Location
Logan, UT
Event Website
http://restoringthewest.org/
Abstract
Pinyon-juniper woodlands and forests cover well over 100 million acres of the western US. The cover type has generally received little attention from professional foresters, but is highly important due to its extent, its proximity to many communities, and its importance in providing wildlife habitat. The type is highly variable across its range with a variety of pinyon and/or juniper species, a variety of other tree and shrub species, a wide range of potential understory species, a diversity of age classes, and a wide range of geologic/soil substrates. Management objectives can vary widely and may include fuels modification, wildlife habitat improvement, improvement for livestock, forest and ecosystem health and sustainability, and landscape aesthetics. Nonsilvicultural methods have commonly been applied where management has been for the primary purpose of eliminating pinyon and juniper in favor of other vegetation types. Silvicultural methods are increasingly being applied to manage pinyon and juniper cover types for sustained tree cover as well as for other multipleuse goals. Both even and uneven-aged silvicultural methods can be used in pinyon-juniper ecosystems to manipulate stand density, structure, and composition to meet various resource objectives. No one prescription will fit all stands; and silvicultural prescriptions must be based upon current and predicted stand conditions, the silvics of the species on the site, and the ecological, economic, and social goals of the land owner/manager. This paper discusses various silvicultural and non-silvicultural methods that have been applied to the management of pinyon and juniper cover types. It presents a method of using Reineke’s Stand Density Index to determine residual stocking levels, which can be applied to even or uneven-aged stands.
Silviculture for Pinyon Juniper Ecosystems
Logan, UT
Pinyon-juniper woodlands and forests cover well over 100 million acres of the western US. The cover type has generally received little attention from professional foresters, but is highly important due to its extent, its proximity to many communities, and its importance in providing wildlife habitat. The type is highly variable across its range with a variety of pinyon and/or juniper species, a variety of other tree and shrub species, a wide range of potential understory species, a diversity of age classes, and a wide range of geologic/soil substrates. Management objectives can vary widely and may include fuels modification, wildlife habitat improvement, improvement for livestock, forest and ecosystem health and sustainability, and landscape aesthetics. Nonsilvicultural methods have commonly been applied where management has been for the primary purpose of eliminating pinyon and juniper in favor of other vegetation types. Silvicultural methods are increasingly being applied to manage pinyon and juniper cover types for sustained tree cover as well as for other multipleuse goals. Both even and uneven-aged silvicultural methods can be used in pinyon-juniper ecosystems to manipulate stand density, structure, and composition to meet various resource objectives. No one prescription will fit all stands; and silvicultural prescriptions must be based upon current and predicted stand conditions, the silvics of the species on the site, and the ecological, economic, and social goals of the land owner/manager. This paper discusses various silvicultural and non-silvicultural methods that have been applied to the management of pinyon and juniper cover types. It presents a method of using Reineke’s Stand Density Index to determine residual stocking levels, which can be applied to even or uneven-aged stands.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/rtw/2011/Breakout1/3
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