Dominant Height Growth and Site Index Curves for Loblolly Pine Plantations in the Carolina Flatwoods

Abstract
Stem analysis was used to reconstruct the past height growth of sample trees taken from the upper canopy in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations in the Carolina flat-woods. From a soil profile description a Soil Conservation Service drainage class was determined for each sampled location. The effects of soil drainage class and method of site preparation on the height growth trends were examined, and resulted in the construction of two sets of site index curves: one for very poorly drained (almost exclusively North Carolina pocosin) soils, and another for soils ranging from poorly to well drained. Within drainage classes the different categories of mechanical site preparation methods considered did not require the construction of separate site index curves.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: