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Overview
Basics
Basics
This project involved studying how the different parts of aspen forests respond to restoration treatments being implemented by land management agencies around the Lake Tahoe Basin.
We studied response of the aspen ecosystem to removal of encroaching conifers and burning of cut conifer wood in piles. In particular, we studied response of aspen trees, the regeneration of new aspen and invading conifers, and changes in the herbaceous vegetation layer which is a "hotspot" of biodiversity in healthy aspen forests but gets shaded out by conifers and may be at risk of replacement by invasive plants.
Completed
2011
2012
2015
$80,321
Kat McIntyre (KMcIntyre@trpa.gov)
10/30/2017
10/30/2017
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| Location Information | Location Notes |
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Organizations
EIP Details
EIP Basics
EIP Basics
04.01.01.0111 - P091: Ecosystem Response to Aspen Restoration
Performance Measures
Expected Performance Measures
Expected Performance Measures
No expected performance measures set for this project.
Reported Performance Measures
Reported Performance Measures
No annual performance measure accomplishments entered for this project.
Funding
Expected Funding
Expected Funding
$80,321
$80,321
$0
| Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (Pacific Southwest Research Station) (USFS - PSW) | $80,321 | $80,321 | $0 |
| Grand Total | $80,321 | $80,321 | $0 |
Reported Expenditures
Reported Expenditures
| Total | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (Pacifi... | $80,321 | $16,064 | $16,064 | $16,065 | $16,064 | $16,064 |
| Grand Total | $80,321 | $16,064 | $16,064 | $16,065 | $16,064 | $16,064 |
Photos
Other Details
Watersheds
No watersheds set for this project.
Threshold Categories
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Studying the growth, health, and regeneration patterns of aspen and conifer in different stands will inform future conservation and restoration: monitoring stands with different disturbance histories, severity of encroachment, thinning methods, thinning intensities, and pile burning treatments will reveal key factors or mechanisms contributing to the enhancement or decline in growth and vigor of the remaining aspen forests.
Local and Regional Plans
No Local and Regional Plans set for this project.
Related Projects
Related Projects
No Related Projects set for this project.
External Links
No external links entered.
Notes
Notes
| 10/30/2017 1:45 PM | Matt Driscoll | Match Funding: $ 17,443 | ||
| 07/27/2017 3:46 PM | Kiara Cuerpo-Hadsall | Objectives: There is a need for monitoring of ecosystem responses to thinning and pile burning in aspen stands. Analysis of monitoring data would inform the design of thinning and pile-building prescriptions; specifically, maximum thinning intensity, maximum burn pile size, and minimum safe distance from live aspen trees of any size. |
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| 07/27/2017 3:46 PM | Kiara Cuerpo-Hadsall | Findings & Management Implications: - Percent cover of vegetation generally increases over time immediately adjacent to a burned pile, and within the footprint of burned pile. - Young aspen growth could be negligible one year, then massive the next year, or vice versa. Preliminary analysis of aspen growth rings shows major fluctuations in growth between years. However, fluctuations were more pronounced in the understory than among the aspen trees. -Additional research is needed to understand what is driving growth in the understory of aspen forests after conifer removal and pile burn treatments, followed by years of drought. -A related dendrochronological study of aspen growth and climate is expected to be completed by at HSU over the next year. -The project investigators are currently examining growth rates of conifer trees and have initiated a new collaboration with USFS LTBMU to study conifer seedling regeneration growth rates around the Lake Tahoe Basin, to better understand "treatment persistence", sometimes called "treatment longevity" the time taken for thinned stands to grow back to the same level of crowding as before treatment. This will help managers anticipate and prioritize future conifer thinning treatments in Lake Tahoe Basin. |
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| 07/27/2017 3:44 PM | Kiara Cuerpo-Hadsall | Publications: www.fs.fed.us/PSW/partnerships/tahoescience "Predicting Treatment Longevity after Successive Conifer Removals in Sierra Nevada Aspen Restoration" by J.ÂP. Berrill, C.M. Dagley, and S.A. Coppeto; June, 2016 issue of Ecological Restoration (ISSN: 0912-3814). Regeneration and Recruitment Correlate with Stand Density and Composition in Long-Âunburned Aspen Stands Undergoing Succession to Conifer in the Sierra Nevada, USA by J.P. Berrill and C.M. Dagley; 2014. Forest Research: Open Access (ISSN: 2168-9776). |