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ON THE COVER
This young longleaf pine has begun to grow skyward. Longleaf pine forests have been disappearing over the past century and so have the wildlife that require this habitat. Longleaf pine trees form a sparse overstory, the midstory is open, and the ground vegetation includes lush grasses and wildflowers. Read about the research being conducted on flora and fauna in these forests. This issue of Louisiana Agriculture focuses on sustainability of Louisiana’s forests. (Photo by John Wozniak) |
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| Mapping Swamp Forest Conditions The productivity and composition of wetland forests depend strongly on hydrological conditions. Minor changes in the frequency, duration and seasonality of flooding can favor establishment and growth of entirely separate groups of species. |
| [Image: Figure 1. Researchers core a baldcypress tree]Baldcypress Site Relationships and Silviculture Regional increases in flooding are likely to reduce the productivity of baldcypress-water tupelo swamps in coastal Louisiana. Although these trees are merchantable for lumber production, it will be important to design appropriate management plans for these sites. |
| Protecting Coastal Wetland Forests: What Can You Do to Help? Louisiana’s coastal wetland forests are of tremendous economic, ecological, cultural and recreational value. But many acres of these forests have disappeared over the past century, and many more are being degraded or lost each year. |
| [Image: stream]Forest Management and Stream Organisms: Role of Trees in Aquatic Food Webs Water quality monitoring efforts in Louisiana’s streams focus on the concentrations of sediment, nutrients and other compounds in the water. However, activities within the watersheds of these streams actually play the most critical role in determining stream water quality. |
| More Research Needed on Bio-based Fuels Louisiana farmers and foresters could find a silver lining in the cloud of rising fuel prices with the development of new fuels from crops they already grow or could grow. |
| Barry Moser, 1955-2005 Barry Moser, 50, head of the Departmentof Experimental Statistics, died unexpectedly April 19, 2006, of a heart attack. |
| [Image: illustration of quail]Using Herbicides and Fire to Manage Pine Forests for Northern Bobwhites Northern bobwhite populations have declined over the past 30 years throughout their range. This decline is due to habitat loss caused by a combination of factors including changes in landscape use from small farms with brushy fence lines and hedgerows to silvicultural practices creating large monocultural stands and, more recently, reduction of fire as a silvicultural tool. |
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| Editors Receive Award Linda Foster Benedict, associate director of LSU AgCenter Communications,and Rick Bogren, associate professor, received a gold award for their editing of Louisiana Agriculture. |
| What's New? The following five articles appeared in the spring 2006 issue of Louisiana Agriculture in "What's New?" |
| Five Faculty Part of Governor’s Science Working Group on Coastal Wetland Forest Conservation and Use In late 2004, the Governor of Louisiana commissioned a 12-member Science Working Group on Coastal Wetland Forest Conservation and Use. The group completed its work in a year and submitted a report with recommendations. |
| LSU AgCenter Forestry Agents Serve As Front-line Forces The LSU AgCenter provides forest landowners with educational opportunities to help them manage their timber resources for profit and sustainability. Louisiana has more than 140,000 nonindustrial, private landowners owning 67 percent of the forestland in the state. |
| [Image: Bottomland hardwood forests]Restoration and Management of Bottomland Hardwoods Bottomland hardwood forests are distributed along rivers and streams throughout the central and southern United States. These wetland forests contain numerous oxbow lakes, sloughs and other wetlands embedded in a mixture of oaks, sweetgum, hickories, ash, cottonwood, sycamore and other species. |
| What’s in a name? You will see several names given to trees and forest stands that grow in the coastal wetlands of Louisiana. Forest stands are often named for their most common tree species. Sometimes areas of wetland forest in Louisiana are referred to as cypress-tupelo stands. |
| [Image: map]Cooperative Research in Sustainable Silviculture and Soil Productivity For many years, sustainable forest management was judged by two simple factors: replacement of harvested trees and consistent yields. Because forestry in the United States originated in response to exploitive logging and land clearing, these were sufficient and effective indicators of sustainability. |
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| [Image: cover]Louisiana Agriculture Magazine Spring 2006 Louisiana Agriculture Magazine Spring 2006.pdf |
| [Image: chinese tallow tree leaves]Invasive Species in Louisiana Forests Over the past 300 years, tens of thousands of animal and plant species have been introduced in the United States. A small number have proved invasive. |
| [Image: Clearing debris after Hurricane Katrina]The Hurricane Impact on Southern Pine Sawtimber Stumpage Prices in Louisiana Within a month, hurricanes Katrina and Rita damaged about 4.4 billion board feet (3.0 billion by Katrina and 1.4 billion by Rita) of sawtimber inventory in Louisiana. |
| [Image: three-dimensional plot of LIDAR data]LIDAR Promises Improved Inventory-taking LSU AgCenter scientists have been researching remote sensing work with airborne lasers to develop three-dimensional pictures to measure the stand and take inventory of a forest. |
| [Image: Jennifer Martin, 4-H member]Crain Helps Youth Develop Forestry Skills LSU AgCenter area forestry agent Barry Crain helps youth develop forestry skills during a special 3-hour training event every year before the state 4-H University competition held on the LSU campus in June. |
| [Image: fire and flowers]Longleaf Pine Forests: Wildlife of Louisiana’s Threatened Grasslands What do red-cockaded woodpeckers and gopher tortoises have in common? They are endangered species, and both require a habitat becoming rare inLouisiana and throughout the southern United States. To thrive, they need open pine forests, known as longleaf pine savannahs. |
| [Image: April Mason, left, and Philip Saksa, graduate students]Forestry BMPs Protect Water Quality in Louisiana’s Streams, Bayous and Lakes Louisiana is blessed with an abundance of forests and waterways. Miles of rivers, bayous and lakes provide Louisiana’s citizens with fishing, hunting, boating and recreational opportunities, which contribute to the state’s wealth and economic growth. |
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