Shelterwood Partial Cutting in Interior White Spruce: Two-year Results of a Case Study at Aleza Lake, BC

The Aleza Lake Shelterwood Case Study is a recent introduction of uniform shelterwood methods to interior spruce-subalpine fir forests in central British Columbia. The goal of this operational trial is to test spruce shelterwood prescriptions designed for local conditions, and to monitor and report on post-harvest silvicultural results. Potential risks and operational disadvantages are also being considered and assessed. Shelterwood methods are of interest to resource managers because they are partial cutting systems that are intermediate between clearcut and selection systems, both in stand structure and complexity of planning (Smith, 1986). We know that shelterwood methods generally are ecologically suited to regeneration of white spruce, based on work in spruce forest in other parts of western and eastern North America. This case study will provide an initial assessment of the feasibility of shelterwood prescriptions for spruce. It will serve as a baseline for future trials in the region. Some of the early findings reported in this Research Note may provide guidance to silviculturalists and others considering partial-cut prescriptions in spruce-subalpine fir forest types.