Pre-commercial jack pine thinning at the Cloquet Forestry Center

Abstract

The jack pine pre-commercial thinning experiment at the Cloquet Forestry Center aimed to explore how individual tree growth and stand structure respond to different levels of thinning at around stand age 15. In this conference poster, we present an overview of the study design, results of tree height, diameter, live crown ratio, and density for sample years 2015, 2016, and 2019, and lessons learned so far. Results are summarized for heavy, moderate, and light thinning treatments and a control condition. Results show that tree diameters are significantly greater in treatment areas when compared with the control and that this increase is directly correlated with thinning intensity. This poster was digitally presented during the Sustainable Forests Education Cooperative 2021 Forestry and Wildlife Research Review.