DEN: The DendroEcological Network

Objectives

We compared growth trends and response to climate and environmental variables among dominant tree species along elevational gradients at Mt. Mansfield, VT: balsam fir, red maple, red spruce, sugar maple, and yellow birch.

Data Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Objectives

Red spruce tree cores were collected from 30 plots in VT, NH, and MA to assess the influence of the 2003 winter injury event on long-term growth and C sequestration.

Data Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 380 Trees, 756 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2003, a severe region-wide event damaged over 90% of red spruce in the northeastern US. We assessed the influence of the 2003 winter injury event on long-term growth and C sequestration of red spruce trees by measuring the xylem growth (basal area increment) in forest stands in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where winter injury was quantified in 2003. To do this, we assessed dominant and co-dominant red spruce trees in 30 forest plots (10–15 trees per plot) from 14 locations that had been quantified for winter injury severity (visual assessment of damage to current-year foliage, ranging from 0% to 100%) in 2003 (a sub-set of the 27 locations and 176 plots assessed by Lazarus et al., 2004).

Objectives

To more fully understand the potential causes of birch decline, we assessed crown health, radial growth, and available soil cations at 12 paper birch (Betula papyrifera and B. papyrifera var. cordifolia) sites located in the north-central Green Mountains, VT.

Data Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 175 Trees, 350 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, and Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2006, we assessed crown health, radial growth, and available soil cations at 12 paper birch (Betula papyrifera and B. papyrifera var. cordifolia) sites located in the north-central Green Mountains, Vermont, as a preliminary assessment of factors that may be influencing paper birch decline. Selected plot locations overlapped with previous aerial mapping of paper birch decline, and we avoided areas known to have been affected by insect outbreaks in 2004 and 2005. Nine of the sites were located at three different elevations on each of three different mountain-slopes in order to assess tree health and soil nutrition across an elevational gradient. Three plots per site were established within areas known to have experienced moderate ice storm damage in 1998 and 3-4 dominant or co-dominant birch trees closest to plot center were sampled for tree and soil assessments. At higher elevations, sample trees included heart-leafed paper birch. All sites contained dominant and co-dominant paper birch with sugar maple and/or red spruce as companion species. Understory vegetation was highly variable depending on both aspect and elevation, though hobblebush (Viburnum alnifolium) and striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum) were present on most plots. Soils were usually Spodosols with generally well defined Oa, E, and B horizons, except at some upper elevations where soils were either Histosols or Entisols (i.e., no B horizon present).

Objectives

We sought to evaluate the impact of changes in soil calcium and aluminum due to acid deposition on the growth and physiology of sugar maple and American beech trees at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thornton, New Hampshire) following a major ice storm in 1998.

Data Contents

Data for 3 Plots, 180 Trees, 360 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Tim Fahey

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

To evaluate the impact of changes in soil calcium and aluminum due to acid deposition, we examined sugar maple and American beech growth and forest composition at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thornton, New Hampshire) following a major ice storm in 1998. We measured xylem annual increment, foliar cation concentrations, American beech root sprouting, and tree mortality at the experimental nutrient perturbation (NuPert) plots located within HBEF where treatment plots had been amended with calcium or aluminium beginning in 1995.

Objectives

The purpose of this research was to study the relationship between radial tree growth and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM imagery in Vermont and New Hampshire.

Data Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Objectives

To compare the effects of calium-addition on red spruce growth dynamics, we examined the annual growth of dominant and codominant red spruce trees growing in the reference and calcium-addition watersheds at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, NH.

Data Contents

Data for 6 Plots, 60 Trees, 120 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, and Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2006, we examined the annual growth of dominant and codominant red spruce trees growing in the reference watershed (WS6) and calcium-addition watershed (WS1) at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thorton, NH) to compare the effects of Ca-addition on red spruce growth dynamics.

Objectives

This research involved resampling a series of permanent plots established in the 1980's and collecting tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir at many of these sites to identify shifts in tree growth and demography associated with recent environmental changes.

Data Contents

Data for 31 Plots, 114 Trees, 219 Cores

Principal Investigator

Martin Dovciak, Colin Beier, and Jay Wason

Laboratory

Dovciak Lab

Project Description

This research involved resampling a series of permanent plots established in the 1980's and collecting tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir at many of these sites to identify shifts in tree growth and demography associated with recent environmental changes. To do this, we studied tree species distributions along elevational gradients on 12 mountains in four states of the northeastern United States (New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine). See Wason et al. (2017) for more information.

Objectives

We used results from a 30 m resolution steady-state sulfur and nitrogen critical load exceedance model for New England to better understand the spatial connections between calcium depletion and red spruce productivity.

Data Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 137 Trees, 256 Cores

Principal Investigator

Ben Engel, Paul Schberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

In order to maximize the sample size and range of exceedance values assessed, this study utilized a large set of both pre-existing (Weverka, 2012, Kosiba et al., 2013, Kosiba et al., 2014) and newly collected red spruce xylem increment cores from VT and NH, for a total of 441 trees at 37 sites. These sites included 23 plots chosen to reflect a broad range of red spruce forest conditions (Weverka, 2012, Kosiba et al., 2013, Kosiba et al., 2014) and 14 new plots that were selected using a previously established critical load and exceedence model (NEG/ECP) to identify areas where: (1) red spruce were predicted to occur in the forest type module of the NEG/ECP model, (2) located on state and federal lands to streamline the issuance of collection permits, and (3) at locations where modeled exceedance values approach the positive and negative limits for the study area (−2 and +2 keq ha⁻¹ y⁻¹) to extend and balance the range of values assessed.

Objectives

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees and their paired analogues from the control in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project, ME.

Data Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Objectives

We collected tree cores from red spruce trees at a red spruce plantation in northern NH and 23 forested plots (MA, NH, and VT) to assess the reductions in carbon sequestration that followed a severe winter injury event and explore the possible causes of this event.

Data Contents

Data for 24 Plots, 241 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, and Brynne Lazarus

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

We sought to investigate the environmental factors that may contribute to red spruce foliar winter injury and how much this injury influences tree carbon stores. We used a long-term record of winter injury in a plantation in New Hampshire and at 23 forested plots (in MA, NH, and VT) and conducted stepwise linear regression analyses with local weather and regional pollution data to determine which parameters helped account for observed injury.

Objectives

Our general objective was to reconstruct, using methods of dendrochronology, the frequency and severity of natural disturbances that have shaped an old-growth landscape in northern Maine over the past several hundred years.

Data Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Objectives

To determine how red spruce and balsam fir tree growth is driven by climate and acidic deposition in mountains of the northeastern United States.

Data Contents

Data for 40 Plots, 246 Trees, 246 Cores

Principal Investigator

Jay W. Wason, Colin M. Beier, John J. Battles, Martin Dovciak

Laboratory

SUNY ESF

Project Description

This project integrates with our broader research on montane spruce-fir forest responses to environmental change. In this project, we collected tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir trees along elevation gradients on 10 mountains across the northeastern US. We analyzed the tree rings to determine the extent to which climate and acidic deposition have driven recent tree growth patterns.

Objectives

Compare climate response of co-occurring canopy dominate species. Expected outcomes are that the general response between species will be the same but there will be nuanced differences.

Data Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Objectives

Our objective for this study was to identify the potential climate and pollution variables that have been best associated with red oak growth in Vermont over the past several decades.

Data Contents

Data for 11 Plots, 214 Trees, 432 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 213 dominant and codominant red oak trees at 11 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data. Because red oak wood is ring-porous, exhibiting a bimodal distribution of vessels, xylem growth can be easily partitioned into earlywood (EW) and latewood (LW) growth as well as whole-ring widths (WRW). Therefore, we evaluated relationships between WRW, LW and EW growth and environmental factors that may influence growth.

Objectives

Identify points of vulnerability and recovery to atmospheric deposition of pollutants in northeastern red spruce forests.

Data Contents

Data for 8 Plots, 273 Trees, 508 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kevin T. Smith (NRS), Walter C. Shortle (NRS, retired), Gregory B. Lawrence (USGS)

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

At the invitation of the Northern Global Change Program, coordinated sampling and analysis was conducted for soil chemistry, dendrochronology, and dendrochemistry.

Objectives

Our objective for this study was to identify the potential climate and pollution variables that have been best associated with eastern white pine and eastern hemlock growth in Vermont over the past several decades.

Data Contents

Data for 26 Plots, 507 Trees, 1996 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 507 dominant and codominant eastern white pine and eastern hemlock trees at 24 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Objectives

Our objective for this study was to identify the potential climate and pollution variables that have been best associated with sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech growth in Vermont over the past several decades.

Data Contents

Data for 30 Plots, 688 Trees, 4095 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 688 dominant and codominant sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech trees at 30 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Objectives

White oak is one of the oldest living tree species found in Vermont, USA. It mainly grows in the Champlain Valley within ecologically significant natural areas such as mesic clay plain forests and dry hemlock-oak forests. This project aims to compile existing white oak chronologies from the Champlain Valley in order to facilitate the sharing of tree ring growth data of this long-lived species. It is our hope to add more Vermont white oak chronologies to this project.

Data Contents

Data for 4 Plots, 53 Trees, 108 Cores

Principal Investigator

Schaberg, P.G., Murakami, P.F., Hansen, C.F., D’Amato, A.W., and Murray, H.F.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

This is a collection of white oak cores collected in the Champlain Valley of Vermont. Two trees in this collection can be dated back to 1662 and 1630 with one individual probably originating before the year 1580.

Objectives

Tree cores were collected to compare growth rates of two important native tree species (white oak (Quercus alba L.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.)) across urban and reference forest sites of three major cities in the eastern United States (New York, NY (NYC); Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD).

Data Contents

Data for 18 Plots, 170 Trees, 336 Cores

Principal Investigator

Nancy F. Sonti, Richard A. Hallett, Kevin L. Griffin, and Joe H. Sullivan

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

Tree cores were collected to compare growth rates of two important native tree species (white oak (Quercus alba L.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.)) across urban and reference forest sites of three major cities in the eastern United States (New York, NY (NYC); Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD). Trees were selected from secondary growth oak-hickory forests found in New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD, as well as at reference forest sites outside each metropolitan area.

Objectives

Trees were cored in 2010, 2011, 2016 and 2017 at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology and Forest GEO large forest site in Front Royal Virginia.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Objectives

The aims of this research are to (i) use dendrochronological techniques to assess the performance of B. papyrifera to intra- and inter-annual microclimatic variability and (ii) determine if satellite imagery can serve as a proxy for assessing tree health by relating vegetation indices such as NDVI to tree-ring characteristics.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 45 Trees, 155 Cores

Principal Investigator

Tala Awada, Paolo Cherubini

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

Remnant populations of Betula papyrifera have persisted in the Great Plains after the Wisconsin Glaciation along the Niobrara River Valley, Nebraska. Population health has declined in recent years, which has been hypothesized to be due to climate change. We used tree rings to assess the response of B. papyrifera to microclimate and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from satellite imagery as a proxy for population health. The study area was located at the Nature Conservancy’s Niobrara Valley Preserve in north-central Nebraska, centered at 42°78′34″N, 100°02′80″W, and encompasses nearly 227 km2. Seven north-facing stands were selected along a 27 km section of the river. Individuals were found only on north-facing slopes and growing from pre-existing root crowns. We selected the largest trees based on healthiest visual appearance and largest diameter measured at breast height. A total of 180 cores, i.e., four cores from each of 45 trees, were sampled at 1.3 m from the base, at 90° around the trunk, representing the north, south, east, and west sides. The oldest ring record dated back to 1894, with the majority of consistent records across trees rings dating back to the early 1950s, thus the time frame selected for this study.

Objectives

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between calcium nutrition and stress response physiology in sugar maple trees growing in a long-term, replicated calcium manipulation study.

Data Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 60 Trees, 120 Cores

Principal Investigator

Brett Huggett, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley and Christopher Eager

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

In 2004, we measured tree ring growth, branch dieback, crown vigor, foliar nutrition, wound closure and the production of lignin and callose in mostly dominant and codominant sugar maple trees growing on twelve pre-existing plots at the Hubbard Brook Experiment Forest in Thornton, New Hampshire. In total, 60 trees were evaluated. The plots, established in 1995, were equally and randomly divided among three treatments: soil calcium addition, soil aluminum addition and control (no treatment).

Objectives

The objective of this study was to determine if LiDAR can be used to quantify structural characteristics that are either the cause (e.g., overcrowding) or the consequence (e.g., greater crown thinning or tree mortality) of tree heath and productivity issues.

Data Contents

Data for 36 Plots, 333 Trees, 652 Cores

Principal Investigator

Christopher Hansen, Paul Schaberg, Allan Strong, Shelly Rayback, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth, crown condition and tree mortality for 333 dominant and codominant sugar maple and yellow birch trees at the Hubbard Brook Experiment Forest in Thorton, New Hampshire and compared these health metrics among four LiDAR-derived canopy classes – 1. high crown, high understory closure, 2. high crown, low understory closure, 3. low crown, high understory closure and 4. low crown, low understory closure.

Objectives

Trees growing in this provenance planting represent the historical range of American chestnut from North Carolina to Maine. The objective for this study was to determine how genetics and the environment modulate chestnut physiology and growth needed to guide breeding and management efforts in the restoration of American chestnut.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 109 Trees, 208 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Kendra Collins, Chris Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 107 open-pollinated American chestnut and compared annual growth with winter shoot injury, spring foliar budbreak and leaf-out, spring foliar frost injury, and climate variables (temperature and moisture).

Objectives

Red Rocks Park, located along the eastern shore of Lake Champlain in South Burlington, Vermont is comprised of a rich diversity of forest communities including the state-significant limestone bluff cedar-pine forest. The objective of our study was to determine the impact of historical climate regimes and pollution deposition on the growth of eight tree species (four conifers and four hardwoods) with a particular focus on northern white cedar and eastern red cedar – species that help define the Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest – a rare upland natural community recognized by that state of Vermont as ecologically significant.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 63 Trees, 123 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Rebecca Stern

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth of dominant and co-dominant eastern red cedar (collected in 2017), northern white cedar (collected in 2017) and white ash (collected in 2019) in Red Rocks Park in South Burlington, Vermont and combined this data with previous increment core collections of eastern hemlock, white pine, American beech, red oak, and white oak (collected in 2016) at the same site to compare individual species’ growth with climate parameters including air temperature (maximum and minimum) and precipitation (both rain and snow) as well as pollution deposition. Increment core data from the previous core collections at Red Rocks Park are similarly archived on the DEN under the following projects: “Growth trends and environmental drivers of major tree species of the northern hardwood forest”, “Eastern white pine and eastern hemlock growth: possible tradeoffs in response of canopy trees to climate and pollution”, “White oak chronologies of the Champlain Valley of Vermont”, and “Growth of canopy red oak near its northern range limit: current trends, potential drivers, and implications for the future”.

Objectives

To determine annual growth of red spruce in a range-wide provenance study in northern New Hampshire.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 217 Trees, 410 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Ali Kosiba, Joshua Halman, Brynne Lazarus, Chris Hansen, Paula Murakami, Catherine Borer, Stephen Keller, Thibaut Capblancq and Brittany Verrico.

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We collected increment cores from dominant and co-dominant trees growing in a range-wide red spruce provenance study in Colebrook, NH in 2004 and 2021. This study was established in 1960 and the trees growing here represent 12 provenance sources from eastern Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Quebec) and eastern U.S. (Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and North Carolina). In 2004, cores were collected to assess growth following a series of significant winter injury events that damaged current year foliage (see associated DEN project, “Assessment of weather-associated causes of red spruce winter injury and consequences to aboveground carbon sequestration”). In 2021, cores were collected as part of a separate study to assess differences in growth magnitude and patterns for the 12 seed sources and relate these to gene sequences measured by Steve Keller (molecular geneticist in the Plant Biology Department at the University of Vermont). While these two core collections were conducted for different objectives, they are archived together to enable easy access to their raw ring width data for future studies at this site. For specific seed source locations, see: Wilkinson, RC. 1990. Effects of winter injury on basal area and height growth of 30-year-old red spruce from 12 provenances growing in northern New Hampshire. Can J. For. Res. 20:1616-1622.

Objectives

Tree cores were collected for major species (white oak, red oak, red maple, white pine and red pine) in order to better understand the stand origin, historical development, disturbance dynamics, and successional trajectory of “The Dome" in the Green Mountains National Forest, VT.

Data Contents

Data for 5 Plots, 75 Trees, 150 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg and Diane Burbank

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

This project, spearheaded by the USDA Forest Service, seeks to restore and maintain oak and oak-pine forests on the southern and western slopes of a mountain known as “The Dome” by reintroducing fire and the use of timber sales, other mechanical treatments, and herbicides. These particular forests are unique in Vermont as they appear to represent the northern edge of the range for several central Appalachian species like American chestnut and sassafras. Some of the habitat has abundant American beech and red maple in the understory with few oak saplings, suggesting mesophication and future shifts toward a northern hardwood ecosystem.

Objectives

The cores archived here were part of a larger study to investigate the seasonal dynamics of stemwood nonstructural carbohydrates in temperate forest trees.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 38 Trees, 0 Cores

Principal Investigator

Andrew Richardson, Moriah Carbone, Trevor Keenan, Claudia Czimczik, Dave Hollinger, Paula Murakami, Paul Schaberg, and Xiaomei Xu.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In the larger study, cores were collected from the Howland Forest (ME), Bartlett Experimental Forest (NH) and Harvard Forest (MA) to assess the age of sugars and starch reserves in several temperate forest species including red maple, red spruce, eastern hemlock, paper birch and American beech. An additional subset of increment cores was collected at Bartlett Experimental Forest due to the high rate of mortality among paper birch trees found there. These included 20 paper birch, 10 red maple and 10 American beech trees.

Objectives

Trees growing in this provenance planting represent the historical range of green ash. The objective of this study was to determine how genetics and the environment influence annual growth. Information gained here may be particularly useful for future restoration efforts of ash species impacted by EAB in the north.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 44 Trees, 82 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured annual radial xylem growth of 44 green ash trees from a range-wide provenance planting in Burlington, VT and compared growth with local climate metrics (precipitation, snow and temperature). A better understanding of the relative influences of genetics and climate on green ash growth is particularly important as the invasive insect, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), is greatly diminishing green ash populations throughout its native range. In Vermont, EAB was first detected in 2018. At the time of our core collection, 2019, EAB was not detected in the provenance planting. The timing of this study presented a novel opportunity to document annual growth in living trees before the negative impacts of EAB.

Objectives

Eastern red cedar and northern white cedar are main components of the rare and ecologically significant Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest growing along the shores of Lake Champlain. The current and future health of this forest community remains uncertain due to a changing climate, pollution, invasive pests and pathogens, and human disturbance via development. Understanding how past environmental influences, such as climate and pollution, impact annual radial growth may help with future conservation efforts.

Data Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 32 Trees, 63 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

We extracted tree cores from 16 eastern red cedar and 16 northern white cedar dominant and co-dominant trees at the Butternut Hill Natural Area in the summer of 2018. This natural area, managed by The Nature Conservancy, is located along the shores of Lake Champlain (VT) and is home to a rare and ecologically significant upland community called the Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest. In Vermont, this forest community is small in size (mostly under 10 acres) and number (97 total patches).

Objectives

Tree cores were collected 17 years after the 1998 ice storm to evaluate long-term effects on growth.

Data Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Objectives

This red spruce increment core collection was conducted in response to research indicating that red spruce have experienced significant increases in growth following decades of decline predisposed by inputs of acid deposition and in response to a warming climate (Kosiba et al. 2018).

Data Contents

Data for 3 Plots, 52 Trees, 104 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

As a follow-up to findings reported by Kosiba et al. 2018, we collected increment cores from 18 trees growing on Mt. Mansfield, VT – five years following the most recent collection. Eight of these trees overlapped with those previously collected by Kosiba et al. 2017. Red spruce trees were also sampled in Wolcott (15) and Guildhall, VT (19). Estimates of annual basal area increment (BAI) from 2013-2017 indicate that red spruce on Mt. Mansfield continue to maintain a high level of growth (BAI = 28.8 cm2). Annual growth at the other two, lower elevation sites was significantly less (Wolcott BAI = 11.8 cm2; Guildhall BAI = 11.5 cm2). See the following DEN projects for more information regarding previous work: “Comparative growth trends of five northern hardwood and montane tree species along elevational transects in Mt. Mansfield State Forest” and “Quantifying the legacy of foliar winter injury on woody aboveground carbon sequestration of red spruce trees”.

Objectives

The objective of this study was to determine how climate variables influence annual growth of white ash in the northern part of its historical range and before EAB negatively impacts local ash populations.

Data Contents

Data for 8 Plots, 130 Trees, 263 Cores

Principal Investigator

Christopher Hansen and Paula Murakami

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

We measured annual radial xylem growth of 130 dominant and codominant white ash trees from seven sites in VT and one in NH to compare growth with local climate metrics (precipitation, snow, and temperature). A better understanding of the relative influences of climate on white ash growth is particularly important as the invasive insect, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), is greatly diminishing ash populations throughout its native range. In Vermont, EAB was first detected in 2018. Cores in this study were collected from 2021-2022 and present a novel opportunity to document annual growth in healthy, living trees before the negative impacts of EAB take hold.

Project Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 31 Plots, 114 Trees, 219 Cores

Principal Investigator

Martin Dovciak, Colin Beier, and Jay Wason

Laboratory

Dovciak Lab

Project Description

This research involved resampling a series of permanent plots established in the 1980's and collecting tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir at many of these sites to identify shifts in tree growth and demography associated with recent environmental changes. To do this, we studied tree species distributions along elevational gradients on 12 mountains in four states of the northeastern United States (New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine). See Wason et al. (2017) for more information.

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 40 Plots, 246 Trees, 246 Cores

Principal Investigator

Jay W. Wason, Colin M. Beier, John J. Battles, Martin Dovciak

Laboratory

SUNY ESF

Project Description

This project integrates with our broader research on montane spruce-fir forest responses to environmental change. In this project, we collected tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir trees along elevation gradients on 10 mountains across the northeastern US. We analyzed the tree rings to determine the extent to which climate and acidic deposition have driven recent tree growth patterns.

Project Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Project Contents

Data for 30 Plots, 688 Trees, 4095 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 688 dominant and codominant sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech trees at 30 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 18 Plots, 170 Trees, 336 Cores

Principal Investigator

Nancy F. Sonti, Richard A. Hallett, Kevin L. Griffin, and Joe H. Sullivan

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

Tree cores were collected to compare growth rates of two important native tree species (white oak (Quercus alba L.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.)) across urban and reference forest sites of three major cities in the eastern United States (New York, NY (NYC); Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD). Trees were selected from secondary growth oak-hickory forests found in New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD, as well as at reference forest sites outside each metropolitan area.

Project Contents

Data for 5 Plots, 75 Trees, 150 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg and Diane Burbank

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

This project, spearheaded by the USDA Forest Service, seeks to restore and maintain oak and oak-pine forests on the southern and western slopes of a mountain known as “The Dome” by reintroducing fire and the use of timber sales, other mechanical treatments, and herbicides. These particular forests are unique in Vermont as they appear to represent the northern edge of the range for several central Appalachian species like American chestnut and sassafras. Some of the habitat has abundant American beech and red maple in the understory with few oak saplings, suggesting mesophication and future shifts toward a northern hardwood ecosystem.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 38 Trees, 0 Cores

Principal Investigator

Andrew Richardson, Moriah Carbone, Trevor Keenan, Claudia Czimczik, Dave Hollinger, Paula Murakami, Paul Schaberg, and Xiaomei Xu.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In the larger study, cores were collected from the Howland Forest (ME), Bartlett Experimental Forest (NH) and Harvard Forest (MA) to assess the age of sugars and starch reserves in several temperate forest species including red maple, red spruce, eastern hemlock, paper birch and American beech. An additional subset of increment cores was collected at Bartlett Experimental Forest due to the high rate of mortality among paper birch trees found there. These included 20 paper birch, 10 red maple and 10 American beech trees.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Project Contents

Data for 3 Plots, 180 Trees, 360 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Tim Fahey

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

To evaluate the impact of changes in soil calcium and aluminum due to acid deposition, we examined sugar maple and American beech growth and forest composition at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thornton, New Hampshire) following a major ice storm in 1998. We measured xylem annual increment, foliar cation concentrations, American beech root sprouting, and tree mortality at the experimental nutrient perturbation (NuPert) plots located within HBEF where treatment plots had been amended with calcium or aluminium beginning in 1995.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 30 Plots, 688 Trees, 4095 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 688 dominant and codominant sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech trees at 30 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 60 Trees, 120 Cores

Principal Investigator

Brett Huggett, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley and Christopher Eager

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

In 2004, we measured tree ring growth, branch dieback, crown vigor, foliar nutrition, wound closure and the production of lignin and callose in mostly dominant and codominant sugar maple trees growing on twelve pre-existing plots at the Hubbard Brook Experiment Forest in Thornton, New Hampshire. In total, 60 trees were evaluated. The plots, established in 1995, were equally and randomly divided among three treatments: soil calcium addition, soil aluminum addition and control (no treatment).

Project Contents

Data for 36 Plots, 333 Trees, 652 Cores

Principal Investigator

Christopher Hansen, Paul Schaberg, Allan Strong, Shelly Rayback, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth, crown condition and tree mortality for 333 dominant and codominant sugar maple and yellow birch trees at the Hubbard Brook Experiment Forest in Thorton, New Hampshire and compared these health metrics among four LiDAR-derived canopy classes – 1. high crown, high understory closure, 2. high crown, low understory closure, 3. low crown, high understory closure and 4. low crown, low understory closure.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 30 Plots, 688 Trees, 4095 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 688 dominant and codominant sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech trees at 30 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 36 Plots, 333 Trees, 652 Cores

Principal Investigator

Christopher Hansen, Paul Schaberg, Allan Strong, Shelly Rayback, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth, crown condition and tree mortality for 333 dominant and codominant sugar maple and yellow birch trees at the Hubbard Brook Experiment Forest in Thorton, New Hampshire and compared these health metrics among four LiDAR-derived canopy classes – 1. high crown, high understory closure, 2. high crown, low understory closure, 3. low crown, high understory closure and 4. low crown, low understory closure.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 175 Trees, 350 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, and Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2006, we assessed crown health, radial growth, and available soil cations at 12 paper birch (Betula papyrifera and B. papyrifera var. cordifolia) sites located in the north-central Green Mountains, Vermont, as a preliminary assessment of factors that may be influencing paper birch decline. Selected plot locations overlapped with previous aerial mapping of paper birch decline, and we avoided areas known to have been affected by insect outbreaks in 2004 and 2005. Nine of the sites were located at three different elevations on each of three different mountain-slopes in order to assess tree health and soil nutrition across an elevational gradient. Three plots per site were established within areas known to have experienced moderate ice storm damage in 1998 and 3-4 dominant or co-dominant birch trees closest to plot center were sampled for tree and soil assessments. At higher elevations, sample trees included heart-leafed paper birch. All sites contained dominant and co-dominant paper birch with sugar maple and/or red spruce as companion species. Understory vegetation was highly variable depending on both aspect and elevation, though hobblebush (Viburnum alnifolium) and striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum) were present on most plots. Soils were usually Spodosols with generally well defined Oa, E, and B horizons, except at some upper elevations where soils were either Histosols or Entisols (i.e., no B horizon present).

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 45 Trees, 155 Cores

Principal Investigator

Tala Awada, Paolo Cherubini

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

Remnant populations of Betula papyrifera have persisted in the Great Plains after the Wisconsin Glaciation along the Niobrara River Valley, Nebraska. Population health has declined in recent years, which has been hypothesized to be due to climate change. We used tree rings to assess the response of B. papyrifera to microclimate and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from satellite imagery as a proxy for population health. The study area was located at the Nature Conservancy’s Niobrara Valley Preserve in north-central Nebraska, centered at 42°78′34″N, 100°02′80″W, and encompasses nearly 227 km2. Seven north-facing stands were selected along a 27 km section of the river. Individuals were found only on north-facing slopes and growing from pre-existing root crowns. We selected the largest trees based on healthiest visual appearance and largest diameter measured at breast height. A total of 180 cores, i.e., four cores from each of 45 trees, were sampled at 1.3 m from the base, at 90° around the trunk, representing the north, south, east, and west sides. The oldest ring record dated back to 1894, with the majority of consistent records across trees rings dating back to the early 1950s, thus the time frame selected for this study.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 38 Trees, 0 Cores

Principal Investigator

Andrew Richardson, Moriah Carbone, Trevor Keenan, Claudia Czimczik, Dave Hollinger, Paula Murakami, Paul Schaberg, and Xiaomei Xu.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In the larger study, cores were collected from the Howland Forest (ME), Bartlett Experimental Forest (NH) and Harvard Forest (MA) to assess the age of sugars and starch reserves in several temperate forest species including red maple, red spruce, eastern hemlock, paper birch and American beech. An additional subset of increment cores was collected at Bartlett Experimental Forest due to the high rate of mortality among paper birch trees found there. These included 20 paper birch, 10 red maple and 10 American beech trees.

Project Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 175 Trees, 350 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, and Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2006, we assessed crown health, radial growth, and available soil cations at 12 paper birch (Betula papyrifera and B. papyrifera var. cordifolia) sites located in the north-central Green Mountains, Vermont, as a preliminary assessment of factors that may be influencing paper birch decline. Selected plot locations overlapped with previous aerial mapping of paper birch decline, and we avoided areas known to have been affected by insect outbreaks in 2004 and 2005. Nine of the sites were located at three different elevations on each of three different mountain-slopes in order to assess tree health and soil nutrition across an elevational gradient. Three plots per site were established within areas known to have experienced moderate ice storm damage in 1998 and 3-4 dominant or co-dominant birch trees closest to plot center were sampled for tree and soil assessments. At higher elevations, sample trees included heart-leafed paper birch. All sites contained dominant and co-dominant paper birch with sugar maple and/or red spruce as companion species. Understory vegetation was highly variable depending on both aspect and elevation, though hobblebush (Viburnum alnifolium) and striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum) were present on most plots. Soils were usually Spodosols with generally well defined Oa, E, and B horizons, except at some upper elevations where soils were either Histosols or Entisols (i.e., no B horizon present).

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 109 Trees, 208 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Kendra Collins, Chris Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 107 open-pollinated American chestnut and compared annual growth with winter shoot injury, spring foliar budbreak and leaf-out, spring foliar frost injury, and climate variables (temperature and moisture).

Project Contents

Data for 3 Plots, 180 Trees, 360 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Tim Fahey

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

To evaluate the impact of changes in soil calcium and aluminum due to acid deposition, we examined sugar maple and American beech growth and forest composition at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thornton, New Hampshire) following a major ice storm in 1998. We measured xylem annual increment, foliar cation concentrations, American beech root sprouting, and tree mortality at the experimental nutrient perturbation (NuPert) plots located within HBEF where treatment plots had been amended with calcium or aluminium beginning in 1995.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 30 Plots, 688 Trees, 4095 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 688 dominant and codominant sugar maple, red maple, yellow birch and American beech trees at 30 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 38 Trees, 0 Cores

Principal Investigator

Andrew Richardson, Moriah Carbone, Trevor Keenan, Claudia Czimczik, Dave Hollinger, Paula Murakami, Paul Schaberg, and Xiaomei Xu.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In the larger study, cores were collected from the Howland Forest (ME), Bartlett Experimental Forest (NH) and Harvard Forest (MA) to assess the age of sugars and starch reserves in several temperate forest species including red maple, red spruce, eastern hemlock, paper birch and American beech. An additional subset of increment cores was collected at Bartlett Experimental Forest due to the high rate of mortality among paper birch trees found there. These included 20 paper birch, 10 red maple and 10 American beech trees.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 63 Trees, 123 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Rebecca Stern

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth of dominant and co-dominant eastern red cedar (collected in 2017), northern white cedar (collected in 2017) and white ash (collected in 2019) in Red Rocks Park in South Burlington, Vermont and combined this data with previous increment core collections of eastern hemlock, white pine, American beech, red oak, and white oak (collected in 2016) at the same site to compare individual species’ growth with climate parameters including air temperature (maximum and minimum) and precipitation (both rain and snow) as well as pollution deposition. Increment core data from the previous core collections at Red Rocks Park are similarly archived on the DEN under the following projects: “Growth trends and environmental drivers of major tree species of the northern hardwood forest”, “Eastern white pine and eastern hemlock growth: possible tradeoffs in response of canopy trees to climate and pollution”, “White oak chronologies of the Champlain Valley of Vermont”, and “Growth of canopy red oak near its northern range limit: current trends, potential drivers, and implications for the future”.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 8 Plots, 130 Trees, 263 Cores

Principal Investigator

Christopher Hansen and Paula Murakami

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

We measured annual radial xylem growth of 130 dominant and codominant white ash trees from seven sites in VT and one in NH to compare growth with local climate metrics (precipitation, snow, and temperature). A better understanding of the relative influences of climate on white ash growth is particularly important as the invasive insect, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), is greatly diminishing ash populations throughout its native range. In Vermont, EAB was first detected in 2018. Cores in this study were collected from 2021-2022 and present a novel opportunity to document annual growth in healthy, living trees before the negative impacts of EAB take hold.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 44 Trees, 82 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured annual radial xylem growth of 44 green ash trees from a range-wide provenance planting in Burlington, VT and compared growth with local climate metrics (precipitation, snow and temperature). A better understanding of the relative influences of genetics and climate on green ash growth is particularly important as the invasive insect, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), is greatly diminishing green ash populations throughout its native range. In Vermont, EAB was first detected in 2018. At the time of our core collection, 2019, EAB was not detected in the provenance planting. The timing of this study presented a novel opportunity to document annual growth in living trees before the negative impacts of EAB.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 63 Trees, 123 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Rebecca Stern

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth of dominant and co-dominant eastern red cedar (collected in 2017), northern white cedar (collected in 2017) and white ash (collected in 2019) in Red Rocks Park in South Burlington, Vermont and combined this data with previous increment core collections of eastern hemlock, white pine, American beech, red oak, and white oak (collected in 2016) at the same site to compare individual species’ growth with climate parameters including air temperature (maximum and minimum) and precipitation (both rain and snow) as well as pollution deposition. Increment core data from the previous core collections at Red Rocks Park are similarly archived on the DEN under the following projects: “Growth trends and environmental drivers of major tree species of the northern hardwood forest”, “Eastern white pine and eastern hemlock growth: possible tradeoffs in response of canopy trees to climate and pollution”, “White oak chronologies of the Champlain Valley of Vermont”, and “Growth of canopy red oak near its northern range limit: current trends, potential drivers, and implications for the future”.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 32 Trees, 63 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

We extracted tree cores from 16 eastern red cedar and 16 northern white cedar dominant and co-dominant trees at the Butternut Hill Natural Area in the summer of 2018. This natural area, managed by The Nature Conservancy, is located along the shores of Lake Champlain (VT) and is home to a rare and ecologically significant upland community called the Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest. In Vermont, this forest community is small in size (mostly under 10 acres) and number (97 total patches).

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 9 Plots, 268 Trees, 479 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We set up elevational transects were set up in three of the four watersheds on Mt. Mansfield (Underhill, VT): Brown’s River, Stevensville Brook, and Ranch Brook Watersheds. Along each of these transects, three plots were selected – one within each of the following elevational zones: low (450-650 m asl), mid (750-850 m) and high (900-1000 m) (n plots = 9), which align with northern hardwoods, transition, and montane spruce-fir ecotones. Plots contained 10-14 dominant or co-dominant trees of each of the target tree species with approximately equal distribution around plot center in attempts to avoid differing competition pressures between trees. We sampled red maple, sugar maple, and red spruce at low elevation; sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce at mid elevation; and red spruce and balsam fir at high elevation. Due to differential species densities across the landscape, plots were of variable radius.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 380 Trees, 756 Cores

Principal Investigator

Alexandra Kosiba, Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2003, a severe region-wide event damaged over 90% of red spruce in the northeastern US. We assessed the influence of the 2003 winter injury event on long-term growth and C sequestration of red spruce trees by measuring the xylem growth (basal area increment) in forest stands in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where winter injury was quantified in 2003. To do this, we assessed dominant and co-dominant red spruce trees in 30 forest plots (10–15 trees per plot) from 14 locations that had been quantified for winter injury severity (visual assessment of damage to current-year foliage, ranging from 0% to 100%) in 2003 (a sub-set of the 27 locations and 176 plots assessed by Lazarus et al., 2004).

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 6 Plots, 60 Trees, 120 Cores

Principal Investigator

Joshua Halman, Paul Schaberg, and Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

In 2006, we examined the annual growth of dominant and codominant red spruce trees growing in the reference watershed (WS6) and calcium-addition watershed (WS1) at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (Thorton, NH) to compare the effects of Ca-addition on red spruce growth dynamics.

Project Contents

Data for 31 Plots, 114 Trees, 219 Cores

Principal Investigator

Martin Dovciak, Colin Beier, and Jay Wason

Laboratory

Dovciak Lab

Project Description

This research involved resampling a series of permanent plots established in the 1980's and collecting tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir at many of these sites to identify shifts in tree growth and demography associated with recent environmental changes. To do this, we studied tree species distributions along elevational gradients on 12 mountains in four states of the northeastern United States (New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine). See Wason et al. (2017) for more information.

Project Contents

Data for 12 Plots, 137 Trees, 256 Cores

Principal Investigator

Ben Engel, Paul Schberg, Gary Hawley, Shelly Rayback

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

In order to maximize the sample size and range of exceedance values assessed, this study utilized a large set of both pre-existing (Weverka, 2012, Kosiba et al., 2013, Kosiba et al., 2014) and newly collected red spruce xylem increment cores from VT and NH, for a total of 441 trees at 37 sites. These sites included 23 plots chosen to reflect a broad range of red spruce forest conditions (Weverka, 2012, Kosiba et al., 2013, Kosiba et al., 2014) and 14 new plots that were selected using a previously established critical load and exceedence model (NEG/ECP) to identify areas where: (1) red spruce were predicted to occur in the forest type module of the NEG/ECP model, (2) located on state and federal lands to streamline the issuance of collection permits, and (3) at locations where modeled exceedance values approach the positive and negative limits for the study area (−2 and +2 keq ha⁻¹ y⁻¹) to extend and balance the range of values assessed.

Project Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Project Contents

Data for 24 Plots, 241 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, and Brynne Lazarus

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley Lab

Project Description

We sought to investigate the environmental factors that may contribute to red spruce foliar winter injury and how much this injury influences tree carbon stores. We used a long-term record of winter injury in a plantation in New Hampshire and at 23 forested plots (in MA, NH, and VT) and conducted stepwise linear regression analyses with local weather and regional pollution data to determine which parameters helped account for observed injury.

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 40 Plots, 246 Trees, 246 Cores

Principal Investigator

Jay W. Wason, Colin M. Beier, John J. Battles, Martin Dovciak

Laboratory

SUNY ESF

Project Description

This project integrates with our broader research on montane spruce-fir forest responses to environmental change. In this project, we collected tree cores from red spruce and balsam fir trees along elevation gradients on 10 mountains across the northeastern US. We analyzed the tree rings to determine the extent to which climate and acidic deposition have driven recent tree growth patterns.

Project Contents

Data for 8 Plots, 273 Trees, 508 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kevin T. Smith (NRS), Walter C. Shortle (NRS, retired), Gregory B. Lawrence (USGS)

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

At the invitation of the Northern Global Change Program, coordinated sampling and analysis was conducted for soil chemistry, dendrochronology, and dendrochemistry.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 217 Trees, 410 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Gary Hawley, Ali Kosiba, Joshua Halman, Brynne Lazarus, Chris Hansen, Paula Murakami, Catherine Borer, Stephen Keller, Thibaut Capblancq and Brittany Verrico.

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We collected increment cores from dominant and co-dominant trees growing in a range-wide red spruce provenance study in Colebrook, NH in 2004 and 2021. This study was established in 1960 and the trees growing here represent 12 provenance sources from eastern Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Quebec) and eastern U.S. (Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and North Carolina). In 2004, cores were collected to assess growth following a series of significant winter injury events that damaged current year foliage (see associated DEN project, “Assessment of weather-associated causes of red spruce winter injury and consequences to aboveground carbon sequestration”). In 2021, cores were collected as part of a separate study to assess differences in growth magnitude and patterns for the 12 seed sources and relate these to gene sequences measured by Steve Keller (molecular geneticist in the Plant Biology Department at the University of Vermont). While these two core collections were conducted for different objectives, they are archived together to enable easy access to their raw ring width data for future studies at this site. For specific seed source locations, see: Wilkinson, RC. 1990. Effects of winter injury on basal area and height growth of 30-year-old red spruce from 12 provenances growing in northern New Hampshire. Can J. For. Res. 20:1616-1622.

Project Contents

Data for 3 Plots, 52 Trees, 104 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg Lab

Project Description

As a follow-up to findings reported by Kosiba et al. 2018, we collected increment cores from 18 trees growing on Mt. Mansfield, VT – five years following the most recent collection. Eight of these trees overlapped with those previously collected by Kosiba et al. 2017. Red spruce trees were also sampled in Wolcott (15) and Guildhall, VT (19). Estimates of annual basal area increment (BAI) from 2013-2017 indicate that red spruce on Mt. Mansfield continue to maintain a high level of growth (BAI = 28.8 cm2). Annual growth at the other two, lower elevation sites was significantly less (Wolcott BAI = 11.8 cm2; Guildhall BAI = 11.5 cm2). See the following DEN projects for more information regarding previous work: “Comparative growth trends of five northern hardwood and montane tree species along elevational transects in Mt. Mansfield State Forest” and “Quantifying the legacy of foliar winter injury on woody aboveground carbon sequestration of red spruce trees”.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 5 Plots, 75 Trees, 150 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg and Diane Burbank

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

This project, spearheaded by the USDA Forest Service, seeks to restore and maintain oak and oak-pine forests on the southern and western slopes of a mountain known as “The Dome” by reintroducing fire and the use of timber sales, other mechanical treatments, and herbicides. These particular forests are unique in Vermont as they appear to represent the northern edge of the range for several central Appalachian species like American chestnut and sassafras. Some of the habitat has abundant American beech and red maple in the understory with few oak saplings, suggesting mesophication and future shifts toward a northern hardwood ecosystem.

Project Contents

Data for 16 Plots, 253 Trees, 492 Cores

Principal Investigator

Aiko Weverka, Jen Pontius

Laboratory

Pointus and Schaberg/Hawley Labs

Project Description

In this study, the following questions were investigated: 1) Is there a relationship between measurements of basal area increment and vegetation indices derived from Landsat 5 TM data the same year 1984-2010? 2) If these relationships exist, are they stronger for certain vegetation indices, species types, or particular locations? 3) Is there some combination of multiple vegetation indices that can be used to model BAI across the landscape? To answer these questions, we analyzed tree growth for dominant species in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire.

Project Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Project Contents

Data for 26 Plots, 507 Trees, 1996 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 507 dominant and codominant eastern white pine and eastern hemlock trees at 24 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 4 Plots, 53 Trees, 108 Cores

Principal Investigator

Schaberg, P.G., Murakami, P.F., Hansen, C.F., D’Amato, A.W., and Murray, H.F.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

This is a collection of white oak cores collected in the Champlain Valley of Vermont. Two trees in this collection can be dated back to 1662 and 1630 with one individual probably originating before the year 1580.

Project Contents

Data for 18 Plots, 170 Trees, 336 Cores

Principal Investigator

Nancy F. Sonti, Richard A. Hallett, Kevin L. Griffin, and Joe H. Sullivan

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

Tree cores were collected to compare growth rates of two important native tree species (white oak (Quercus alba L.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.)) across urban and reference forest sites of three major cities in the eastern United States (New York, NY (NYC); Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD). Trees were selected from secondary growth oak-hickory forests found in New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; and Baltimore, MD, as well as at reference forest sites outside each metropolitan area.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 5 Plots, 75 Trees, 150 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg and Diane Burbank

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

This project, spearheaded by the USDA Forest Service, seeks to restore and maintain oak and oak-pine forests on the southern and western slopes of a mountain known as “The Dome” by reintroducing fire and the use of timber sales, other mechanical treatments, and herbicides. These particular forests are unique in Vermont as they appear to represent the northern edge of the range for several central Appalachian species like American chestnut and sassafras. Some of the habitat has abundant American beech and red maple in the understory with few oak saplings, suggesting mesophication and future shifts toward a northern hardwood ecosystem.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.

Project Contents

Data for 11 Plots, 214 Trees, 432 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 213 dominant and codominant red oak trees at 11 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data. Because red oak wood is ring-porous, exhibiting a bimodal distribution of vessels, xylem growth can be easily partitioned into earlywood (EW) and latewood (LW) growth as well as whole-ring widths (WRW). Therefore, we evaluated relationships between WRW, LW and EW growth and environmental factors that may influence growth.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 39 Plots, 244 Trees, 483 Cores

Principal Investigator

John L. Campbell, Paul G. Schaberg, Lindsey E. Rustad, Christopher F. Hansen, Charles T. Driscoll.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

After the 1998 ice storm, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station initiated the Ice Storm Forest Response Study to address shortcomings in our understanding of ice storm effects on forest ecosystems. In the first summer after the storm (1998), forest damage was mapped using aerial photographs and ground surveys. In the following summer (1999), forest plots were established, and forest inventory data were collected to quantify damage and track recovery in areas of Vermont and New Hampshire, USA that were affected by the ice storm. Forest inventory data were collected again 17 years after the storm (2015) along with tree cores to evaluate long-term forest responses.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 726 Trees, 726 Cores

Principal Investigator

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) large forest dynamics plot is located at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA, adjacent to the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. The plot is located at the intersection of three of the major physiographic provinces of the eastern US: the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and Piedmont provinces. The forest type is typical mature secondary eastern mixed deciduous forest, with a canopy dominated by tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), oaks (Quercus spp.), and hickories (Carya spp.), and an understory composed mainly of spicebush (Lindera benzoin), paw-paw (Asimina triloba), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), and witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). The SCBI forest plot is 25.6 ha (640 x 400 m), including a 4-ha fenced exclosure where white-tailed deer have been excluded since 1990, as well as three 1-ha Smithsonian Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity Program (SI-MAB) sites, with some sites surveyed several times since 1990. In 2010 and 2011, over 500 trees were cored in order to establish a baseline of dendrochronological data and gather background on the forest plot. In 2016 the annual mortality census was amended to include coring any tree marked dead. This practice was continued in 2017 when the current chronologies were created.

Project Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Project Contents

Data for 37 Plots, 1757 Trees, 1757 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shawn Fraver and Alan White

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

We used tree-ring data from 37 plots, randomly located within the TNC’s Big Reed Forest Reserve, to reconstruct the history of natural disturbances in this old-growth landscape.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 63 Trees, 123 Cores

Principal Investigator

Paul Schaberg, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Rebecca Stern

Laboratory

Schaberg lab

Project Description

We measured tree ring growth of dominant and co-dominant eastern red cedar (collected in 2017), northern white cedar (collected in 2017) and white ash (collected in 2019) in Red Rocks Park in South Burlington, Vermont and combined this data with previous increment core collections of eastern hemlock, white pine, American beech, red oak, and white oak (collected in 2016) at the same site to compare individual species’ growth with climate parameters including air temperature (maximum and minimum) and precipitation (both rain and snow) as well as pollution deposition. Increment core data from the previous core collections at Red Rocks Park are similarly archived on the DEN under the following projects: “Growth trends and environmental drivers of major tree species of the northern hardwood forest”, “Eastern white pine and eastern hemlock growth: possible tradeoffs in response of canopy trees to climate and pollution”, “White oak chronologies of the Champlain Valley of Vermont”, and “Growth of canopy red oak near its northern range limit: current trends, potential drivers, and implications for the future”.

Project Contents

Data for 1 Plot, 32 Trees, 63 Cores

Principal Investigator

Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

We extracted tree cores from 16 eastern red cedar and 16 northern white cedar dominant and co-dominant trees at the Butternut Hill Natural Area in the summer of 2018. This natural area, managed by The Nature Conservancy, is located along the shores of Lake Champlain (VT) and is home to a rare and ecologically significant upland community called the Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest. In Vermont, this forest community is small in size (mostly under 10 acres) and number (97 total patches).

Project Contents

Data for 104 Plots, 718 Trees, 715 Cores

Principal Investigator

David R. Carter, Robert S. Seymour, Shawn Fraver, and Aaron Weitskittel

Laboratory

UMaine Orono

Project Description

This study investigated the growth response of mature, isolated reserve trees (n = 528) and their paired analogues from the control (n=190) in two multiaged silvicultural systems in the Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project (AFERP).

Project Contents

Data for 26 Plots, 507 Trees, 1996 Cores

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Stern, Paul Schaberg, Shelly Rayback, Paula Murakami, Christopher Hansen, Gary Hawley

Laboratory

Schaberg/Hawley/Rayback Dendrochronology Collaborative

Project Description

We measured tree rings for 507 dominant and codominant eastern white pine and eastern hemlock trees at 24 VT sites, and statistically compared growth to tree and stand characteristics and regional climate and pollutant deposition data.

Project Contents

Data for 10 Plots, 371 Trees, 669 Cores

Principal Investigator

Justin T. Maxwell, Grant L. Harley, Scott M. Robeson.

Laboratory

Unknown

Project Description

In this project we were interested in comparing the climate response between multiple co-occurring species. While, we found that the general response was to June climate and that soil moisture was the leading driver of growth, we found distinct species-specific differences. The ongoing work aims at determining what drives these differences.