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Journal ArticleDOI

A review of Canadian forest vegetation management research and practice

01 Oct 2003-Annals of Forest Science (EDP Sciences)-Vol. 60, Iss: 7, pp 559-572
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a study on the management of the vegetation forestiere in Canada and les pratiques operationnelles of the process of pratique de pointe.
Abstract: Le present document passe en revue la recherche sur la gestion de la vegetation forestiere au Canada et les pratiques a cet egard depuis les annees 1990 jusqu'a ce jour. Les resultats de cet examen revelent une progression continue vers un programme plus integre et plus respectueux de l'environnement, axe, fort judicieusement sur les principales especes concurrentes et les especes du peuplement final. La collaboration accrue du monde universitaire, des gouvernements et de l'industrie s'est traduite par la parution de plus de 666 nouvelles publications scientifiques qui ont considerablement enrichi la base des connaissances actuelles. La mise au point au Canada du Chondrostereum purpureum comme premier bioherbicide et l'utilisation de semis gorges d'elements nutritifs afin d'accroitre le taux de reussite de l'etablissement sont considerees comme des grandes percees de la recherche. Parmi les tendances recentes en matiere de pratiques operationnelles figurent le recours a des methodes de gestion plus intensive dans les stations a indice de qualite plus eleve et l'adoption de methodes novatrices (p. ex., semis gorges d'elements nutritifs) et de techniques de pointe (p. ex., systeme de guidage electronique des applications aeriennes d'herbicide). Meme si les donnees sur le taux de croissance a long terme des semis et les analyses economiques mettant en evidence les effets positifs sur le plan couts-avantages font encore defaut, l'evolution incessante du programme ameliorera sans aucun doute l'approvisionnement durable en bois et reduira au minimum les repercussions sur le milieu forestier.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
01 Jan 2006-Forestry
TL;DR: The management of competing vegetation has evolved with forest management over the past half century and is now an integral part of modern forestry practice in many parts of the world as discussed by the authors, which has proven especially important in the establishment of high-yield forest plantations.
Abstract: The management of competing vegetation has evolved with forest management over the past half century and is now an integral part of modern forestry practice in many parts of the world. Vegetation management, primarily using herbicides, has proven especially important in the establishment of high-yield forest plantations. There has been a substantial amount of research quantifying the wood yield gains from the management of competing vegetation over the past few decades. We reviewed results from 60 of the longest-term studies in North America (Canada and US), South Africa, South America (Brazil) and New Zealand/Australia. About three-quarters of the studies reported 30-500 per cent increases in wood volume from the most effective vegetation treatments. In North America, where the longest-term studies for a variety of tree species were between 10 and 35 years old (or from 20-100 per cent of rotation age), gains in wood volume ranged from 4-11 800 per cent in Pacific north-western forests, 14-5840 per cent in the south-eastern forests, and 49-5478 per cent in northern forests. In South Africa and South America (Brazil), several full-rotation (6-8 years) studies with eucalyptus indicate 29-122 per cent and 10-179 per cent increases in wood volume yield, respectively, from effective vegetation management. In New Zealand, time gains of 1 to 4 years from early vegetation control in radiata pine plantations translated into 7-27 per cent increases in wood volume yield over a 25- to 30-year rotation.

271 citations


Cites background or methods from "A review of Canadian forest vegetat..."

  • ...... 2003 ). Forests in the Pacifi c north-western, south-eastern and northern regions of North America have unique vegetation problems that, if left unmanaged, can substantially reduce the growth and survival of desired tree species ( Wagner et al ., 2004 ). A variety of methods are used to manage forest vegetation in each region, including mechanical equipment, herbicides, prescribed fi re and manual cutting ( Walstad and Kuch, 1987 ; Thompson ......

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  • ...The management of unwanted or competing vegetation is vital to successful forest management across the US and Canada ( Walstad and Kuch, 1987 ; Thompson and Pitt, 2003 ). Forests in the Pacifi c north-western, south-eastern and northern regions of North America have unique vegetation problems that, if left unmanaged, can substantially reduce the growth and survival of desired tree species ( Wagner et al ., 2004 ). A variety of methods are ......

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  • ...The management of unwanted or competing vegetation is vital to successful forest management across the US and Canada ( Walstad and Kuch, 1987 ; Thompson and Pitt, 2003 )....

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  • ...A variety of methods are used to manage forest vegetation in each region, including mechanical equipment, herbicides, prescribed fi re and manual cutting ( Walstad and Kuch, 1987 ; Thompson and Pitt, 2003 )....

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Journal ArticleDOI
01 Jan 2006-Forestry
TL;DR: A conceptual competition model based on plant growth forms common in global forests, i.e. graminoids, forbs, small shrubs, large shrubs and mid- storey trees, and main-storey trees is presented and their competitive attributes and successional dynamics are examined.
Abstract: Summary Plant interactions can be defi ned as the ways plants act upon the growth, fi tness, survival and reproduction of other plants, largely by modifying their environment. These interactions can be positive (facilitation) or negative (competition or exploitation). During plantation establishment or natural forest regeneration after a disturbance, high light levels and, sometimes, increased availability of water and nutrients favour the development of opportunistic, fast-growing herbaceous and woody species which capture resources at the expense of crop trees. As a consequence, the growth and survival of crop trees can be dramatically reduced. Although the effects of this competition are well documented, the physical and physiological mechanisms of competition are not. Moreover, the competition process is never constant in time or space. We present a conceptual competition model based on plant growth forms common in global forests, i.e. graminoids, forbs, small shrubs, large shrubs and mid-storey trees, and main-storey trees. Their competitive attributes and successional dynamics are examined. An overview is presented on the way forest vegetation management (FVM) treatments infl uence these components and outcomes regarding crop tree performance and diversity conservation. Finally, a synthesis of literature yields FVM guidelines for effi ciently optimizing crop tree performance and safeguarding diversity. Future research needs to further sustainable FVM are presented.

248 citations


Cites background from "A review of Canadian forest vegetat..."

  • ...…1988 ; Campbell, 1990 , 1991 ; Reynolds et al. , 1993 ; Richardson, 1993 ; Wagner, 1993 , 1994 ; Lautenschlager et al. , 1998 ; Willoughby, 1999 ; Thompson and Pitt, 2003 ), with the objective being to eliminate or reduce growth of one, several or all herbaceous or woody plants competing with…...

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  • ...Competition between trees and natural vegetation in newly established plantations and naturally regenerated forests is the major process infl uencing tree establishment and growth, and drives succession ( Bazzaz, 1990 ; Thompson and Pitt, 2003)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Results suggest that the silvicultural use of Vision herbicide in accordance with the product label and standard Canadian environmental regulations should have negligible adverse effects on sensitive larval life stages of native amphibians.
Abstract: Effects of Release® herbicide (triclopyr butoxyethyl ester, [TBEE]) on mortality, avoidance response, and growth of larval amphibians (Rana clamitans, Rana pipiens) were investigated using in situ enclosures deployed in two forest wetlands in northern Ontario, Canada. Release was applied at nominal concentrations ranging from 0.26 to 7.68 mg TBEE acid equivalents (AE)/L. No significant deleterious effects of this herbicide on larval growth were detected. However, concentration-dependent mortality and abnormal avoidance response were observed. Most mortality occurred within 96 h following treatment. Median lethal concentration (LC50) values for each species and experimental site ranged from 2.79 to 3.29 mg AE/L, while median effective concentration (EC50) values (abnormal avoidance response) ranged from 1.67 to 3.84 mg AE/L. The LC10 and EC10 endpoints approximated aqueous concentrations (0.59 mg AE/L) expected under direct aerial overspray scenarios, indicating a potential risk of impacts for a small proportion of native amphibian larvae. However, given the low frequency and limited use of this herbicide formulation in Canadian forestry, these risks are considered negligible. Changes in usage patterns would require concurrent chemical and biological monitoring of operational spray programs to accurately quantify the probability and magnitude of real-world exposures and to relate these exposure levels to concentration-response relationships including those described in this study.

109 citations


Cites background from "A review of Canadian forest vegetat..."

  • ...[11], with the majority of applications being made using aerial...

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  • ...%) of the treated area occurs in the province of Ontario, with somewhat lesser amounts in New Brunswick and British Columbia, Canada [11]....

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  • ...Brunswick and British Columbia, Canada [11]....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article reviewed the historical context and the research conducted over the past 15 years that has led to the province's current vegetation management strategy and identified the major challenges of vegetation management being faced in Quebec in the context of intensive silviculture and ecosystem-based management.
Abstract: Vegetation management is crucial to meeting the objectives of forest plantations. Following public hearing processes, chemical herbicides were banned on Crown forest lands in Quebec (Canada) in 2001. Release now mainly relies on mechanical treatments. Our objectives are to review the historical context and the research conducted over the past 15 years that has led to the province’s current vegetation management strategy and to identify the major challenges of vegetation management being faced in Quebec in the context of intensive silviculture and ecosystem-based management. Research has led to an integrated management model without herbicides, adapted to the ecological characteristics of reforestation sites. The Quebec experience illustrates how, on most sites, vegetation management that is based on early reforestation, the use of tall planting stock and intensive mechanical release brings crop trees to the free-to-grow stage without the use of herbicides and without resulting in major effects on vegetation diversity. This vegetation management strategy is an asset in the implementation of ecosystem-based management. However, research demonstrates that mechanical release alone does not promote optimal crop-tree growth, due to rapid resprouting or suckering of competitors and competition from herbaceous species. Therefore, the current strategy poses important challenges in the management of plantations where the objective is to maximise wood production.

84 citations


Cites background from "A review of Canadian forest vegetat..."

  • ...In Canada, New Zealand and the Netherlands, this fungal pathogen has been studied to obtain a better understanding of its ecology and pathology (de Jong 2000; Gosselin et al. 1999; Ramsfield 2006)....

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  • ...With large areas of naturally regenerating juvenile stands, pre-commercial thinning became a much more common practice in Québec, compared to other Canadian provinces (Thompson and Pitt 2003)....

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  • ...Following public hearing processes, chemical herbicides were banned on Crown forest lands in Québec (Canada) in 2001....

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  • ...In Québec (Canada), chemical herbicides were banned for use on Crown forest lands (*90% of the provincial forest land base) in 2001, a unique situation in Canada (Thompson and Pitt 2003)....

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  • ...With large areas of naturally regenerating juvenile stands, pre-commercial thinning became a much more common practice in Québec, compared to other Canadian provinces (Thompson and Pitt 2003)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the importance of nursery nutrient loading as a new approach to enhance forest restoration on abandoned mine lands was evaluated, where Northern red oak (Quercus rubra) and White oak (Q. alba) seedlings were loaded for 18 weeks at a bareroot nursery in southern Indiana, United States.
Abstract: Although mine reclamation sites are important targets for ecological restoration, they are generally difficult to regenerate successfully. We evaluated the importance of nursery nutrient loading as a new approach to enhance forest restoration on abandoned mine lands. Northern red oak (Quercus rubra) and White oak (Q. alba) seedlings were nitrogen (N) loaded for 18 weeks at a bareroot nursery in southern Indiana, United States. Fertility treatments followed conventional or modified exponential functions to synchronize N supply with plant demand. Subsequently, nursery-grown seedlings were outplanted the following year onto a mine reclamation site in southwestern Indiana to evaluate effects of nursery N loading on first-year field performance. Nursery N loading promoted total plant dry mass production 25‐129% in Red oak and 50‐184% in White oak compared to unfertilized plants. Nitrogen loading increased N content 88‐145% and potassium (K) content 16‐71% for Red oak and N content 124‐250% and K content 16‐93% for White oak relative to controls. When outplanted, N loading resulted in high seedling survival (>84%) and increased total plant dry mass production 14‐30% for Red oak and 23‐52% for White oak. Nitrogen loading increased plant N uptake 14‐102% in Red oak and 32‐105% in White oak under field conditions. Exponential N loading demonstrates potential as a viable technique to improve seedling outplanting performance and reclamation success in Indiana and elsewhere.

74 citations


Cites background from "A review of Canadian forest vegetat..."

  • ...Additionally, competition for nutrients has been found to limit seedling survival and growth (Walker 2002; Thompson & Pitt 2003; Valdecantos et al. 2006)....

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References
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01 Jan 1979

2,568 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
16 Jul 1999-Science
TL;DR: The results of survey research on public perceptions of biotechnology in Europe and the United States during 1996-1997, together with an analysis of press coverage and policy formation from 1984 to 1996, can help to answer this question.
Abstract: Recent controversies about genetically modified foods in the United Kingdom and several other European countries highlight the apparent differences that exist in public opinion on this subject across the Atlantic. Why are people in the United States seemingly untroubled by a technology that causes Europeans so many difficulties? The results of survey research on public perceptions of biotechnology in Europe and the United States during 1996-1997, together with an analysis of press coverage and policy formation from 1984 to 1996, can help to answer this question.

585 citations


"A review of Canadian forest vegetat..." refers background in this paper

  • ...While opposition to such biotechnology in the agricultural sector appears to be lower in North America as compared to Europe [28], we anticipate...

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Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2000-Science
TL;DR: It is predicted that weed populations might be reduced to low levels or practically eradicated, depending on the exact form of management, and subsequent effects on the local use of fields by birds might be severe, because such reductions represent a major loss of food resources.
Abstract: We simulated the effects of the introduction of genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) crops on weed populations and the consequences for seed-eating birds. We predict that weed populations might be reduced to low levels or practically eradicated, depending on the exact form of management. Consequent effects on the local use of fields by birds might be severe, because such reductions represent a major loss of food resources. The regional impacts of GMHT crops are shown to depend on whether the adoption of GMHT crops by farmers covaries with current weed levels.

215 citations


"A review of Canadian forest vegetat..." refers background in this paper

  • ...However, as for any vegetation control technique or other anthropogenic disturbance to natural systems, use of these biotechnologies carry potential risks for adverse environmental effects [92] and may be considered unacceptable by some Canadian public landowners as has previously been demonstrated for other novel vegetation control technologies [86]....

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Book
01 Mar 1987
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors evaluate the response of mixed conifer forests in the Inland Northwest to vegetation management. But they focus on the management of the mixed forests and do not address the effects of vegetation management on the overall environment.
Abstract: FOREST VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVES: Forest Vegetation Problems in the Northwest Forest Vegetation Problems in the South Forest Vegetation Problems in the Northeast and Lake States/Provinces Principles Governing Plant- Environment Interactions Overview of Vegetation Management Alternatives CONIFER RESPONSE TO VEGETATION MANAGEMENT: General Principles and Patterns of Conifer Growth and Yield Loblolly Pine Growth and Yield Response to Vegetation Management Douglas- Fir Growth and Yield Response to Vegetation Management Evaluation of Growth and Yield Responses to Vegetation Management of the Mixed Conifer Forests in the Inland Northwest EVALUATING FOREST VEGETATION MANAGEMENT OPTIONS: Using Costs and Values in Forest Vegetation Management Analysis SYNTHESIS: Principles of Silvicultural Prescriptions for Vegetation Management Seeing the Forest for the Weeds: A Synthesis of Forest Vegetation Management Appendixes Index.

164 citations


"A review of Canadian forest vegetat..." refers background in this paper

  • ...The potential to minimize post-harvest vegetation problems from developing by employing certain preventative preharvest, harvest, and site-preparation measures has been discussed for years [90]....

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  • ...The highest level of intensity approaches that used in agricultural production scenarios [3, 19, 25, 52, 90]....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This work proposes silvicultural systems that will develop stands of a range of compositions, structures and value of spruce and balsam fir, and identifies eight different mixed-wood compositions that might be ...
Abstract: Boreal mixedwood forests of aspen (Populus tremuloides) and white spruce (Picea glauca) are found on mesic sites in the western boreal forest. In the natural development of mixedwood stands, aspen is usually the first species to dominate the site. However, depending upon spruce seed sources and seedbeds, spruce can establish immediately after disturbance or in the next several decades. In most cases, spruce grow in the understory of deciduous species during its early development. If there are no spruce seed sources, aspen may be the sole tree species for a long period. In most circumstances, however, the longer-lived and taller white spruce eventually becomes the dominant species. If stands remain undisturbed for long periods, they will likely become uneven-aged mixtures of spruce and balsam fir (Abies balsamea). We propose silvicultural systems that will develop stands of a range of compositions, structures and value. As a starting point, we identify eight different mixed-wood compositions that might be ...

142 citations


"A review of Canadian forest vegetat..." refers background in this paper

  • ...The few studies which compare succession following alternative harvesting [44, 46, 49], associated vegetation management requirements [32, 47] and crop productivity [43, 47, 50], suggest that in some cases alternative harvesting practices could minimize the intensity of competition and resultant need for vegetation management incursions, at least within some site types....

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