Aspen Strip-Thinning Research Project: Summary Report

Abstract

Concern has been expressed by timber land managers, forest products industry representatives and the public, regarding the potential of Minnesota's aspen lands to supply sufficient raw material to meet anticipated demand. One way to address these concerns is to increase growth rates of natural aspen stands. Thinning has been shown to increase aspen productivity. Past research on manually-thinned aspen stands has demonstrated that reducing stand density by removing a portion of trees can accelerate growth rates of trees that are ultimately harvested. The goal of this project is to provide a cost-effective means to increase aspen supplies for the future. Thinning stands by hand is expected to be too expensive to justify widespread use. This research investigated the potential to increase growth rates of aspen stands through mechanical strip-thinning.