Growing Trees Where Trees Grow Best: Short-term Research Sheds Light on Long-term Productivity

In 1999, the Fall River Long-Term Site Productivity study began in coastal Washington to investigate how intensive management practices affect soil processes and forest productivity. By comparing conventional harvests to more intensive wood removal treatments, researchers are answering long-standing questions about how residual organic matter influences future growth. Also, by using herbicides to control competing vegetation, they are quantifying the influence other vegetation has on tree growth. Finally, they are measuring soil properties and tree growth on plots where the soil was not compacted during harvest and comparing results to those on plots that were either compacted by logging equipment or compacted and subsequently tilled to restore physical properties.