Mai ◽  
Andrew Nguyen ◽  
Rex Tse
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Plant Biomass ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Free Water ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Water Volume ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
Mosquito Abundance

ABSTRACT Emergent macrophytes play critical roles in water treatment processes of free-water surface constructed treatment wetlands. Management strategies for plant biomass affect wetland function and mosquito populations. Sinking of harvested macrophyte biomass is thought to provide organic carbon that enhances denitrifying bacteria important for nutrient removal while concomitantly reducing harborage for mosquitoes. The effects of sinking versus floating dried plant biomass (California bulrush [Schoenoplectus californicus]) on immature mosquito abundance and water quality (nutrient levels, oxygen demand, and physicochemical variables) were examined in mesocosms (28-m2 ponds or 1.4-m2 wading pools) under different flow regimes in 4 studies. The numbers of mosquito larvae in earthen ponds with floating vegetation were greater than in ponds with sunken vegetation on most dates but did not differ significantly between the 2 vegetation treatments in experiments using wading pools. Differences of the abundance of Anopheles larvae between the 2 vegetation management treatments were larger than for Culex larvae when naturally occurring larval mosquito predators were present. At high turnover rates (>2 pond volumes/day), water quality did not differ significantly between the vegetation management treatments and the water supply. At low turnover rates (approximately 2–6% of water volume/day), water quality differed significantly between the 2 vegetation management treatments and the water supply. Sinking vegetation can enhance the effectiveness of mosquito control but, depending on water management practices, may raise the concentrations of water quality constituents in discharges that are regulated under the Clean Water Act.

scholarly journals Long term beef production in extensive cow-calf systems in the tropical savannas of eastern Colombia

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raúl Vera-Infanzón ◽  
Carlos Ramírez-Restrepo
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rates ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Low Input ◽  
Pooled Data ◽  
Cull Cows ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Neotropical Savannas ◽  
Management Alternatives

Replacement beef heifers in extensive systems of the neotropical savannas of Colombia are low priority animals and are assigned to native savannas and low-quality pastures, with scarcely researched long-term consequences. The study pooled data from four contemporary grazing experiments to determine the effects of low growth rates of heifers on their lifetime production of liveweight gains (LWGs) per year and per hectare (ha) subject to different management strategies. Three growth rates were imposed on grazing heifers during the growing phase (i.e. nine-36 months of age) on Brachiaria humidicola pastures. Upon the end of the previous phase, animals were allocated to a B. humidicola paddock with a reduced stocking rate or introduced to a B. decumbens sward to allow compensatory LWGs during the breeding phase (i.e. cows plus weaned calves). Severely limited heifers allowed to make compensatory growth did not reach the outputs of better fed animals. Regardless of the strategy followed, high producing years tended to be followed by lower production in the following year. Comparison with reasonably fed breeding cows full-time on well-managed B. decumbens showed important and significant differences in favor of the more intensive system over the lifetime of the animals. Over the nine-year period, the systems’ beef output (i.e. weaned calves plus cows’ LWGs) ranged between 86 and 206 kg/ha/year and demonstrated that a wide array of low input management alternatives is feasible. Beef output increases if the LW of cull cows is considered, particularly if they are allowed a short period of fattening during the rainy reason on a low input pasture.

scholarly journals Vulnerability of Conifer Regeneration to Spruce Budworm Outbreaks in the Eastern Canadian Boreal Forest

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janie Lavoie ◽  
Miguel Montoro Girona ◽  
Hubert Morin
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Insect Outbreaks ◽  
Spruce Stands ◽  
Canadian Boreal Forest

Spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) is the main defoliator of conifer trees in North American boreal forests, affecting extensive areas and causing marked losses of timber supplies. In 2017, spruce budworm affected more than 7 million ha of Eastern Canadian forest. Defoliation was particularly severe for black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), one of the most important commercial trees in Canada. During the last decades, intensive forest exploitation practices have created vast stands of young balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.) and black spruce. Most research focused on the impacts of spruce budworm has been on mature stands; its effects on regeneration, however, have been neglected. This study evaluates the impacts of spruce budworm on the defoliation of conifer seedlings (black spruce and balsam fir) in clearcuts. We measured the cumulative and annual defoliation of seedlings within six clearcut black spruce stands in Quebec (Canada) that had experienced severe levels of defoliation due to spruce budworm. For all sampled seedlings, we recorded tree species, height class, and distance to the residual forest. Seedling height and species strongly influenced defoliation level. Small seedlings were less affected by spruce budworm activity. As well, cumulative defoliation for balsam fir was double that of black spruce (21% and 9%, respectively). Distance to residual stands had no significant effect on seedling defoliation. As insect outbreaks in boreal forests are expected to become more severe and frequent in the near future, our results are important for adapting forest management strategies to insect outbreaks in a context of climate change.

Impacts of ground vegetation management strategies in a kiwifruit orchard on the composition and functioning of the soil biota

2001 ◽  
Vol 33 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 893-905 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.A. Wardle ◽  
G.W. Yeates ◽  
K.I. Bonner ◽  
K.S. Nicholson ◽  
R.N. Watson
Keyword(s):  
Management Strategies ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Soil Biota ◽  
Ground Vegetation

scholarly journals Influencing Public Perception of Sustainable Roadside Vegetation Management Strategies

2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 119-124
Author(s):  
Anne Lucey ◽  
Susan Barton
Keyword(s):  
Public Perception ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Warm Season ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Internet Survey ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Response Distribution ◽  
Roadside Vegetation ◽  
Significant Change ◽  
Experimental Group

Abstract Sustainably managed roadsides limit non-native turf grass and include meadows of native warm season grasses and flowering perennials, native shrubs, and trees. Implementation of sustainable strategies result in cost savings, better water quality and infiltration, increased diversity of insect life and benefits to the socioeconomic health of the state. Lacking an awareness of associated benefits, the public is often hesitant to accept sustainable, but less manicured roadsides, causing many Departments of Transportation to revert to traditional management regimes. This research assessed perception and determined that acceptance could be increased with an awareness of associated benefits. An Internet survey was administered to three groups of participants. A control group rated eleven roadside images from least to most desirable and completed a brief survey. An experimental group read a list of information about traditional and sustainable strategies of roadside vegetation management before rating the images and completing the survey. Another experimental group viewed a 6½ minute video that delivered the same information as the list, but engaged the respondent differently. This group then rated the images and completed the survey, as did the previous two groups. Among those who read the list, a significant change in perception occurred for three of the images when compared to those in the control group. Among those who viewed the video, a significant change in perception occurred for four of the images when compared to those in the control group. When all images were compared to the baseline image (mown turf), Delaware's current default vegetation management strategy, each response distribution was significantly different than that of mown turf. Respondents rated images of flowering meadows, meadow with a mown turf margin, turf with a wooded edge, shrubs and trees more desirable than mown turf and images with grassy meadows less desirable. When strategies were grouped according to similar attributes and compared to mown turf, respondents rated images with flowers (flowering meadows, shrubs and trees), and images with a mown turf margin more desirable than turf and grass meadows less desirable.

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