Contact: Bill Parker
When harvesting forests in Ontario, companies must emulate natural disturbance patterns. In other words, what they leave behind in the way of standing and fallen trees after they are done cutting must mimic what fire leaves behind closely as possible. Emulating natural disturbance helps the ecosystem to function as naturally as possible, including producing the next generation of trees through natural regeneration (when trees sprout and grow on their own, rather than being planted). But do provincial guidelines for emulating natural disturbance actually result in the best growing conditions for the next generation of trees?
Since sunlight is a key factor in successful natural regeneration, researchers are assessing whether provincial guidelines result in a stand structure that allows the right amount of sunlight to reach the forest floor. They have been analyzing photos of the forest canopy collected in burned sites in northwestern Ontario to estimate understory light levels and relating them to data on stand structure to develop equations for estimating natural regeneration potential. They will be doing the same work in recently harvested areas to identify what stand structure patterns allow the right amount of light for important boreal tree species to regenerate.
Results of this work will help refine directions for what trees to leave behind after harvest and increase the likelihood of successful natural regeneration in the boreal forest.
