Managing for the parts of the sum: restoration treatments to accelerate late successional structures

Register

February 24, 2022
Noon – 1 p.m. Pacific Time

Presenter: Dr. Klaus Puettmann, Oregon State University

This webinar highlights results from various large-scale, long-term studies. General vegetation response trends after restoration treatments were highly predictable, but most responses were spatially very variable. Thus, accounting for the variability in initial conditions at neighborhood and stand scales in the prescription of restoration treatments is crucial for efficient management. In addition, to achieve the wide range of structures and composition found in late-successional stands requires a full suite of silvicultural treatments, in our case from unthinned leave islands to areas with variable density thinnings and creation of larger canopy gaps. Furthermore, different components of stand structure and vegetation composition responded to restoration treatments at different time scales or even in different directions. Thus, treatments are more efficient we set priorities where and when the different vegetation components are most desirable within a stand or landscape and design restoration treatments accordingly.