Other Forestry and Forest Sciences Commons^™

Financial Analysis Tool (Ct-Ft) For Western North Carolina Christmas Tree Growers, Sam Blumenfeld, Solomon Ghezehei, Justin G.A. Whitehill, Elizabeth G. Nichols

Journal of Extension

Western North Carolina is a major national Christmas tree (CT) production region, yet the CT industry faces numerous challenges that threaten its financial sustainability. Little economic research has been done, and limited decision-making tools exist to assist producers, Extension agents, and associated industry stakeholders. We developed an Excel-based financial analysis tool (CT-FT) to assist small and midsize wholesale CT producers in operational planning and financial assessment. The publicly available financial tools will enable CT growers to better understand their finances and operations, interact with financial stakeholders, assess alternative management scenarios, and track yearly costs to improve operational financial sustainability.

Distribution And Impact Of Cogongrass (Imperata Cylindrica) In Northern Mississippi, Carl R. Pulver V, Ryan E. Burke, Elizabeth Esser, Evan Moore, Ashley Schulz

Endeavors: Mississippi State Undergraduate Research Journal

Cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) is a non-native, rhizomatous grass that has invaded the southeastern United States. It forms dense mats that outcompete native plants, alters decomposition and microbial assemblages, and has highly flammable litter that alters fire behavior, affecting native plant communities. Though surveys for cogongrass have been conducted in southern Mississippi, the degree of cogongrass infestations in northern Mississippi has remained unclear and concerning. This study aimed to update cogongrass location data for the state and identify problem areas to guide state invasive plant management efforts. To provide a starting point, previously documented cogongrass locations were synthesized from natural history …

Exploring The Relationship Between Tree Dbh And Lichen Cover On Coast Redwood, Grace M. Personeus, Sierra Gittleman, Alisa A. Zarattini

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

We investigated the relationship between Diameter at Breast Height (DBH) and lichen cover on coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) to see if larger trees had higher percentages of cover. We measured cover using 10 cover classes on the southeastern and southwestern sides of trees in a secondary growth forest. We found a significant relationship between DBH and cover, yet no significant difference between the two sides measured. We suggest that further research with a larger sample size and more varied age classes will provide further insight into the relationship.

Effects Of Warming On Growth And Leaf Colonization By Litter Mat-Forming Fungi In A Wet Tropical Forest In Puerto Rico, Ari E. Puentes, D. Jean Lodge, Deyaneira A. Ortiz-Iglesias, Tatiana Barreto-Vélez, Laura C. Rubio-Lebrón, Hieu Chu, Christine S. O'Connell, Sasha C. Reed, Tana E. Wood

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Wet tropical forests are experiencing rising temperatures and increased frequency and intensity of extreme climatic events, such as cyclones, which can increase rates of soil erosion and surface runoff. Fungal litter mats, formed by agaric decomposer fungi, play a crucial role in stabilizing slopes, preventing erosion, and aiding nutrient cycling; however, little is known about how warming affects litter mat growth and function. We investigated two litter mat-forming fungi, Gymnopus johnstonii and Marasmius aff. crinis-equi, in warmed (+4°C above ambient) and control plots in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico. Growth and time-to-leaf colonization were monitored over 6 weeks …

Watershed Amendments: Assembling New Pervious Ground From Landscape Waste, Sophie Kaplan-Bucciarelli

Masters Theses

In Providence, Rhode Island, much of the downtown area is built over a vast historic tidal estuary. Though we no longer see the salt marshes, wooded bluffs, or meadows that once characterized this landscape, we recognize their absence in contemporary crises of urban heat, flooding, polluted soils and stormwater runoff, and habitat loss. These conditions are particularly acute along the city’s industrialized river corridors, where vacant lots and parking areas sit idle, their history paved over and potential constrained by limited imagination and resources.

These lots - already experiments in fill and land building after centuries of disturbance - can …

Forest Overstory Mortality & Recruitment Patterns Eight Years Following Wildfire In The Southern Appalachians, Ruth Cumberland

All Theses

In this study, we investigated patterns of forest overstory mortality and recruitment eight years after wildfire in a large wildfire site the Southern Appalachians, a topic that has not been thoroughly investigated to date. With evidence that pre-fire drought promotes post-fire mortality through impaired physiological function and increased fuel consumption, unknown patterns following wildfire are important to study under shifting climate and land-use conditions. In Chapter 1, three areas of interest were investigated: (a) functional group mortality response to wildfire effects, (b) temporal differences in early (1-3 years) and late (5-8 years) periods of delayed forest overstory mortality patterns following …

Alternative Tree Species For Utah Syrup Production, Abigail Porter, Steven Price, Youping Sun, Darren Mcavoy

All Current Publications

When thinking about producing syrup from trees, most people's minds go straight to maple trees. However, a variety of other species in the Intermountain West can be tapped for sap, including other maple species, birch, sycamore, aspen, and walnut. This fact sheet reviews alternative tree species for syrup production in Utah.

Urban Trees In The Urban Hydrology Cycle, Jorge R. Vera

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In urban forestry, trees provide numerous economic, ecological, and aesthetic benefits to the surrounding community. One of their key roles is intercepting stormwater runoff, reducing flooding risk, and improving water quality. Chapter 1 of this thesis characterized the ecological and economic contributions of urban trees on the Marshall University campus and provides guidance on their management and conservation in the future. Chapter 2 examined how urban tree species modify the urban hydrology cycle by altering the volume and timing of precipitation delivery. In Chapter 1, we inventoried 114 acres of Marshall University's main campus in Huntington, WV, from June 28 …

Climate And Environmental Controls On Forest Soil Organic Matter Cycling, Genevieve Goebel

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Climate change factors act on the soil environment in complex ways, known to disturb soil organic carbon (C). Rising global temperatures and alterations to regional precipitation and nitrogen deposition regimes may contribute to the intensification of global change by accelerating the rate of biological decomposition and CO2 efflux to the atmosphere. The magnitude and endurance of the disturbance to soil organic C across landscapes and throughout time that climate change factors may pose to soil C cycling are not comprehensively understood. These knowledge gaps in our field make it challenging to anticipate how soil environments and the vast ecosystems that …

Following The Water: Tree Water Sources In Coastal Northern California Forests, Kaitlyn Briggs

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Increasing drought intensity and declining summer water availability in Mediterranean- climate forests raise concerns about forest resilience and streamflow persistence. This study evaluated how tree water sources vary with hillslope position, season, species, and watershed context across three coastal northern California forests. Stable isotopes of hydrogen (δD) and oxygen (δ18O), soil moisture time series, linear mixed-effects models, and site-specific Bayesian mixing models (MixSIAR) were used to estimate proportional contributions of shallow soil, deep soil, stream-associated, and fog water to tree xylem water. Across sites, xylem water isotopic signatures overlapped primarily with soil water, indicating dominant reliance on subsurface sources, while …

Effects Of Conifer Encroachment On Oregon White Oak Crown Structure And Nonvascular Epiphyte Communities, Courtney Jonell Copper

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Oregon white oak (Quercus garryana, QUGA) is an ecologically and culturally important broadleaf tree species native to northern California and the Pacific Northwest. Fire suppression and subsequent encroachment by Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii, PSME) and other conifers have made QUGA woodlands among the most threatened habitat types in the region. This study examines the influence of conifer encroachment on QUGA crown structure and nonvascular epiphyte (NVE) communities using ground- and crown-based sampling techniques.

Twenty-four trees were sampled across four sites in northern California along a gradient of conifer encroachment that was quantified as PSME basal area (BA). A …

Long-Term Relationships Between Tree Growth And Climate In The Trinity Alps Wilderness, Klamath Mountains, California, Usa, Emma R. Knepp

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The Trinity Alps Wilderness is a unique setting for evaluating late-Holocene climate variability because former glaciers occupied comparatively low elevations in a region influenced by both coastal and interior climate patterns. Tree-ring chronologies were developed from four conifer species—Shasta red fir (Abies magnifica var. shastensis), western white pine (Pinus monticola), Brewer’s spruce (Picea breweriana), and mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana)—sampled at high elevations (1950 - 2300 m) near Emerald and Grizzly Lakes in the Trinity Alps Wilderness in northern California. The final chronologies included 12 Shasta red fir trees, 12 western white pine …

Factors Influencing Tree Vigor And Structural Failure Along Powerline Corridors In Northern California: A Multi-Species Analysis, David Justin Dorval

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Tree failures (e.g., stem breakage, uprooting, or branch drop) can pose significant risks to public safety, particularly along powerline corridors for the risk of power outages and wildfire ignitions. In California, tree-related powerline failures have led to severe ecological and human costs in recent years. Despite extensive research on tree failure in urban environments and post-disturbance contexts, comparatively little empirical work has examined where powerlines intersect largely unmanaged stands. This study evaluates tree failure trends across multiple forest types in Northern California by examining how tree-level characteristics influence recent growth and failure occurrence in regionally dominant tree species. Specifically, the …

Comparative Analysis Of Vermicomposting Practices Utilizing Agroforestry Farm Materials, Theresa Nemesis P. Ocampo Maria, Armie Janica R. Pleto Ma., Reden D. Macalagay, Wilfredo O. Banasihan

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist

Vermicomposting is an effective and eco-friendly method of converting biodegradable materials into fertilizers that promote plant growth and development. This study aimed to assess the efficiency and quality of vermicompost and vermiworms produced using combinations of biodegradable farm materials in agroforestry systems. The materials used for the 6 treatments included combinations of the following materials: fresh leaves of leguminous plants (Gliricidia sepium, Flemingia macrophylla, and Senna spectabilis), fresh cattle manure, and other plant materials (rice straw and banana trunk). Using a 90:10 ratio of plant residues and cattle manure, respectively, a substrate of 100 kg was prepared for each treatment …

Periodic Evaluations Indicate Increased Effectiveness Of Oregon Master Woodland Manager Volunteer Program, Alicia Christiansen, Lauren Grand, Norma Kline, Tiffany Hopkins

Journal of Extension

The Oregon State University Extension Service Master Woodland Manager (MWM) volunteer program trains landowners in core forestry and natural resource topics. Landowners participate in the MWM program to increase their forest management knowledge, improve their own management practices, and prepare them to volunteer in their community (Bowers, 2000). We surveyed MWM volunteers to understand the effectiveness of the program and what barriers exist to volunteering. Volunteers find the program to be increasingly adequate for personal management and answering questions, but time continues to be the biggest barrier for completing required volunteer hours.

Enumerating Escherichia Coli (E. Coli) Concentrations And Evaluating Optical Brighteners As A Potential Indicator Of Human Wastewater Contamination In La Nana Bayou, Banita Creek, And Their Tributaries, Nacogdoches, Texas, Swastika Acharya, Matthew Mcbroom, Yuhui Weng, Yanli Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

La Nana Bayou was added to the Texas 303(d) list in 2000 after it failed to meet water quality standards set by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for primary contact recreation due to elevated Escherichia coli (E. coli) levels. E. coli is a bacterial species commonly found in the intestines of humans and warm-blooded animals. It serves as an indicator of fecal contamination in freshwater, though its presence alone cannot identify the contamination source. Optical brighteners (OBs), chemicals found in laundry detergents, cleaning agents, toilet papers, and clothing, are unique to human wastewater. This study aimed …

An Evaluation Of Key Components Of Natural Resource Camps, Undergraduate Persistence And Success In Natural Resources, Brandy Bishop

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the key components that connect natural resource camps, undergraduate persistence, and overall success through gainful employment within the natural resource industry. The aim of this study was to assess early interest and attitudes towards natural resource career pathways and how education interventions shape students’ career outcomes thus leading to overall success. A longitudinal mixed method design was used combining Conservation Careers Camp survey data (n = 39) with institutional records for Forestry majors (n =655) in the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus. Quantitative data was analyzed through …

Stand Strucuture Of Planted Stands In Storm-Water Retention Basins, Jason Lanza

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Trees assist in stormwater retention basin functionality as efficient sources of water removal, and determining stand structure and leaf area of forests can be a measure of their effectiveness. The structure of forest stands on these basins managed for runoff mitigation has received little attention. We investigated the structure and species composition/diversity (tree and herbaceous) of planted, managed stands and naturally regenerated stands on stormwater retention basins managed by Harris County Flood Control District in Harris County, Texas. We determined stand structure variables (trees per hectare, basal area per hectare, quadratic mean diameter, relative density, average tree height, and percent …

Is There A More Effective Design For Quadrat To Increase Ease Of Use And Vegetation Density?, Scott M. Burke Jr., Kristen M Bellisario

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

Quadrats are a special tool in the ecology field that allows the measurement of vegetation density for further data analysis of a habitat. The larger the quadrat cross-sectional area, the better the results of the data, which in turn can make the quadrat hard to carry through field sites. In wildlife corridor research, quadrat surveys provide a quantitative metric for habitat suitability. In this work, we consider the efficiency and ease-of-use benefits for field work in the design of a collapsible version of a quadrat using a House of Quality (standard metric for new design requirements) to assess the customer …

Limited Soil Water Recharge In Summer Affects Seasonal Isotopic Signatures Of Tree Xylem Water, Marius G. Floriancic, Gregory R. Goldsmith, Harsh Beria, Scott T. Allen, James W. Kirchner

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Recent studies have reported that xylem waters in forest trees during the summer growing season are often isotopically similar to winter, rather than summer, precipitation. Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain this observation, which can be viewed as a form of ecohydrological separation, but empirical tests spanning space and time remain limited. We hypothesise that variations in the seasonal origin of precipitation found in tree xylem waters can be explained by seasonal differences in soil water recharge. We test this hypothesis by evaluating to what extent climatic aridity can explain seasonal signals in extensive surveys of the isotope ratios …

Integrating Belowground Recovery Into Tropical Forest Restoration Design And Monitoring, Lauren Toro, Leland K. Werden, Shalom D. Addo-Danso, Kelly M. Andersen, Sarah Batterman, Matilde M. Bragadini, Pooja Choksi, Rebecca J. Cole, Liza S. Comita, Daniela Cusack, Daisy H. Dent, Lee H. Dietterich, Joshua B. Fisher, Katrin Fleischer, Lucia Fuchslueger, Nohemi Huanca-Nunez, Janey R. Lienau, Lindsay A. Mcculloch, Ember M. Morrissey, Jennifer S. Powers, Mareli Sánchez-Juliá, Oscar Valverde-Barrantes, Anita Weissflog, Michelle Y. Wong

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

There is growing recognition that tropical forest restoration is key for sequestering carbon and enhancing ecosystem resilience. Soils, roots, and soil biota are central to ecosystem function and services, but belowground recovery is largely overlooked in restoration monitoring frameworks. Here, we outline current understanding of the links between above- and belowground recovery in tropical forests by examining how belowground properties before and after intervention influence recovery; by evaluating whether aboveground recovery can serve as a proxy for belowground dynamics; and by proposing a blueprint for monitoring dynamic soil physical (bulk density, aggregate stability), chemical (organic matter or carbon, pH), and …

Assessment Of Spatial Autocorrelation And Scalability In Fine-Scale Wildfire Random Forest Prediction Models, Madeleine Pascolini-Campbell, Joshua B. Fisher, Kerry Cawse-Nicholson, Christine M. Lee, Natasha Stavros

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Wildfire prediction models that can be applied across diverse regions at fine scales (<  100 m) are critical for wildfire management. Remote sensing offers a path forward by providing heterogeneous and dynamic measurements of fuel load, type, and flammability. Machine learning methods such as random forests provide an empirical framework that are high-accuracy, computationally efficient, interpretable and able to model complex ecological relationships. Here we use high resolution (70 m, every 3–5 days) remote sensing observations of evapotranspiration and evaporative stress index, which represent plant water stress, from Ecosystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer on Space Station (ECOSTRESS), as well as topography and weather data, to predict burn severity and occurrence for 8 large wildfires that burned 3715 km² from 2021 and 2022 in New Mexico, USA. These fires ranged from low to high burn intensity, and covered a diverse range of ecoregions (deserts, grasslands, forests), plant species, and topographies. We used a single model to predict the burn severity of all wildfires one week before occurrence. The prediction accuracy was greatest when using all predictors (ECOSTRESS, weather, topography) (R² = 0.77). We assessed the role of spatial autocorrelation in driving model performance by: (1) increasing the sample spacing of our dataset, (2) …

Assessing The Influence Of Afforestation On Soil Quality And Soil Organic Carbon: A Case Study In Rashaya District, Lebanon, Mohammad Saleh, Wael Mostafa, Safaa Baydoun, Hisham Salman, Jamilah Borjac

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Afforestation is a promising strategy for improving soil quality and enhancing carbon sequestration, contributing to climate change mitigation efforts. This study assessed the impact of afforestation on soil parameters in two afforested areas and one natural forest, compared with adjacent non-forested sites in Rashaya al-Wadi, Lebanon. Soil samples (0–30 cm depth) were analyzed for texture, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), soil organic matter (SOM), soil organic carbon (SOC), organic nitrogen (ON), mineral nitrogen (MN), and available phosphorus (AP) using ISO and standardized protocols at the Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute (LARI). The findings indicate that afforestation significantly increased SOM, SOC, and ON, …

Covered In Snow, Katelynn M. Rogers

Masters Theses

Covered in Snow is a photographic exploration into the ripple effect of maternal loss and environmental decay in my hometown of Canton, Ohio. In the wake of a miscarriage, the woods I had grown up within began calling to me, urging me to return. Unbeknownst to me, a series of accidental deaths of women had been happening throughout these trees my entire life, their stories only coming to the surface as I looked to the trees for solace. This series of inexplicable deaths in the woods I so desperately loved began to alter my relationship to the trees, a distrust …

The State Of Municipal Scale Highest Use Urban Wood Reclamation Projects, Bradley C. Almond

Graduate Liberal Studies Theses and Dissertations

Millions of urban trees are downed annually for various reasons, such as storms, disease, or development. We are all witnesses to the loss of trees as we see the piles of woody waste assembled on the curbside, ready for public works pickup. Today, most urban wood waste ends up in landfills, mulching/chipping facilities, or firewood production. Each of these alternatives results in the release of sequestered carbon back into the atmosphere.

The initial research led to successful diversion from landfills to mulch and firewood operations. Then, the research shifted to converting urban wood waste for its best use, which outlined …

Climate Constrains The Enhancement Of Co2 Fertilization On Forest Gross Primary Productivity, Xinyuan Wei, Daniel J. Hayes, Christopher R. Schwalm, Joshua B. Fisher, Deborah N. Huntzinger, Lei Ma, Rodrigo Vargas, Nathaniel A. Brunsell

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Forest gross primary production (GPP) is influenced by the interplay between climate conditions and atmospheric CO₂ levels, which interact in complex ways, generating both compensating and amplifying effects. In this study, eddy covariance flux measurements from 50 forest ecosystems were integrated with simulations from 14 terrestrial biosphere models to investigate how climate conditions and atmospheric CO₂ concentrations regulate forest GPP. This approach bridges site-level observations with biome-scale model estimates to develop a global understanding. Our findings suggest that in boreal and cold temperate regions, temperature primarily constrains the enhancement of the CO₂ fertilization on forest GPP; however, …

Monitoring Mangrove Dynamics And Evaluating Future Afforestation Potential In The Egyptian Red Sea, Rasha M. Abou Samra, Mansour Almazroui, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Mangrove forests are vital for ecosystem services and coastal management but face stressors from anthropogenic activities and climate change. This study estimates the extent and afforestation potential of mangroves along the Egyptian Red Sea coast from 1984 to 2022 using NDVI derived from Landsat-5 and Sentinel-2 data in Google Earth Engine. Aboveground biomass (AGB), belowground biomass (BGB), carbon (C) stock, and CO₂ sequestration potential were evaluated using Sentinel-2 and elevation data. Future afforestation suitability (2020–2050) under SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios was assessed with the MaxEnt model. Mangrove area increased from 0.95 km² in 1984 to 1.46 km^{2 …}

Soil-Based Emissions And Context-Specific Climate Change Planning To Support The United Nations (Un) Sustainable Development Goal (Sdg) On Climate Action: A Case Study Of Georgia (Usa), Davis G. Nelson

All Theses

Soil-based emissions from land conversions are often overlooked in climate planning. The objectives of this study were to use quantitative data on soil-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the state of Georgia (GA) (USA) to examine context-specific (temporal, biophysical, economic, and social) climate planning and legal options to deal with these emissions. Currently, 30% of the land in GA has experienced anthropogenic land degradation (LD) primarily due to agriculture (64%). All seven soil orders were subject to various degrees of anthropogenic LD. Increases in overall LD between 2001 and 2021 indicate a lack of land degradation neutrality (LDN) in GA. …

Forest Above-Ground Biomass Estimation Using Nasa Gedi Lidar Waveforms And Global Tree Allometry, Ian Grant

Theses and Dissertations

Above-ground forest biomass plays a crucial role in global carbon cycles, yet accurately estimating biomass at global scales remains challenging. This thesis addresses two key challenges in processing NASA’s Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) space-borne lidar data to estimate above-ground biomass density (AGBD): accounting for global variation in forest structure and developing robust physical interpretations of lidar returns. The first component of the thesis analyzes global patterns of tree allometry using the Tallo tree allometry dataset, examining relationships between tree dimensions across biomes, continents, and plant functional types. This analysis reveals consistent allometry across continents for some biomes (e.g., tropical …

Coffee Farmgate Price And Post-Harvest Processing In Honduras., Isaac Desouza

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

Volatile commodity markets and changing climate expose coffee farmers to price and production risk. Proponents recommend specialty coffee as a strategy to combat price risk, because its unique attributes differentiate it from commodity coffee. Extrinsic and intrinsic attributes define specialty coffee and affect prices at many levels of the supply chain. Despite much work on extrinsic attributes, little is known about how intrinsic attributes relate to farmgate price. Post-harvest processing is itself an intrinsic trait and driver of coffee quality. In 2024 we surveyed 261 coffee farmers from La Paz, Honduras, to uncover relationships between capital, post-harvest processing, and farmgate …