Palustris Experimental Forest

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Palustris Experimental Forest
Longleaf Pine on Palustris Experimental Forest in Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, October 2023 - 42.jpg
Longleaf Tract in 2023
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Location in Louisiana
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Location in United States
Location Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States
Nearest city Alexandria, Louisiana
Coordinates 31°11′00″N92°40′00″W / 31.18333°N 92.66667°W / 31.18333; -92.66667 [1]
Area7,500 acres (3,000 ha) [1]
EstablishedJuly 19, 1935 [1]
Governing body USFS, Southern Research Station

Palustris Experimental Forest is an experimental forest operated by the Southern Research Station (SRS) of the United States Forest Service in Rapides Parish, Louisiana. It is located south of Alexandria, Louisiana within the Kisatchie National Forest. [2] The experimental forest bears the name of the predominant pine species ( Pinus palustris ) that covered this region before the virgin pine forests were harvested in the early 1900s. [2]

Contents

History

VirginLongleafPineForest.jpg
Old-growth longleaf pines, Elizabeth, LA 1925
CutoverLongleafPine.jpg
Cutover forestland, Kisatchie National Forest 1947

At the end of the 19th century, the longleaf pine ecosystem covered millions of acres across the southeastern US, from Virginia to Texas. [3] In the early 1900s, aggressive harvesting of these old-growth pine forests resulted in a barren landscape in need of reforestation. Under federal programs such as the Weeks Act and Clarke-McNary Act, [4] the US government began buying thousands of cutover acres in Louisiana and other southeastern states to create National Forests with the goal of rehabilitating these former old-growth forests. [5]

Palustris Experimental Forest

The Palustris Experimental Forest was established July 19, 1935 [1] on 2,700 acres (1,100 ha) of cutover land that was previously occupied by longleaf pine. [6] The experimental forest was to serve as a field laboratory for evaluating pine reforestation techniques.

J.K. Johnson Tract

In 1950, the original portion of the Palustris Experimental Forest was designated the J.K. Johnson Tract – located at 31°11′00″N92°40′00″W / 31.1833°N 92.6667°W / 31.1833; -92.6667 – in honor of the Great Southern Lumber Company's chief forester who was an early advocate of reforestation in the South. [7]

Research on the J.K. Johnson Tract has included: [8]

Longleaf Tract

In the 1950s, a separate 4,800-acre (1,900 ha) Longleaf Tract – located at 31°01′10″N92°38′25″W / 31.0194°N 92.6403°W / 31.0194; -92.6403 – was added to the Palustris Experimental Forest to provide research opportunities in large-scale studies: [6] [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longleaf pine</span> Species of plant (tree)

The longleaf pine is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as "yellow pine" or "long leaf yellow pine", although it is properly just one out of a number of species termed yellow pine. It reaches a height of 30–35 m (98–115 ft) and a diameter of 0.7 m (28 in). In the past, before extensive logging, they reportedly grew to 47 m (154 ft) with a diameter of 1.2 m (47 in). The tree is a cultural symbol of the Southern United States, being the official state tree of Alabama. This particular species is one of the eight pine tree species that falls under the "Pine" designation as the state tree of North Carolina.

<i>Pinus serotina</i> Species of conifer

Pinus serotina, the pond pine, black bark pine, bay pine,marsh pine, or pocosin pine, is a pine tree found along the Southeastern portion of the Atlantic coastal plain of the United States, from southern New Jersey south to Florida and west to southern Alabama. Pond pine distribution may be starting to spread west towards Mississippi and Tennessee.

<i>Pinus elliottii</i> Species of conifer tree

Pinus elliottii, commonly known as slash pine, is a conifer tree native to the Southeastern United States. Slash pine is named after the "slashes" – swampy ground overgrown with trees and bushes – that constitute its habitat. Other common names include swamp pine, yellow slash pine, and southern Florida pine. Slash pine has two different varieties: P. e. var. elliottii and P. e. var. densa. Historically, slash pine has been an important economic timber for naval stores, turpentine, and resin. The wood of slash pine is known for its unusually high strength, especially for a pine. It exceeds many hardwoods and is even comparable to very dense woods such as ironwood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flatwoods</span> Ecological community in the southeastern coastal plain of North America

Flatwoods, pineywoods, pine savannas and longleaf pine–wiregrass ecosystem are terms that refer to an ecological community in the southeastern coastal plain of North America. Flatwoods are an ecosystem maintained by wildfire or prescribed fire and are dominated by longleaf pine, and slash pine in the tree canopy and saw palmetto, gallberry and other flammable evergreen shrubs in the understory, along with a high diversity of herb species. It was once one of the dominant ecosystem types of southeastern North America. Although grasses and pines are characteristic of this system, the precise composition changes from west to east, that is, from Texas to Florida. In Louisiana, savannas even differ between the east and west side of the Mississippi River. The key factor maintaining this habitat type is recurring fire. Without fire, the habitat is eventually invaded by other species of woody plants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kisatchie National Forest</span> National forest in Louisiana, US

Kisatchie National Forest, the only National forest in Louisiana, United States, is located in the forested piney hills and hardwood bottoms of seven central and northern parishes. It is part of the Cenozoic uplands and has large areas of longleaf pine forests. It is one of the largest pieces of natural landscape in Louisiana, with some 604,000 acres (2,440 km2) of public land, more than half of which is vital longleaf pine and flatwoods vegetation. These support many rare plant and animal species. There are also rare habitats, such as hillside seepage bogs and calcareous prairies. The forest also contains and provides a buffer for the Kisatchie Hills Wilderness, a nationally designated wilderness area that contributes to protecting biodiversity of the coastal plain region of the United States.

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Pyrophytes are plants which have adapted to tolerate fire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain Longleaf National Wildlife Refuge</span>

The Mountain Longleaf National Wildlife Refuge is a 9,016-acre (36 km2) National Wildlife Refuge located in northeastern Alabama near the city of Anniston on the former site of Fort McClellan. Its name comes from some of the last remaining montane longleaf pine ecosystem in the southeastern United States which the refuge protects.

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<i>Pinus <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> sondereggeri</i> Species of conifer

Pinus × sondereggeri is the only named southern pine hybrid. Its common names include Sonderegger pine and bastard pine. It is a naturally occurring cross between loblolly pine (P. taeda) and longleaf pine (P. palustris). It was originally described by H. H. Chapman (1922), who named it after its discoverer, V. H. Sonderegger, a state forester of Louisiana. This pine usually occurs singly or in small groups where both loblolly and longleaf pines overlap in range. Because both parental trees usually produce cones at the same time of year, no phenological barrier exists, thus the two freely cross.

The Great Southern Lumber Company was chartered in 1902 to harvest and market the virgin longleaf pine forests in southeastern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi. Bogalusa, Louisiana was developed from the ground up as a company town and was the location for Great Southern Lumber Company's sawmill, which began operation in 1908. Other company interests included a railroad and paper mill. The company ceased operation in 1938, when the supply of virgin pines was depleted. Bogalusa became the site of a paper mill and chemical operations, followed by other industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louisiana pine snake</span> Species of snake

The Louisiana pine snake is a species of large, non-venomous, constrictor in the family Colubridae. This powerful snake is notable because of its large eggs and small clutch sizes. The Louisiana pine snake is indigenous to west-central Louisiana and East Texas, where it relies strongly on Baird's pocket gophers for its burrow system and as a food source. The Louisiana pine snake is rarely seen in the wild, and is considered to be one of the rarest snakes in North America. The demise of the species is due to its low fecundity coupled with the extensive loss of suitable habitat - the longleaf pine savannas in the Gulf coastal plain of the southeastern United States. Management activities are being conducted to promote the species' recovery.

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An experimental forest, or experimental range, as defined by the United States Forest Service, is "an area administered ... 'to provide for the research necessary for the management of the land.'"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Sandy Creek (Village Creek tributary)</span> A stream located in southeastern Texas, United States

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crossett Experimental Forest</span> Experimental forest in Arkansas, USA

Crossett Experimental Forest is an experimental forest operated by the Southern Research Station (SRS) of the United States Forest Service in Ashley County, Arkansas. It is managed out of the SRS office in Monticello, Arkansas, with onsite facilities about 6.8 miles (10.9 km) south of Crossett, Arkansas off Arkansas Highway 133.

Winona Lake Research Natural Area is a 280-acre (110 ha) area of old-growth forest in Saline County, in the U.S. state of Arkansas. It is located in the Winona Ranger District of the Ouachita National Forest, on the south end of the Fourche Mountains, near Jessieville, Arkansas. The area was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1977. The land is owned by the U.S. Federal Government and is administered by the USDA Forest Service.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harrison Experimental Forest</span> Mississippi experimental forest facility

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Experimental Forests of the Southern Research Station". ArcGIS StoryMaps. August 1, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Final Environmental Impact Statement|Revised Land and Resource Management Plan|Kisatchie National Forest" (PDF). fs.usda.gov. August 1999. p. C3-78. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  3. Barnett, James (2013). "Developing Reforestation Technology for Southern Pines: A Historical Perspective" (PDF). srs.fs.usda.gov. Tree Planters’ Notes, Vol. 56 (1). p. 54-59.
  4. Bums, Anna C.; Couch, Ronald W. (1994). "A History of the Kisatchie National Forest" (PDF). fs.usda.gov. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  5. "The Weeks Act". Forest History Society. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  6. 1 2 "Palustris Experimental Forest – A Focus on Longleaf Pine|Restoring and Managing Longleaf Pine Ecosystems" (PDF). srs.fs.usda.gov. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  7. Barnett, James P.; Haywood, James D.; Pearson, Henry A. (2011). "Louisiana's Palustris Experimental Forest: 75 Years of Research that Transformed the South" (PDF). srs.fs.usda.gov. General Technical Report SRS–148. Southern Research Station. p. 68. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  8. 1 2 "Palustris Experimental Forests | Restoring and Managing Longleaf Pine Ecosystems | SRS". www.srs.fs.usda.gov. Retrieved August 22, 2022.