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Project ID: 01C-3-3-10

Year: 2003

Date Started: 07/29/2003

Date Completed: 10/03/2007

Title: Restoration of Dry, Montane Meadows Through Prescribed Fire, Vegetation, and Fuels Management: A Program of Research and Adaptive Management in Western Oregon

Project Proposal Abstract: In many regions of the western U.S., long-term suppression of wildfire has facilitated encroachment of natural meadows by conifers. Encroachment is widespread on many dry, montane slopes in the western Cascade Range. In a region dominated by coniferous forests, montane meadows contribute greatly to landscape diversity, wildlife habitat, and many other ecological functions and societal values. Faced by gradual loss of these critical habitats, resource managers have begun to experiment with prescribed fire as a tool for meadow restoration. With limited knowledge of the historical role of fire in these systems, managers have little information to guide restoration efforts. We propose a program of experimental research, adaptive management, and outreach that will contribute to our understanding of the natural dynamics of these systems, to their restoration and maintenance, and to public appreciation of the roles of scientists and land managers in restoring ecosystem health. We bring together scientists and resource specialists with a long, successful history of collaboration to develop a demonstration center at Bunchgrass Meadow on the Willamette National Forest, Oregon. We propose two integrated studies at Bunchgrass. The first-which documents the history of invasion and the current range of vegetation conditions--provides.the historical and ecological contexts for the second, primary study, which evaluates vegetation responses to experimental restoration treatments. Thinning and prescribed burning will be implemented across replicate sites representing the full range of vegetation conditions at Bunchgrass. Permanent transects and nested plots sampled prior to treatment will be used to assess changes in species composition and diversity, mortality of residual trees, and establishment of conifer seedlings. Uni- and multivariate statistical techniques will be used to explore the nature and range of vegetation responses, and to identity the initial conditions that lead to successful outcomes. We have designed these studies to yield useful short-term products for scientists, managers, and the public, and in doing so, to provide opportunities for ongoing research, experimentation, and education. Our goal is to build a solid basis for successful restoration of meadows throughout the western Cascades, using Bunchgrass Meadow as a regional center for research, adaptive management, and outreach.

Principal Investigator: Fred J. Swanson

Agency/Organization: Forest Service

Branch or Dept: PNW-Forestry Sciences Lab-Corvallis

Other Project Collaborators

Type	Name	Agency/Organization	Branch or Dept
Co-Principal Investigator	John H. Cissel	BLM-Bureau of Land Management	JFSP-NIFC
Co-Principal Investigator	Charles B. Halpern	University of Washington	School of Forest Resources
Federal Cooperator	Fred J. Swanson	Forest Service	PNW-Forestry Sciences Lab-Corvallis

Project Locations

Consortium

Great Basin

Northwest

There are no project locations identified for this project.

Project Deliverables

Final Report ("Results presented in JFSP Final Reports may not have been peer-reviewed and should be interpreted as tentative until published in a peer-reviewed source.")

	ID	Type	Title
	6427	Refereed Publication	The Soil Seed Bank of a Montane Meadow: Consequences of Conifer Encroachment and Implications for Restoration
	6541	Refereed Publication	Plant Succession on Gopher Mounds in Western Cascade Meadows: Consequences for Species Diversity and Heterogeneity
	6423	Refereed Publication	Vegetation Responses to Conifer Encroachment in a Dry, Montane Meadow: A Chronosequence Approach
	6430	NonRefereed Publication	Mountain Meadows? Here Today, Gone Tommorow? Meadow Science and Restoration
	6429	NonRefereed Publication	Restoration of Montane Meadows in Western Oregon: Research and Adaptive Management at Bunchgrass Ridge
	6434	Invited Paper/Presentation	Conifer Encroachment of Montane Meadows: Effects on Vegetation, Seed Banks and Potential for Restoration
	6426	Invited Paper/Presentation	Seed Bank Dynamics of an Oregon Montane Meadow: Consequences of Conifer Encroachment and Implications for Restoration
	6424	Invited Paper/Presentation	Vegetation Responses to Conifer Encroachment in a Dry, Montane Meadow: A Chronosequence Approach
	5549	MS Thesis	The Soil Seed Bank of an Oregon Montane Meadow: Consequences of Conifer Encroachment and Implications for Restoration (N.L. Lang)
	6537	MS Thesis	Vegetation Responses to Conifer Encroachment in a Dry, Montane Meadow: A Chronosequence Approach (R.D. Haugo)
	6432	Conference/Symposia/Workshop	Hey, Where’d All Those Trees Come From?
	6431	Poster	Restoration of Dry, Montane Meadows Through Prescribed Fire, Vegetation and Fuels Management: A Program of Research and Adaptive Management in Western Oregon

Supporting Documents

The following supporting documents are available for this project.

Brief

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