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Genomics and Applied Biology, 2010, Vol.1, No.1
http://gab.sophiapublisher.com
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Table 6 The overstory forest tree species (dbh >10 cm) that
occurred in the Richland Furnace State Forest, Southern Ohio
Tree type
Species
Quercus alba
L.
Quercus coccinea
Muenchh.
Quercus prinus
L.
Quercus rubra
L.
Oak
Quercus velutina
Lam.
Carya glabra
(Mill.) Sweet
Hickory
Carya tomentosa
Poir. Nutt.
Acer rubrum
L.
Acer saccharum
Marsh.
Cornus florida
L.
Fraxinus americana
L.
Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Marsh.
Juglans nigra
L.
Liriodendron tulipifera
L.
Nyssa sylvatica
Marsh.
Oxydendrum arboreum
(L.) DC
Populus grandidentata
Michx.
Ulmus americana
L.
Mixed Hardwoods
Ulmus rubra
Muhl.
Since prescribed burning usually is administered in
late fall (after onset of dormancy) or early spring
before bud break, data was collected during winter
months in order to characterize the available fuel
during these burning seasons.
Four fuel plots were located within each of the
0.08-ha overstory plots along transects perpendicular
to each other, bisecting the overstory plot center, and
oriented in an east-west and north-south directions.
Each fuel plot, 1 m2 in size, was established along
these transects 14 m from the plot center.
All woody vegetation that is<1.4 m in height was
clipped at the groundline from the fuel plots. These
stems were cut into manageable pieces, placed in
labeled sample bags in the field, and brought back to
the lab for further analysis.
Due to the potential of large volumes of herbaceous
and forest litter on these fuel plots, 0.1 m
2
sub- sample
plots were utilized, randomly locating the sub-sample
plot within the 1 m
2
plot. The percent cover of
Table 7 Stand attributes for the control and the treatments before and after harvest in Richland Furnace State Forest in southern Ohio
Basal area (m
2
/ha)
Trees per ha
Average dbh (cm)
Stocking (%)
Treatment
Sample
size
Mean Standard
deviation
Mean Standard
deviation
Mean Standard
deviation
Mean Standard
deviation
50%
stocking
Pre-harvest
Post-harvest
16
16
26.2
13.2
7.9
3.8
272
58
67
17
30.8
52.8
4.1
8.1
90
43
26
12
0%
stocking
Pre-harvest
Post-harvest
16
16
26.2
18.1
5.0
4.5
351
130
68
32
28.2
41.1
3.0
4.5
93
61
17
15
Control
No harvest
8
21.2
2.5
352
55
25.7
1.8
77
9
herbaceous and forest litter was recorded on both the
fuel plot and sub-sample plot. All herbaceous and
forest litter material were gathered from the
sub-sample plot, placed in labeled sample bags, and
brought back to the lab for further analysis. A dry
weight to percent cover ratio of herbaceous material
and forest litter material was developed for each
sub-sample plot and applied to he 1 m2 fuel plot. All
forest litter material on sub-sample plot was collected
down to the mineral soil, and all coarse woody
material that was <5 cm diameter was considered a
part of the litter.
Coarse woody debris for this study was defined as all
dead wood material that was greater than 5 cm
diameter. A sampling method for coarse woody debris
described by Brown et al. (2004) was modified and
used in this study. Two 50 m transects were placed
through the plot center at right angles to each other, in
a north-south and east-west direction. Dead wood that
is>5 cm diameter and intersects these lines were
measured, and the diameter at the point of intersection
of each piece was recorded. Deadwood was measured
if: (a) more than 50% of the log is above ground and
(b) the sampling line crosses through at least 50% of
the diameter of the log. Each measured piece was
assigned to one of three density states: sound,
intermediate, or rotten. Dead wood samples