Monitoring & Next Steps

Monitoring

Core team exploring the Flathead NF/Coram EF Site.
Research partners from several institutions are working together to investigate the effectiveness of different silvicultural treatments aimed at creating adaptive ecosystems.

Photo Credit: Molly Roske 

Monitoring is an essential component of the ASCC study. Research partners from several institutions are working together to investigate the effectiveness of different silvicultural treatments aimed at creating adaptive ecosystems. Some of the monitoring items include: 

  • Natural regeneration survival and growth 
  • Growth of tree improvement seed of western larch and ponderosa pine from high and low elevations 
  • Inventories of fuels and understory plants 

Progress & Next Steps

The Flathead National Forest/Coram Experimental Forest ASCC workshop took place in June 2016. Measurement plots have been installed and pre-treatment data has been collected. Harvesting was completed in winter 2021-2022. Plantings will take place in 2024. Future data collection will focus on residual trees, forest regeneration, and understory and shrub development.

 

Crotteau et al. 2019 ASCC Article Published in Forest Science

Check out the journal article titled “Initiating Climate Adaptation in a Western Larch Forest” in Forest Science authored by the team of scientists and managers in the northern Rocky Mountains that highlights the Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change (ASCC) Network site at the Coram Experimental Forest and the Flathead National Forest in Montana. 

Crotteau, Justin S., Elaine Kennedy Sutherland, Theresa B. Jain, David K. Wright, Melissa M. Jenkins, Christopher R. Keyes, Linda M. Nagel. 2019. Initiating Climate Adaptation in a Western Larch Forest, Forest Science, fxz024, https://doi.org/10.1093/forsci/fxz024.