Impacts of Harvest and Post Harvest Treatments on Early Height Growth Trends of Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.)

This study was conducted at two locations in Fred, TX and Bryceland, LA. The objectives of this study were to investigate the impacts of harvest and post harvest treatments of Pinus taeda L. on height growth trends between two successive rotations and to determine what age will be most applicable to individual stands between two rotations. Prior to establishment of new stands at both locations, stem analysis was undertaken in order to calculate ages for various stem heights. A randomized complete block design was used in both locations. The factorial treatments consisted of two levels of harvest techniques and three levels of post-harvest treatments. Linear regression analysis was used to predict plant height at different growth ages at both locations. In Fred, TX location, all treatments showed high significant effects on height growth. In the fertilized treatment, height growth was 24% greater than in the unfertilized treatment. In Bryceland, LA, harvesting and site preparation had high significant effects on height growth, the highest growth was detected in chemical site preparation plus broadcast burning. The unpaired t-test was used to assess whether the pre- and post-harvest treatments are significantly different at each age at both locations. In Fred/Texas, height growth was significantly increased in pre-and post-harvest treatments at the ages 3, 4 and 9 years. The same trend was observed in Bryceland, LA. In Bryceland, LA, all treatments exhibited a significant increase on plant growth except chemical site preparation plus a broadcast burn treatment, which showed a significant reduction in height growth at all ages