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Full-Text Articles in Forest Sciences

Considerations For The Use Of Mycorrhizal Fungi Inoculants In Coal Mine Reclamation And Reforestation In Appalachia: A Guide Of Best Practices And Management Recommendations, Cole Hansen Reistrup May 2023

Considerations For The Use Of Mycorrhizal Fungi Inoculants In Coal Mine Reclamation And Reforestation In Appalachia: A Guide Of Best Practices And Management Recommendations, Cole Hansen Reistrup

Master's Projects and Capstones

Nearly all terrestrial plants form symbiotic relationships with mycorrhizal fungi. These beneficial soil microbes support plant health by increasing plants’ access to nutrients and water, protecting them from pathogens, improving soil properties, and more. A challenge to restoring forests on coal mined land in Appalachia is that mine soils are often degraded in a number of ways, including lacking mycorrhizal fungi, which makes mine soils difficult for trees to grow upon. Substantial improvements to coal mine reforestation success have been made since the development of the Forestry Reclamation Approach in 2005 that provides guidelines for how to create a suitable …


Investigation Of Fungal Pathogens And Woodboring Beetles Of Sugarbush Stands In The Central Appalachian Region, Molly A. Sherlock Jan 2023

Investigation Of Fungal Pathogens And Woodboring Beetles Of Sugarbush Stands In The Central Appalachian Region, Molly A. Sherlock

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The production of maple syrup is a valuable source of income and cultural identity for many rural communities throughout the central Appalachian region. Regardless, maple syrup producers face difficulties maintaining the health and productivity
of their stands due to various impacts of climate change, which have given rise to extreme weather events that exacerbate damage caused by pests and diseases. To ensure the long-term sustainability of the maple syrup industry, it is crucial to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the current biotic threats within the region, particularly woodboring insects and fungal pathogens. However, insufficient information exists regarding the community assemblages …


Soil Macroinvertebrates Responses To Wildfires In The Blue Ridge Mountains, Usa, Madeline Olliff May 2021

Soil Macroinvertebrates Responses To Wildfires In The Blue Ridge Mountains, Usa, Madeline Olliff

Biology Theses

Fire has been a prevalent disturbance on Earth for millions of years. Around the globe there are several regions that have become fire adapted, including the Southeastern United States. There have been few studies examining the effects of wildland fires on soil macroinvertebrates in the Blue Ridge Mountains, in spite of the importance of these animals to soil processes and their contributions to the biodiversity of these ecosystems. During the fall of 2016, the Southeastern USA experienced numerous, large wildfires. These fires offered an opportunity to study the effects of wildland fire on soil macroinvertebrates. We sampled sites from three …


Environmental Controls On The Terrestrial Water Cycle In Forested Mountain Ecosystems., Luis Andrés Guillén Jan 2021

Environmental Controls On The Terrestrial Water Cycle In Forested Mountain Ecosystems., Luis Andrés Guillén

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Water is a key resource to natural ecosystems and human societies alike, and the water cycle is fundamentally linked to the climate and the characteristics of catchments. However, the challenges posed by environmental change makes it imperative to understand how the water cycle is affected by biotic and abiotic factors, in particular, in areas that are crucial sources of water like forested headwater catchments. Therefore, this doctoral dissertation aims to advance the knowledge on the dynamics between climate, vegetation and landscape that determine the water balance of forested mountain ecosystems. This document presents five chapters, an introductory chapter, three standalone …


Forest Feedstock Supply Chains And Market Potential For Wood Pellet Facilities In The Ozark And Appalachia Regions, James Robert Criger May 2019

Forest Feedstock Supply Chains And Market Potential For Wood Pellet Facilities In The Ozark And Appalachia Regions, James Robert Criger

MSU Graduate Theses

The pellet wood industry in the United States has grown exponentially in recent years, due mostly to the expanding export market to Europe. At this time, the European market for pellet wood is highly subsidized as part of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) in an effort to mitigate fossil fuel consumption for power production. Although there are other popular renewable resources such as wind, water, and solar, the burning of biomass is among the most utilized sources of renewable energy today. This study examines the existing pellet wood industry in the United States, particularly within the Ozarks and Appalachia Regions, …


Efficacy Of Herbivore Exclusion On Planted Tree Seedling Vitality On A Reclaimed Surface Mine In Eastern Kentucky, Zachary J. Hackworth Jan 2018

Efficacy Of Herbivore Exclusion On Planted Tree Seedling Vitality On A Reclaimed Surface Mine In Eastern Kentucky, Zachary J. Hackworth

Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources

Conventional Appalachian surface-mine reclamation techniques repress natural forest regeneration, and tree plantings are often necessary for reforestation. Reclaimed Appalachian surface mines harbor a suite of mammal herbivores that forage on recently planted seedlings. Anecdotal reports across Appalachia have implicated herbivory in the hindrance and failure of reforestation efforts, yet empirical evaluation of herbivory impacts on planted seedling vitality in this region remains relatively uninitiated. First growing-season survival, height growth, and mammal herbivory damage of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.), shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.), and white oak (Quercus alba L.) are presented in response to varying intensities …


Survival And Cause-Specific Mortality Of A Southeastern Kentucky Deer Population, Caleb Anderson Haymes Jan 2017

Survival And Cause-Specific Mortality Of A Southeastern Kentucky Deer Population, Caleb Anderson Haymes

Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources

White-tailed deer are one of the most sought after game species in Kentucky. While much of the Commonwealth boasts high deer populations, those in southeast Kentucky are viewed as relatively low compared to other regions, even after a decade of restrictive doe harvest and multiple years of population supplementation via translocation. We studied survival and cause specific mortality of a local population of deer near the Redbird District of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Clay and Leslie County, Kentucky from January 2014 - January 2017. We estimated female annual survival at 0.89 (CI: 0.88-0.87), with an overall 3-year survival …


Prioritizing Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga Canadensis) For Secondary Imidacloprid Treatment Against The Invasive Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (Adelges Tsugae) In Shenandoah National Park, Katelyn Walters May 2016

Prioritizing Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga Canadensis) For Secondary Imidacloprid Treatment Against The Invasive Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (Adelges Tsugae) In Shenandoah National Park, Katelyn Walters

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Shenandoah National Park (SNP) contains over 20,000 eastern hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis); a foundation species in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Hemlock is shade-tolerant and retains a dense needle canopy year-round, creating a unique microclimate providing habitat for many species. The decline in eastern hemlock from hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae; HWA) infestation has negative implications for the overall function of forest ecosystems. The effect of slope aspect and time since imidacloprid insecticide treatment on crown health change and diameter growth of eastern hemlock in SNP was quantified. Data was compared from hemlock trees located on southeastern (SE) and …


Effects Of Mountaintop Removal Mining On Population Dynamics Of Stream Salamanders, Sara B. Freytag Jan 2016

Effects Of Mountaintop Removal Mining On Population Dynamics Of Stream Salamanders, Sara B. Freytag

Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources

Mountaintop removal mining (MTR) is a notorious stressor of stream ecosystems in the Central Appalachians. Valley fills (VF) lead to reduced occupancy, abundance, and species richness of stream salamanders. Multiple factors may be responsible for these reductions, but specifically habitat fragmentation and degradation may reduce colonization rates and increase local extinction rates. From 2013-2015, repeated counts of salamanders were conducted in stream reaches impacted by MTR/VF and compared to counts in reference reaches to answer the question: do stream salamander population dynamics differ between stream reaches impacted by MTR/VF and reference stream reaches? I also investigated dynamics of stream habitat …