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The Ohio State University
Environment and Natural Resources 3333
Spring 2013
SILVICULTURE
Syllabus
Description and Objectives
Silviculture is essentially applied forest ecology. It has been defined as the theory and practice
of controlling forest ecosystem structure and function. Our focus will be on the entire forest
ecosystem, rather than just on the trees. Silvicultural systems must be crafted that maintain the
integrity of ecosystem processes, while influencing forest establishment, composition, and growth.
Silvicultural principles and methods are practiced in the field in this course, as they apply to the
stewardship of forest ecosystems.
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The student performance objectives for this course are:
to comprehend the ecological principles and practical applications of silvicultural systems,
which consist of regeneration methods and intermediate treatments;
to prescribe silvicultural practices in the field that will achieve and sustain the desired forest
ecosystem conditions; and
to recognize how silvicultural systems can be applied in the management of a diversity of forest
ecosystems for a variety of benefits including wood, wildlife, water, recreation, and aesthetics.
Course Format and Prerequisites
This field-oriented three-credit hour course will meet on Thursdays from 8:00-8:55 a.m. in
Room 245 of Kottman Hall. Environment & Natural Resources 2100, 2300, and 3321 are the
prerequisites, and may be taken concurrently. The labs will be held on Mondays from 7:30 a.m.12:30 p.m. The first labs and the last lab will meet in 460 Kottman. Most labs are conducted at
field locations, and we will leave for the field from the Kottman Hall loading dock. We will go to
the field in almost any weather, so each participant must be prepared for challenging and changing
conditions. Call #s = 0010-LEC(7471) & 0020–LAB(7477)
Reading Assignments
The reading assignments will be from the required textbook:
The Practice of Silviculture: Applied Forest Ecology. 9th ed. by David M. Smith and others.
(1997). John Wiley & Sons, New York.
You must read the assigned pages, and be responsible for the major concepts in the readings.
One copy of the textbook will be placed on reserve at the Food, Agricultural & Environmental
Sciences Library. Additional readings from the literature may be assigned, and if so, copies of
these articles will also be placed on reserve.
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Evaluation Policies
Attendance for the entire class period is required at all class sessions; tardiness or lateness for class is
not acceptable. Participation is strongly encouraged and expected. In order to earn full credit for a field lab,
you must be present and involved in all aspects of the lab. The final grade for the course will be based on
this system:
POINTS
Midterm Evaluation
Final Evaluation
Portfolio of Lab Reports & Assignments
Homework & Participation (including on-time attendance)
150
200
550
100
The following grading scale will be used:
AVERAGE (%)
100 - 93
92 - 90
89 - 87
86 - 83
82 - 80
79 - 77
76 - 73
72 - 70
69 - 67
66 - 60
Below 60
GRADE
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
E
Final averages will be rounded upward to the next highest whole number for assigning letter grades. All
concerns about any grade must be presented in writing within seven days after you are informed of the
grade. All lab reports and assignments must be typewritten, and proofread to correct grammar and spelling
errors. Each lab report is due at 7:30 a.m. on the due-date. Grades for lab reports will be reduced by 20%
for each day they are late, including the first day. Homework is due in class at 8:00 a.m. on the specified
date; no late work will be accepted. Please notify us in advance or as soon as possible (within 24 hours), if
you are unable to be present for any class period, or to turn in a lab report. Only written proof of either a
medical (health) problem or a death in the family will be accepted as an excused absence. You are
responsible for the major concepts presented within the reading assignments.
DISABLED STUDENTS: If you need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability, you
should contact us to arrange an appointment as soon as possible. At the appointment we can discuss the
course format, anticipate your needs and explore potential accommodations. We rely on the Office for
Disability Services for assistance in verifying the need for accommodations and developing accommodation
strategies. If you have not previously contacted this office, we encourage you to do so.
ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT: Submitting plagiarized work to meet academic requirements including
the representation of another person's works or ideas as one's own: the unacknowledged use of another
person's work and (or) paraphrasing of another person's work; the inappropriate or unacknowledged use of
another person's ideas; and (or) falsification, fabrication, or dishonesty in reporting research results will be
grounds for charges of academic misconduct.
This Publication/material is available in alternative formats upon request. Please contact the Associate
Director, School of Environment and Natural Resources, 210 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Rd., Columbus,
OH 43210-1085, (614) 292-2265.
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Tentative Course Outline
Date
Subject
Reading assignment
(page numbers in textbook)
10
Forest Stand Dynamics Concepts
3-19 and 20-41
17
Regeneration Methods & Silvicultural Systems
301-314
24
Natural Regeneration
161-191
31
Regenerating Even-aged Stands Using Clearcutting
316-328
Regenerating Even-aged Stands Using Seed-tree and
Shelterwood Methods
347-362
14
Regenerating Uneven-aged Stands
364-388
21
Vegetatively Regenerated Stands
330-345
28
Midterm Evaluation
January
February
7
March
7
Thinnings: Growth Responses & Methods
47-57 and 69-129
14
NO CLASSES - SPRING BREAK WEEK
21
Mixed-species Stands
391-417
28
Damage Control Cuttings
475-480
4
Release Operations & Improvement Cuttings
131-133 and 147-156
11
Site Evaluation & Amelioration
234-247 and 224-229
18
Site Preparation Methods & Prescribed Burning
195-224
26
Final Evaluation - Friday @ 8:00 a.m.
April
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Tentative Lab Outline
Date
Subject
Reading assignment
(page numbers in textbook)
January
7
Introduction to the Practice of Silviculture
14
Herbicides & Application Methods
21
NO CLASSES – MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY
28
Non-native invasive species – control methods
133-147
February
4
Tree Planting & Direct Seeding
264-295
11
Pruning
57-66
18
Field Trip: Regeneration Methods for Even-aged Stands
25
Field Trip: Uneven-aged Management Using the Selection Method
March
4
Field Trip: Crop Tree Management of Hardwood Forest Ecosystems
11
NO CLASSES - SPRING BREAK WEEK
18
Field Trip: Comparison of Thinning Methods
25
Field Trip: Tree Plantations
April
1
All-day Field Trip to Southeastern Ohio: Silvicultural Practices
8
Field Trip: Computer Expert Systems for Silvicultural Prescriptions
15
Field Trip: Computer Expert Systems for Silvicultural Prescriptions (continued)
22
Team Presentations: Computer Expert Systems for Silvicultural Prescriptions
INSTRUCTORS
OFFICE HOURS
David M. Hix, Associate Professor
The Ohio State University,
School of Environment and Natural Resources
365A Kottman Hall
(292-1394)
E-mail: Hix.6@osu.edu
Ellie Monarch
Graduate Teaching Associate
E-mail: monarch.1@buckeyemail.osu.edu
Usually
Thursdays 1:00-3:00 p.m.,
or by appointment
[before SENR seminars]
Thursdays 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,
or by appointment
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Textbook and References
Readings from the literature may be assigned, and copies may be provided in class. In addition, these
publications will be placed on reserve at the Food, Agricultural & Environmental Sciences Library, or
linked as eReserves in CARMEN.
Smith, D. M., Larson, B. C., Kelty, M. J., and Ashton, P.M. 1997. The practice of silviculture: applied
forest ecology. 9th edition. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 537 pp.
Barnes, B. V., Zak, D. R., Denton, S. R., and Spurr, S. H. 1998. Forest ecology. 4th edition. John
Wiley & Sons, New York. 747 pp.
Barrett, J. W. (ed.) 1995. Regional silviculture of the United States. 3rd edition. Wiley, New York.
643 pp.
Burns, R. M. (tech. comp.) 1983. Silvicultural systems for the major forest types of the United States.
U.S.D.A. Forest Service Agriculture Handbook 445. 2nd edition. Washington, DC. 191 pp.
Burns, R. M. and B. H. Honkala (tech. coord.) 1990. Silvics of North America. U.S.D.A. Forest
Service Agriculture Handbook 654. Volumes 1 & 2. Revised edition. Washington, DC. 1552 pp.
Hicks, R. R. Jr. 1998. Ecology and management of central hardwood forests. John Wiley & Sons, New
York. 412 pp.
Hunter, M. L. (ed.) 1999. Maintaining biodiversity in forest ecosystems. Cambridge University Press,
New York. 698 pp.
Kohm, K. A. and J. F. Franklin. (editors) 1997. Creating a forestry for the 21st century: the science of
ecosystem management. Island Press, Washington, DC. 475 pp.
Marquis, D. A., Ernst, R. L., and Stout, S. L. 1992. Prescribing silvicultural treatments in hardwood
stands of the Alleghenies (revised). U.S.D.A. Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-96. 101 pp.
Matthews, J. D. 1989. Silvicultural systems. Oxford University Press, New York. 284 pp.
Nyland, R. D. 2007. Silviculture: concepts and application. 2nd edition. Waveland Press, Long Grove,
IL. 682 pp.
Perkey, A. W., and Wilkins, B. L. 2001. Crop tree field guide. USDA Forest Service Northeastern
Area State & Private Forestry Publ. NA-TP-10-01. 97 pp.
Puettmann, K. J., Coates, K. D., and Messier, C. 2009. A critique of silviculture: managing for
complexity. Island Press, Washington, DC. 189 pp.