Tree species response to climate change-induced shifts in the hydrological cycle depends on many physiological traits, particularly variation in water relations characteristics. We evaluated differences in shoot water potential, vulnerability of branches to reductions in hydraulic conductivity, and water source use between Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud. var. latifolia Engelm. (lodgepole pine) a...

Loblolly pine (Pinus tueda L) has become the most important source of wood fiber in the southern United States. This tree is an excellent competitor and recovers well from a variety of adverse conditions. ‘a2 The value of loblolly pine as a plantation tree has encouraged many researchers to devote their careers to the study of this species. It is surprising then that the root system of loblolly...

Bark beetles (Coleoptera: C~rculionidae, Scolytinae) are commonly recognized as important tree mortality agents in coniferous forests of the western U.S. Most species feed on the phloem and cambium, or xylem tissue of woody plants; and a few are recognized as the most destructive of all forest insect pests. The last decade has seen elevated levels of bark beetle caused tree mortality in spruce,...

Mediterranean pine forests display high resilience after extreme climatic events such as severe droughts. However, recent dry spells causing growth decline and triggering forest dieback challenge the capacity of some forests to recover following major disturbances. To describe how resilient the responses of forests to drought can be, we quantified growth dynamics in plantations of two pine spec...

Forests play an important role with respect to water resources, and can be managed to increase surfaceand groundwater recharge. With the creation of a forest water yield payment system, privately-owned forests, which comprise the majority of forest area in the Southeastern US, could become an important potential source of additional water supply. The economic tradeoffs between timber revenues a...

Individual-tree models of five-year basal area growth were developed for jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) in northern Ontario. Tree growth data were collected from long-term permanent plots of pure and mixed stands of the two species. The models were fitted using mixed model methods due to correlated remeasurements of tree growth over time. Since th...

Silvopasture practices are being advocated as a means of maintaining pine forest acreage in the southeast United States; however, scientific data on the design and management for optimum tree growth are lacking. Studies were conducted near Booneville AR to determine the effects of weed control, irrigation, soil fertilization and protection from cattle grazing on the establishment of loblolly pi...