Tailoring management to the inherent variability of PJ vegetation. Bill Romme, Colorado State University PJ symposium, Albuquerque Oct.

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1 Tailoring management to the inherent variability of PJ vegetation Bill Romme, Colorado State University PJ symposium, Albuquerque Oct. 13, 2016

2 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is restoration of a historic scene Inscription Rock 1891 Inscription Rock 2009

3 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is restoration of a historic scene Inscription Rock 1891 Inscription Rock Removing the trees around the base of the rock would be a structural restoration but maybe not a functional restoration and might require repeated treatments to sustain the historic view

4 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is restoration of a historic scene Inscription Rock 1891 Inscription Rock Removing the trees around the base of the rock would be a structural restoration but maybe not a functional restoration and might require repeated treatments to sustain the historic view - A reasonable objective in a history-oriented monument like El Morro but maybe not in a landscape like Gila Wilderness, where emphasis is on untrammeled character

5 A functional restoration emphasizes re-establishment of historical or natural ecological processes requires understanding of how those processes have changed since the reference period Processes in savannas may have changed the most - Removal of period burning may have allowed extensive tree establishment & expansion return of periodic burning might be a centerpiece of functional restoration and this might hinge on restoration of the grass component Processes in persistent woodlands may have changed the least - Infill may have occurred, but maybe largely climate-driven ( natural ) - Fire exclusion not such a big factor here, because low-severity fires were never frequent and did not shape vegetation structure as in savannas

6 More on restoration: We often have a tree-centric perspective on the changes that have occurred and on the components that need attention but often it s the understory that needs help more than the canopy Persistent PJ on Kaiparowitts Plateau, Utah -- beautiful multiage canopy, inc. very old trees -- but patches of cheatgrass throughout -- cheatgrass may dominate if the area burns

7 More on restoration: We often have a tree-centric perspective on the changes that have occurred and on the components that need attention but often it s the understory that needs help more than the canopy After the 2002 fire on Mesa Verde Persistent PJ on Kaiparowitts Plateau, Utah -- beautiful multiage canopy, inc. very old trees -- but patches of cheatgrass throughout -- cheatgrass may dominate if the area burns

8 To functionally restore a PJ savanna, we may need to pay more attention to the grass than to the trees Wupatki ignitions throughout 20 th century, but no spreading fire until grass cover was restored * A challenge for researchers & managers: devise livestock grazing systems for PJ savannas that sustain sufficient grass cover to carry periodic fires -- large ranch adjacent to Wupatki conservation oriented & conscientious but no fires

9 More on burning juniper savannas: the Wuptaki experience Recent fires mostly killed small junipers (head-high or smaller) larger trees unharmed or only partially killed Root competition (apparently) leads to a ring of bare ground around the base of a large juniper protects the crown from igniting as grass fire sweeps by

10 With fire, we may be able to at least partially restore a PJ savanna, i.e., kill many of the small trees that have expanded into the grassland or filled in a previously sparse woodland But fire alone may not be sufficient to kill the larger, older trees may need mechanical treatment or may need acceptance of the new system Also: make sure the herbaceous community is responding well to the burning (black grama?)

11 With fire, we may be able to at least partially restore a PJ savanna, i.e., kill many of the small trees that have expanded into the grassland or filled in a previously sparse woodland But fire alone may not be sufficient to kill the larger, older trees may need mechanical treatment or may need acceptance of the new system Also: make sure the herbaceous community is responding well to the burning (black grama?) Unexpected twist at Wupatki: large trees killed if tumbleweeds had accumulated beneath the crowns

12 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is to increase or enhance overall biodiversity Old-growth persistent woodlands actually may not need any enhancement : Plant & fungal diversity in old-growth woodlands in Mesa Verde National Park: 209 forb & shrub species 21 grasses 99 fungi 179 lichens 24 mosses

13 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is to increase or enhance overall biodiversity Old-growth persistent woodlands actually may not need any enhancement : Plant & fungal diversity in old-growth woodlands in Mesa Verde National Park: 209 forb & shrub species 21 grasses 99 fungi 179 lichens 24 mosses But particular species may need help maybe focus active treatments on areas of recent expansion, not oldgrowth

14 Question: What is your management objective in a PJ stand or landscape? Maybe the objective is to mitigate fire risk/hazard by reducing fuels Feasible? yes Effective? maybe yes, maybe only somewhat so old persistent woodlands may be most challenging Example from Mesa Verde

15 Most effective mechanical fuel reduction treatment includes some level of thinning plus removal of lower branches * Note that this is NOT ecological restoration this is NOT pre-1900 stand structure in Mesa Verde

16 What to do with the material generated by mechanical thinning? Kurt Mackes, Center for Utilization of Small- Diameter Wood, CSU Although Piñon wood is suitable for a variety of products, processing and hauling costs are often too high for this material to be utilized. Currently a high percentage of Piñon is left masticated on site. Need for R&D to utilize Piñon wood for valueadded products

17 Christmas trees Firewood Novelties Mine timbers Railroad ties Pulp Charcoal Piñon nuts Traditional Uses for Piñon Courtesy of Kurt Mackes, CSU

18 Time to monitor our treatments Purposes of monitoring: -- See if we accomplished what we intended -- See if we caused any unexpected, undesirable outcomes * Learn from our mistakes so that we don t make them again

19 Time to monitor our treatments Purposes of monitoring: -- See if we accomplished what we intended -- See if we caused any unexpected, undesirable outcomes * Learn from our mistakes so that we don t make them again The best kind of monitoring is a rigorous scientific study e.g., Lou Bender yesterday but how many of us have time or money for that kind of work? * Nevertheless, we all can do a simplified form of monitoring (science actually) that won t lead to a scientific publication, but will help us to avoid making mistakes next time * A recommendation from Dan Binkley, CSU *

20 -- from Dan Binkley A new way for YOU (!) to think about Science: Pocket science 20

21 The Best Available Science comes in all sizes and budgets 100 Billion $ Defense science Billion $ Rocket science Million $ Research Science -- from Dan Binkley

22 A key focus of pocket science is learning by doing Pocket Science may provide a link between general knowledge and casespecific needs and details Pocket science won t get you to the moon, but it can keep you from making the same old mistakes. -- from Dan Binkley

23 Principles of Pocket Science: 1. Never treat an entire unit the same; always leave a portion untreated, and always treat another portion differently. 2. Always GPS and photograph 3. Commit 2 days each year to revisiting Pocket Science projects: Always aim to find out when you ve been wrong! -- from Dan Binkley

24 Thinning and mastication of slash in a Colorado juniper woodland to create a fuel break along the boundary between federal & private land - Will ground layer vegetation be suppressed? - Will the slash burn more intensely than the forest? - Will weeds invade the site?

25 Thinning and mastication of slash in a Colorado juniper woodland to create a fuel break along the boundary between federal & private land - Will ground layer vegetation be suppressed? - Will the slash burn more intensely than the forest? - Will weeds invade the site? Pocket science can answer these questions and will improve the next treatment

26 A key focus of pocket science is learning by doing Pocket Science may provide a link between general knowledge and casespecific needs and details Pocket science won t get you to the moon, but it can keep you from making the same old mistakes. -- from Dan Binkley

27 Standing back and taking a long look at your ecosystem The more we understand about its ecological history, ecological processes & natural dynamics, the better we can do in sustaining it many of the important processes and changes are occurring over very long time spans we have experienced only a tiny fraction of the big picture E.g. Wupatki juniper was rare or absent in region until ca. 500 A.D largely wiped out by Sunset Crater eruption(s) ca AD and by Sinagua culture soon after gradually expanded after ca AD Expansion was a natural ecological process but got a big boost by the onset of industrial livestock grazing & fire exclusion in late 1800s-late 1900s Now it s being slowed or even reversed by return of grassland fires and by climate change Where is it headed? What will be the key ecological processes & dynamics in the 21 st century?

28 Standing back and taking a long look at your ecosystem The more we understand about its ecological history, ecological processes & natural dynamics, the better we can do in sustaining it many of the important processes and changes are occurring over very long time spans we have experienced only a tiny fraction of the big picture E.g. Wupatki juniper was rare or absent in region until ca. 500 A.D largely wiped out by Sunset Crater eruption(s) ca AD and by Sinagua culture soon after gradually expanded after ca AD Expansion was a natural ecological process but got a big boost by the onset of industrial livestock grazing & fire exclusion in late 1800s-late 1900s Now it s being slowed or even reversed by return of grassland fires and by climate change Where is it headed? What will be the key ecological processes & dynamics in the 21 st century? (need for Lou Bender type science, and for pocket science )