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Southern Pine Forests

Southern Pine

Forests

By: Sarah Kidd, Dayna Cormany, Courtney Kratz, Blane Merkley

Location & History

Location & History

Where it's at

Where it's at

  • Texas to Oklahoma and Virginia

  • Once extended 60-90 million acres

  • Current remains of pine forests are a small portion of what was once one of the largest forests in the country

  • These forests are in large fragmented stands

History

  • Early settlement
  • Early timber harvesting
  • Fire
  • Current Uses

History

Early Settlers

  • Used fire on forests to improve forage quality for cattle grazing

  • Disturbances and changes decreased longleaf pines and increased other tree species.

  • Effects of settlement on forests were minor, with harvesting limited to areas near early towns

Timber Harvesting

  • 1830s- steam railroads came about, which increased removal and harvest of longleaf pines

  • Yellow pine forests- 392 million cubic feet of this species harvested & sold throughout the U.S & markets overseas

  • “Longleaf pine forests were harvested from Virginia and the Carolinas, south to Georgia and Florida, then west through Alabama and Mississippi, into Louisiana, and finally Texas”

  • 1907- 1.4 billion cubic feet were harvested from the Southern Pines Forests

Fire

  • Decrease in fire frequency, from a natural cycle of every 2-3 years

  • Heavy logging in late 1800s & early 1900s- great downed fuel aided in many huge wildfires that created many treeless sites

  • Any new seedlings that managed to grow were killed by the annual burnings for improved forage quality for cattle

Current Uses

  • 1950s-rising demand for smaller trees with creation of pulpmills

  • Natural longleaf pine forests were changed into plantations of faster growing species

  • Wood from diverse pines isused for: railway ties, utility poles, residential construction, & pulp and paper products

Soil

  • Grow best in acidic soils (pH 4.0 - 6.0)
  • Can't uptake nutrients in basic soils
  • Usually can't grow in old tomato fields
  • Soils often decifient in nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium
  • Can grow in dry, sandy soils

Soil

Vegetation

  • 4 main species of pine

Vegetation

Loblolly

Loblolly

  • Most commercially important
  • Grows quickly
  • Grows best in soils with poor drainage
  • Drought reistant

Longleaf

Longleaf

  • Non-competitive
  • Wood hogs consume their bark
  • Grow at a slow pace

Shortleaf

Shortleaf

  • Grow at a moderate pace
  • Non-competitive

Slash

Slash

  • Found naturally growing in sandy soils
  • Moderately competitive
  • Fast growers

Climate

  • Long, hot summers
  • Short, mild winters
  • Piedmont and coastal plains
  • Streams are sluggish; numerous swamps, marshes, rivers and lakes

Loblolly Pine

  • Elevation: up to ~2,000 ft.
  • Mean temperature: 55-75° F
  • Annual Precipitation: 40-60 in.

Loblolly Pine

Longleaf Pine

  • Elevation: sea level - 600 ft.
  • Mean temperature: 60-74°F
  • Annual Precipitation: ~ 43-50 in.

Longleaf Pine

Shortleaf Pine

  • Elevation: 10 ft. - 3,300 ft.
  • Mean Temperature: 48 - 70°F
  • Annual Precipitation: ~ 40-60 in.

Shortleaf Pine

Slash Pine

  • Elevation: sea level - 70 ft.
  • Mean temperature: 63°F
  • Annual Precipitation: 50 in.

Slash Pine

Wildlife Species

Wildlife Species

  • The Southern Pine Forest used to be home to nearly 900 species in the early 1900's
  • Now the forest is home to an estimated 100 bird, 36 mammal and 170 reptile and amphibian species.
  • The Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Gopher Tortoise, Woods Hogs, and Southern Pine Beetles are four species that heavily influence the survival and damage to the forest.

Red-cockaded Woodpecker

  • One of the 29 endangered species
  • Is essential for the surival of 27 other species
  • Part of the rehabilitation of this forest is the survival success of this bird

Gopher Tortoise

  • Digs burrows that provide shelter for over 300 species
  • Burrows can be up to 10 feet deep and 40 feet long
  • Also a species in decline in the Southern Pine Forest (800,000 in 2003)

Woods Hogs "Hogs or Logs"

  • Aided in the destruction of the Souther Pine Forest by uprooting the seedlings of the pines during their grass stage
  • Some Lumber companies saw a 70% decline of pine seedlings in the 1950's
  • Many farmers or locals raise Woods Hogs as a source of food leading to overpopulation

Southern Pine Beetle

  • Have become more invasive over the last few years from the warming of extreme winter conditions
  • Thinning of the forest helps to reduce forest competition and strengthens the pines
  • Thinning the forest also distances the beetles from catching each others pheremones

Critical Management Points

  • Southern Pine Beetle
  • Regeneration of the Longleaf Pine Trees

Southern Pine Beetles

Preventive Measures:

1. Preventive Stand Thinning

2. Cut-and-leave

3. Stand and Ecosystem Restoration

4. Grants available to non-profit orgs to implement work in SBP-infested areas

Regeneration

  • Regeneration in pest and fire affected areas.
  • Thinning in areas to reduce resource competition
  • Planting in abandoned rural areas.

Regeneration

Picture Sources

  • http://www.alextree.com/slash%20pine.html
  • http://shortleafpine.net/why-shortleaf/silvics
  • https://sep.yimg.com/ay/nc-forestry/longleaf-pine-improved-containerized-1-yr-31.gif
  • https://www.arborday.org/Trees/treeguide/treedetail.cfm?itemID=899

Picture Sources

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