Comparison of Restored and Mature Bottomland Hardwood Forests of Southwestern Kentucky

Abstract

We evaluated 50‐year‐old bottomland forests in southwestern Kentucky restored from agriculture by planting and natural regeneration in terms of their development toward mature forests. We described and compared the structure and composition of the plant communities of three stands of each type (planted, naturally regenerated, and mature). Increment cores were analyzed to reconstruct developmental trends. Future trends were predicted from analyses of the midstory and understory composition. Both planting and natural regeneration adequately replaced the structural attributes of the historical bottomland forest. The existing structural differences are expected to diminish over time. Neither regeneration method replaced the wildlife value of the mature bottomland forests due to insufficient establishment and subsequent ingrowth of heavy mast species (particularly oaks and hickories). There was evidence that the understory species compositions of the restored forest types were similar to that of the mature stand type. All forests, including the mature stands, appeared to be succeeding from hydric to mesic species compositions as a result of human‐altered hydrology and natural floodplain processes. We speculate that the historical bottomland species composition will probably not persist on any of the study sites in the long term.

Are lianas increasing in importance in temperate floodplain forests in the southeastern United States?

“…In tropical forests, DeWalt et al (2000) reported significantly lower liana density and species richness in forests older than 70 years; however, they also found that basal area of vines remained the same as lianas increased in size in mature forests. Moreover, Shear et al (1996) reported that poison ivy (Rhus radicans L.), the dominant liana in bottomland forests in Kentucky, was much more abundant in mature forests than in 50-year-old restored forests where native bottomland tree species had been planted.…”

Restoration of bottomland hardwood forests across a treatment intensity gradient

“…Allen (1997) found that large, relatively isolated fields had much lower densities of woody colonizers than long, narrow fields or especially fields with mature forest on more than one edge (Shear et al, 1996;Allen, 1997). Nevertheless, we found that even narrow strips of vegetation along ditch banks can provide seed, and noticeable dispersal occurs even when sources are more than 0.5 km distant (Fig.…”

Measures of Success: Uncertainty and Defining the Outcomes of River Restoration Schemes

“…Short-term monitoring is concerned with determining the performance of the project following installation. It can also be used to detect responses that call for management action ( Shear et al (1996) allows retention of some project resources for the postconstruction phase to allow adaptive management. The temporal and spatial frequency of the monitoring should largely be determined prior to installation.…”