Dr. Kevin T. Smith
USDA Forest Service
Northeastern Research Station
P.O. Box 640
(271 Mast Road)
Durham, NH 03824
Telephone: 603-868-7624 Fax: 603-868-7604
E-mail: ktsmith@fs.fed.us
Education:
Ph.D. Plant Pathology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 1982.
M.S. Botany and Plant Pathology, University of New Hamsphire, Durham, NH, 1978.
A.B. Botany, Connecticut College, New London, CT, 1976.
Professional Positions:
2000-Present. Project Leader, research work unit NE-4505:
1986-2000. Plant Physiologist, USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station,
Forestry Sciences Laboratory, Durham, NH.
CURRENT RESEARCH: My research involves tree survival strategies and markers of
tree response to disturbance. Types of disturbance investigated includes storm injury, fire,
changes in the soil environment, and human activity. Current work is oriented to:
1) determine the applicability of dendrochemistry as a marker of environmental
perturbation, especially due to acid rain,
2) determine the relationship of tree age and diameter growth to tree disease, human
activities, and other environmental factors, and to
3) assess the role of wood decay and compartmentalization following tree injury and
infection in tree survival, forest competition, and element cycling.
RESEARCH and DEVELOPMENT APPLICATIONS: The current research is a
foundation to develop application tools to:
1) predict and control the effect on wood quality and tree health following tree injury
from storms, fire, and human activity,
2) improve the prediction of tree growth from climatic and other environmental factors,
and to
3) improve tree care in managed and urban forests.
SUBJECT AREA INDEX: Acidic Deposition, Tree Physiology, Nutrient Cycling,
Tree Biology, Tree Care, Forest Pathology.
Selected Publications:
1.
Shortle, W.C., and K.T. Smith. Aluminum-induced calcium deficiency syndrome
in declining red spruce. Science 240: 1017-1018. (1988).
2.
Shortle, W.C., K.T. Smith, R. Minocha, G.B. Lawrence, and M.B. David. 1997.
Acidic deposition, cation mobilization, and biochemical indicators of stress in
healthy red spruce. Journal of Environmental Quality 26: 871-876. (1997).
3.
Smith, K.T. Phenolics and compartmentalization in the sapwood of broad-leaved
trees. Pages 189-198 in Methods in Plant Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Ed. W.V Dashek. CRC Press, Boca Raton. (1997).
4.
Smith, K.T., K. Cufar, and T. Levanic. 1999. Temporal stability and
dendroclimatology in silver fir and red spruce. Phyton 39: 117-122.
5.
Smith, K.T., and W.D. Ostrofsky. Cambial and internal electrical resistance of red
spruce trees in eight diverse stands in the northeastern United States. Canadian
Journal of Forest Research 23: 322-326. (1993).
6.
Smith, K.T., and W.C. Shortle. IAA oxidase, peroxidase, and barrier zone
formation in red maple. European Journal of Forest Pathology 20: 241-246.
(1990).
7.
Smith, K.T., and W.C. Shortle. Tree biology and dendrochemistry. Pages 629-635
in Tree Rings, Environment and Humanity. Eds. J.S. Dean, D.M. Meko, and T.W.
Swetnam. Radiocarbon, Tucson. (1996).
8.
Smith, K.T. and W.C. Shortle. 1998. A first look at tree decay. USDA Forest
Service, NA-PR-02-98. 4 pp.
9.
Smith, K.T. and W.C. Shortle. 2001. Conservation of element concentration in
xylem sap of red spruce. Trees: Structure and Function 15: 148-153.
10. Smith, K.T. and W.C. Shortle. 2003. Radial growth of hardwoods following the
1998 ice storm in New Hampshire and Maine. Canadian Journal of Forest
Research 33: 325-329.
11. Smith, K.T. and E.K. Sutherland. 1999. Fire scar formation and
compartmentalization in oak. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 29: 166-171.
12. Smith, K.T. and E.K. Sutherland. Terminology and biology of fires scars in
selected central hardwoods. Tree-Ring Research 57: 141-147.