Tamarack Eastern Larch Beetle Sanitation (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa)

Stand Information

Figure 1. Close up of ELB infestation of dead tamarack tree within stand.

State or Province:

Minnesota

Nearest city or town:

Cloquet

Describe the location:

NWSE Sec. 30 T50N R17W, St. Louis County, MN

Landowner:

Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Cover-type:

Peatlands

MN ECS Native Plant Community System:

Wet Forest

Plant community or habitat classification and growth stage:

The northern portion of the site (see Figure 2) is NPC class WFn64 (northern very wet ash swamp, Wet Forest System) and the wetter southern portion is NPC class FPn73 (northern alder swamp, Forested Rich Peatland System).

Forest Health Threats:

Eastern larch beetle and larch

Estimated year of stand origin:

1963

Additional information about stand origin:

Trees were planted.

Site Index:

feet

for species:

tamarack

Silviculture System:

Other Silviculture System

Brief silvicultural objective:

Remove the standing dead and Eastern Larch Beetle infested tamarack trees and to thin denser areas of living tamarack trees to make them more resilient to future attacks.

Soils:

The primary soil type present within the tamarack stand is “F135A – Hermantown-Canosia-Giese depressional complex.” This is a combination of several soil types, generally different loams with a high water table and poorly drained. Harvest operations are restricted to frozen ground conditions.

Stand area:

16 acres

Treatment area:

6 acres

Overview

In January 2017, while doing forest inventory it was discovered that approximately 6 acres of a 16-acre tamarack (Larix laricina) stand had likely been killed by eastern larch beetles (Dendroctonus simplex). ELB is a native insect that can occasionally reach large population numbers and kill otherwise healthy stands of trees. Salvage cutting and thinning was prescribed and approved but unable to be implemented due to lacking the frozen ground needed for stand entry to prevent rutting, compaction, or root damage on wet site conditions. The ground never adequately froze enough during the 2016-2017 winter season to meet these requirements and consequently the beetle infestation spread and caused additional tree mortality within the stand. Colder temperatures are forecasted for winter 2017-2018 to sufficiently freeze the ground and allow operations to salvage the marked trees for firewood.

The primary areas with beetle killed trees within the cross-hatched areas (see Figure 2) consist of two smaller patches, one each on the north and south sides. Porcupine damage may have weakened several trees which allowed the bark beetle populations to rise high enough to start killing undamaged and otherwise healthy trees.

Silviculture Objective(s)

Salvage about 6 acres of standing dead beetle killed tamarack.
Thin stand to improve the growth rate, form, and health of residual living trees and make them more resilient to future insect outbreaks.

Pre-treatment stand description and condition

Stand establishment and management history:

Stand planted in wet area of abandoned pasture land in 1963.

Pre-treatment species composition:

Tamarack.

Pre-treatment growth and stocking:

The average basal area on this stand is 137 sq. ft. The average DBH is approximately 9 inches.

Pre-treatment forest health issues:

Eastern larch beetle infestation-caused mortality.

Landowner objectives/situation:

Salvage dead timber and thin stand to increase resilience to ELB.
Prevent the spread of ELB to other tamarack stands.

Silviculture Prescription

Standing dead trees and dense clumps of living trees were marked for removal. Frozen ground is required for thinning operations due to wet site conditions. When site conditions allow, trees will be crown thinned, with an objective of making crop trees free-to-grow on at least 3 sides. Windfallen trees may also be removed to reduce the amount of bark beetle food in the stand.

What actually happened during the treatment

No treatment occurred due to inadequately frozen ground.

Post-treatment assessment

Since the treatment was not implemented we cannot know if the prescription would have had any impact, positive or negative on the stand itself, or slow the spread of the ELB into adjacent stands. Though not officially quantified, in the absence of doing anything the ELB infestation appears to have spread to other trees, allowing us to make inference that a no action treatment in this stand did not meet our goals and objectives of increasing resilience to ELB.

Plans for future treatments

The permit will be re-offered once conditions are favorable for stand entry.

Costs and economic considerations

Volume: Tamarack, 42 cords @ $1/cord = $42 worth of timber.

Wood will likely be used as firewood.

Other notes

This case study was developed with support from the United States Department of Agriculture's National Institute for Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA), Renewable Resources Extension Act (RREA). Project #MIN-44-E02, principal investigator Eli Sagor, University of Minnesota.

Summary / lessons learned / additional thoughts

The forest ecosystems that make up this site are vulnerable to climate change scenarios with warmer winter temperatures with less snow pack. These conditions may allow for increased outbreaks of eastern larch beetle¹. A warmer, drier climate may lead to tamarack stands that are less resilient or adaptable to disturbance from pests, drought, or fire¹. A warmer, drier climate may further complicate the timing for harvesting or salvage operations in stands with wet site conditions. Though anecdotal evidence exists, additional study is necessary to know exactly how eastern larch beetle will be affected by the proposed sanitation and thinning operations and whether or not these actions have the desired effect.

¹Handler, S., & United States. Forest Service. Northern Research Station, issuing body. (2014). Minnesota Forest Ecosystem Vulnerability Assessment and Synthesis: A Report from the Northwoods Climate Change Response Framework Project

Photographs

Figure 2. Map of effected stand and proposed treatment area.

Figure 3. Tamarack stand with evidence of beetle kill.

Figure 4. More evidence of ELB-caused mortality within tamarack stand.

Figure 5. Photo of dense pre-treatment stand structure within ELB-infested tamarack stand (stem exclusion stage).

Figure 6. Premature yellowing of tamarack trees indicate evidence of ELB infestation.

Keywords

Biography

Name:

Eric Lee Vincent

Organization:

University of Minnesota - College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences

Title:

Undergraduate

Email:

vince142@umn.edu

Name:

Christian Nelson

Organization:

Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Title:

Forester

Phone Number:

(218) 878-7118

Email:

christiannelson@fdlrez.com

Name:

Vanessa Zachman

Organization:

University of Minnesota

Title:

Forest Resources Student Intern

Citation:

Vincent, E.L., Nelson, C., and Zachman, V. 2018. Tamarack Eastern Larch Beetle Sanitation (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa). Great Lakes Silviculture Library. University of Minnesota. Cloquet, MN. Available: https://silvlib.cfans.umn.edu/content/tamarack-eastern-larch-beetle-sani...

Add new comment

Case Study Name (Landowner)

Tamarack Eastern Larch Beetle Sanitation (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa)