Friends of Mohawk Trail State Forest Report on Forest Research at Mohawk Trail State Forest Prepared for Department of Conservation and Recreation By Robert T. Leverett and Gary A. Beluzo Oct. 28, 2003 Mr. William Rivers Chief Management Forester Department of Conservation and Recreation Dear Bill: This report provides summary information on the research that Friends of Mohawk Trail State Forest has been doing for the past several years. The report is being provided in accordance with our agreement to pass all research results compiled by Friends to the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. While heretofore we have done this primarily through old growth forest briefings and e-mail communications, we feel it is time to present the results of our work more formally in a series of summary documents. The first summary document is attached. It concerns Mohawk Trail State Forest where much of our research has taken place. Summary reports on other state properties will follow in time. Our plan is to cover Mount Washington SF next, followed by Monroe SF and then Mount Greylock and Mount Tom State Reservations. As you know, we have been gathering research data for a variety of initiatives for a number of years. In the last couple of seasons we have been implementing a serious research protocol to support the species modeling we are doing. Our long-term objective is to statistically explain the maximum growth potential of several species including white pine, hemlock, white ash, northern red oak, sugar maple, and red maple. Climate, topography and aspect, soil, bedrock geology, moisture availability, and competition are assumed to be the drivers of growth. However, there are no empirical models that we know of that express the relationship between growth as the dependent variable and the other variables as the independents that can be directly applied to the trees at Mohawk. Therefore we will fill the gap. The research on maximum growth potential is being done in conjunction with the Eastern Native Tree Society (ENTS) headquartered at the University of Arkansas and the Center for Hardwood Ecology at the University of Minnesota. The research that Friends has been doing over the past several years in Mohawk Trail State Forest falls generally in one of the following areas: 1. Identification, characterization, and GIS mapping of old growth forests with the delineation of boundaries for old growth and other forest features 2. Documentation of exemplary trees, forest sites, historic sites, and special features 3. Research into growth potential of the white pines in Mohawk Trail State Forest These topics will be discussed in order below. We will conclude with a discussion of research remaining to be done. Yours truly, Yours truly, Yours truly, Jani A. Leverett Robert T. Leverett Gary A. Beluzo President, Executive Director Science Advisor Encl, Study report 2 Friends of Mohawk Trail State Forest Report on Forest Research at Mohawk Trail State Forest Prepared for Department of Conservation and Recreation Jani A. Leverett Robert T. Leverett Gary A. Beluzo President Executive Director Science Advisor 3 Table of Contents Section I. Introduction 10 A. Areas Covered by Report 10 B. Contributors to Report 10 C. Friends Perspective on Mohawk Trail State Forest 11 D. Mohawk’s Obscure Role 12 E. The Right Role Mohawk Trail State Forest in the Massachusetts 15 System of Forests and Parks F. Mohawk Trail State Forest as a Haven for the Commonwealth’s Tallest Trees 17 G. The Meaning of Mohawk’s Tall Tree Statistics 19 H. A Closer Look at Mohawk’s Tall Trees 22 I. Measures of Forest Productivity 29 J. Stand-based Measures and Added Emphasis on Tree Heights 29 K. A Rigorous Use of the Rucker Site Index 31 Section II. Definition of Old Growth Forest 33 A. Old Growth Examined Historically 33 B. Old Growth in Mohawk Trail State Forest 36 C. Friends of Mohawk Trail State Forest Definition of Old Growth 36 Section III. Areas of Old Growth Forest, Exemplary Second Growth Forest, 37 and Cultural and Historical Features of MTSF A. Mohawk’s Present Composition 37 B. Important Forest Sites 37 1. Thumper Mountain-Headquarters-Forest 38 a. Land Form 38 4 b. Old Growth 39 c. Forest Features 39 d. Exemplary Trees 39 e. Historic and Cultural Features of Thumper Mountain 41 and Headquarters Area Fire Tower Site 41 Old Indian Encampment Site 41 Tree Planting Ceremony 41 Mohawk-Narragansett Meeting 43 Nature Center 43 Dedication of Mahican-Mohawk Recreational Trail 43 Shunpike 43 2. East-side Forest (East Side of Todd Mountain and Meadows) 44 a. Landform 44 b. Old-growth Forests 45 c. Exemplary Hardwoods of the East-side Forest 45 d. Tall Pines of the East-side Forest 46 e. Historic and Cultural Features of the East-side Forest 49 John Wheeler’s Grave 49 Old Cart 1700s Road 50 Old 1800s Vintage Apple Trees 50 Red Pine Plantation 50 Tree of Peace in Lower Meadow 50 5 Trees of Peace Dedication 50 Lakota Ceremony and Tree Dedication at the Trees of Peace 51 Algonquin ceremony 51 Mike Perlman Tree 51 Karl Davies Tree 51 Music and Poetry About Mohawk Trail State Forest 52 3. North-side Forest (Todd-Clark Ridge) 53 a. Landform 53 b. Historic Features 53 Shunpike Route 53 Mohawk Indian Mountain Trail 53 c. Forest Zones of the North-side 54 d. Old-Growth Forests 54 e. High Canopy Forest 55 f. Rates of Pine Growth 58 g. Other Productivity Measurers for the North-side Forest 59 4. Trout Brook Cove Forest 63 a. Landform 63 b. Old Growth Forests 63 c. High Canopy Forest 64 d. Old Field Succession and Norway Spruce Plantations 64 e. Exemplary Trees of Trout Brook Cove 63 f. Historic and Cultural Features of the Trout Brook Cove 65 6 5. Todd-Clark Ridge, South-facing Forest 65 a. Landform 66 b. Old Growth 66 c. High Canopy Forest 66 d. Historic and Cultural Features of the South-side Forest 67 6. Cold River Gorge-North-Facing Forest -Route #2 68 a. Land Form 68 b. Old Growth 68 c. Exemplary Trees of the North-facing Side of the Cold River Gorge 69 7. Black Brook Forest: 70 a. Land Form 70 b. Old Growth 71 c. Exemplary Trees in the Black Brook Forest 71 d. Historic and Cultural Features of the Black Brook Forest 71 8. Cold River Natural Landmark Forest 72 a. Land Form 72 b. Old Growth 72 c. Exemplary Trees 73 d. Historic and Cultural Features of the Cold River Natural Landmark 73 9. Manning Brook Forest 74 a. Land Form 74 b. Old Growth 74 c. Exemplary Trees 75 7 Section IV: Research into the Growth of MTSF White Pines 76 Section V: Summary 79 A. Peace Park Concept 79 Section VI: Special Tall Tree and Sites List 80 A. Methodology Used for Measuring Tree Height 87 B. Location of Champion Trees in Mohawk Trail State Forest 88 8 List of Figures Figure 1. List of Tree Species and Relative Abundance for Mohawk Trail State Forest 20 Figure 2. Significantly Tall Trees in Mohawk Trail State Forest 21 Figure 3. Eastern Native Tree Society Tree Measurers of Prominence 23 Figure 4. Example of a Rucker Site Index Using Mount Tom State Reservation 24 Figure 5. Rucker Site Index for Connecticut River Valley and Mohawk Trail State Forest 25 Figure 6. Rucker Site Index for Connecticut River Valley and Mohawk Trail State Forest 26 for 14 Species Well Represented in Both Regions. Figure 7. Comparison of Rucker Site Index for Ice Glen and Mohawk Trail State Forest 27 Figure 8. Comparison of Maximum Tree Height for Ten Species of Trees Mohawk Trail State 27 Forest versus the Entire State Figure 9. Rucker Index for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 28 Figure 10. A Sample of Trees in Mohawk Exceeding 10 Feet in Circumference 29 Figure 11: Height to Diameter Ratios for the top ten species in Mohawk Trail State Forest 31 Figure 12. Ten Iterations of the Rucker Site Index for Mohawk Trail State Forest 32 Figure 13. Summary of Tall pines of the East-side forest. 48 Figure 14. Location of Named Pine Stands 49 Figure 15. A Comparison for Individual Species for the North-side Forests for Maximum Height 56 within Encompassing Geographical Areas. (courtesy of the Eastern Native Tree Society (ENTS) Figure 16. Distribution of Tall Trees in the North-side Forest 57 Figure 17. The Elder Grove White Pines 58 Figure 18. Distribution of Extremely Tall Trees in North-side Forest 59 Figure 19. Distribution of Understory and Overstory Species in the Elders Grove 60 Figure 20. Shunpike Data 61 9 Figure 21. Sample of Measurements of Red Maples in the North-side Forest that Exceed 100 Feet 62 Figure 22. Sample of Tagged Trees in Trees of Peace Grove 77 Figure 23. Listing of All White Pines in Massachusetts with Heights of 150 Feet or More 81 Figure 24. Distribution of All Known White Pines in Northeast 150 Feet or More in Height 82 Figure 25. Rucker Index For Selected Sites in the Northeast 83 Figure 26. List of Tallest Trees in Massachusetts 84 Figure 27. Tallest Trees by Species in Mohawk Trail State Forest 85 Figure 28. Selection of Eastern States and their Tallest Tree 86 Figure 29: List of Trees Climbed by the Eastern Native Tree Society 86 Figure 30: Relative Abundance of Trees 130 Feet in Height or More in Mohawk Trail State Forest 87 List of Maps 1. Thumper Mountain-Headquarters-Forest 39 2. East-side Forest (East Side of Todd Mountain and Meadows) 43 3.