Fort Valley Experimental United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Forest—A Century of Rocky Mountain Research Station Proceedings RMRS-P-53CD Research 1908-2008 August 2008 Conference Proceedings August 7–9, 2008 Flagstaff, AZ Olberding, Susan D., and Moore, Margaret M., tech coords. 2008. Fort Valley Experimental Forest—A Century of Research 1908-2008. Conference Proceedings; August 7-9, 2008; Flagstaff, AZ. Proceedings RMRS-P-53CD. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 408 p. Abstract One hundred years ago, the USFS began its forest research program in a two-room cabin near Flagstaff, Arizona, with one staff person, Gustaf A. Pearson. The site became known as the Fort Valley Experiment Station and was the first in a national network of research sites developed to address uncertainties regarding the rehabilitation and conservation for forest and range lands in the nation. Fort Valley’s name has changed over the century and for today’s reader, Fort Valley Experimental Forest (FVEF) is used. The conference recognized pioneering silvicultural, range, and watershed research and how the work continues today. Invited papers and contributed poster papers were presented during the first day of the conference. The second day’s schedule included field trips and the dedication of new monuments at the historic Fort Valley Experimental Forest headquarters. The conference consisted of USFS retired researchers, current scientists, and students that addressed issues affecting the perpetuation of the ponderosa pine forest of the Southwest. Keywords: long-term research, ponderosa pine, range research, silviculture, cultural resources, Fort Valley Experimental Forest, Long Valley Experimental Forest, http://www.rmrs.nau.edu/fortvalley/ Cover photo: Fort Valley Experimental Forest headquarters in winter. The San Francisco Peaks are in the background. 1920 photo by G.A. Pearson. NOTE: Papers were edited to a uniform style; however, authors are responsible for the content and accuracy of their papers. You may order additional copies of this publication by sending your mailing information in label form through one of the following media. Please specify the publication title and number. Publishing Services Telephone (970) 498-1392 FAX (970) 498-1122 E-mail [email protected] Web site http://www.fs.fed.us/rmrs Mailing Address Publications Distribution Rocky Mountain Research Station 240 West Prospect Road Fort Collins, CO 80526 Fort Valley Experimental Forest— A Century of Research 1908–2008 Conference Proceedings August 7–9, 2008 Flagstaff, AZ Technical Coordinators Susan D. Olberding, Historian/Archivist USFS RMRS Fort Valley Experimental Forest Flagstaff, AZ Margaret M. Moore, Professor School of Forestry Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ Sponsors Rocky Mountain Research Station, USDAFS Coconino National Forest Northern Arizona University, School of Forestry Ecological Restoration Institute Society of American Foresters, Southwestern Section University of Arizona, School of Natural Resources Conference Program Committee Susan D. Olberding, Rocky Mountain Research Station Margaret M. Moore, Northern Arizona University David R. Patton, U.S. Forest Service and Northern Arizona University (ret.) Peter F. Ffolliott, University of Arizona Peter J. Pilles, Jr., Coconino National Forest Daniel G. Neary, Rocky Mountain Research Station Preface The conference program committee was comprised of people long-associated with Fort Valley and its research. Our goal was to summarize the important contributions to southwestern forest and range management that evolved from Fort Valley-based projects. We pulled folks from retirement to prepare the invited papers that list past and present research endeavors. We are extremely grateful for their willingness to, at least once more, put pen to paper and share their vast experiences. We also thank those who prepared poster papers that consist primarily of the most recent research occurring on the Fort Valley Experimental Forest. Daniel P. Huebner, RMRS, provided invaluable help with the technical side to these proceedings. The Conference Planning committee included: Diane T. Jacobs, Brenda Strohmeyer, Jose Iniguez, Cody Stropki, Doc Smith, Brian Geils, Daniel G. Neary, Margaret Moore, David R. Patton, and Peter F. Ffolliott. i Contents Opening Remarks for the Fort Valley Centennial Celebration ...................... ix G. Sam Foster, Station Director, U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins, CO Invited Papers “It Was a Young Man’s Life”: G.A. Pearson .................................................1 Susan D. Olberding, USFS Fort Valley Experimental Forest, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Flagstaff, AZ Historical Review of Fort Valley Studies on Stand Management ................23 Peter F. Ffolliott, Professor, University of Arizona, School of Natural Resources, Tucson, AZ Forest Regeneration Research ....................................................................34 Leroy J. (Pat) Heidmann, USFS (ret), Fort Valley Experimental Forest, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Flagstaff, AZ Fire and Fuels Research at Fort Valley and Long Valley Experimental Forests ..............................................................................54 Stephen S. Sackett (ret.) and Sally M. Haase, Research Forester, USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Riverside, CA Range Management Research, Fort Valley Experimental Forest .................68 Henry A. Pearson, (ret.), USFS/Agricultural Research Service, Athens, TX; Warren P. Clary, (ret.), USFS, Meridian, ID; Margaret M. Moore, Northern Arizona University, School of Forestry, Flagstaff, AZ; and Carolyn Hull Sieg, USFS, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Flagstaff, AZ Contributions of Silvicultural Studies at Fort Valley to Watershed Management of Arizona’s Ponderosa Pine Forests .................................86 Gerald J. Gottfried, USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forests and Woodlands Program, Phoenix, AZ; Peter F. Ffolliott, University of Arizona, School of Natural Resources, Tucson, AZ; and Daniel G. Neary, USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station, Air-Water-Aquatics Program, Flagstaff, AZ The Fort Valley Experimental Forest, Ponderosa Pine, and Wildlife Habitat Research ......................................................................98 David R. Patton, Professor and Dean Emeritus, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, and Former Project Leader, U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Fort Collins, CO Memories of Fort Valley From 1938 to 1942 ...........................................111 Frank H. Wadsworth, (ret.), Research Forester, USFS International Institute of Tropical Forestry, San Juan, PR ii Poster Papers Plant Recruitment in a Northern Arizona Ponderosa Pine Forest: Testing Seed- and Leaf Litter-Limitation Hypotheses ............................119 Scott R. Abella, Public Lands Institute and School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV Forty Years Later at Taylor Woods: Merging the Old and New ...............128 John D. Bailey, College of Forestry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR “Growing Trees Backwards”: Description of a Stand Reconstruction Model ..........................................................................136 Jonathan D. Bakker, College of Forest Resources, University of Washington, Seattle, WA; Andrew J. Sánchez Meador, USFS Forest Management Service Center, Fort Collins, CO; Peter Z. Fulé, School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; David W. Huffman, Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; and Margaret M. Moore, School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ The Hill Plots: A Rare Long-Term Vegetation Study .................................148 Jonathan D. Bakker, College of Forest Resources, University of Washington, Seattle, WA; Margaret M. Moore, School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; and Daniel C. Laughlin, Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ Removing the Tree-Ring Width Biological Trend Using Expected Basal Area Increment ...........................................................................158 Franco Biondi, DendroLab, Department of Geography, University of Nevada, Reno, NV Characteristics of Buckbrush Shrubs Exposed to Herbivores after Seven Years of Protection ....................................................................171 W. Walker Chancellor, David W. Huffman, Ecological Restoration Institute, Flagstaff, AZ; and Margaret M. Moore, School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ Revisiting Pearson’s Climate and Forest Type Studies on the Fort Valley Experimental Forest ...........................................................176 Joseph E. Crouse, Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI), Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; Margaret M. Moore, School of Forestry (SoF), Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; Peter Z. Fulé, ERI and SoF, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ A Visual Progression of the Fort Valley Restoration Project Treatments Using Remotely Sensed Imagery ........................................188 Joseph E. Crouse, Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI), Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; and Peter Z. Fulé, ERI and School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ iii Early Thinning Experiments Established by