Get Silviculture Prescription

In North America, trees are selected for harvest in a selection system with reference to the Arbogast Method (named after the method's creator). This is also known as the BDq method. Under this method, a harvest is specified by defining a residual basal area (B), a maximum diameter (D), and a q-ratio (q).

The q-factor is the ratio of the number of trees in a diameter class divided by the number of trees in the next smaller diameter class. The lower the q-factor, the higher the proportion of large diameter trees.

An uneven-aged stand is a mosaic of tiny even-aged clumps and scattered individuals woven together through a perpetual cycle of random disturbances. In nature these disturbances contribute to scattered mortality, allowing for temporal waves of different age-classes dispersed throughout the stand.

sil·​vi·​cul·​ture ˈsil-və-ˌkəl-chər. : a branch of forestry dealing with the development and care of forests.

The name comes from the Latin silvi- ('forest') and culture ('growing'). The study of forests and woods is termed silvology. Silviculture also focuses on making sure that the treatment(s) of forest stands are used to conserve and improve their productivity.

10.1 Silvicultural practices Silvicultural practices are used to reduce inoculum load, and these include pruning and thinning lower branches to reduce humidity within the tree canopy, removing underbrush (weed control), and burning infected trees (Bulman et al., 2013).

Forests help manage natural systems. Trees, for example, absorb harmful particles and help provide clean water by filtering it. They also help prevent or regulate natural disturbances, providing protection from soil erosion, rock falls, and high tides, for example.

The target diameter class distribution is often specified in terms of its “Q factor,” the basal area, and the maximum diameter. The Q factor refers to the ratio of the number of trees in adjacent diameter classes and determines the relative balance between smaller trees and larger trees.

A silvicultural prescription is a document which has a planned series of treatments designed to change current stand structure and composition of a stand to one that meets management goals. The prescription normally considers ecological, economic, and societal objectives and constraints.