Secondary forest succession following reproduction cutting on the Upper Coastal Plain of southeastern Arkansas, USA

To contribute to an understanding of forest management on secondary forest succession, we conducted vegetation surveys in a chronosequence of pine sta nds ranging in age from 1 to 59 years. Adjacent areas were compared at 1, 7 , 12, and 17 years following two reproduction cutting methods (clearcuts or pine seed-tree cuts); a 59-year-old pine stand that was periodically thinn ed was also included to represent conditions before reproduction cutting. B ecause average or better natural loblolly and shortleaf pine (Pinus taeda L . and P. echinata Mill.) seed crops coincided with the planned site disturb ances, pines dominated the seedling-size classes at 1 and 7 years after rep roduction cutting, the sapling-size classes at 7, 12, and 17 years after re production cutting, and the small- and large-tree size classes at 12, 17, a nd 59 years after reproduction cutting. For seedling-size classes, three me asures of woody plant diversity (Shannon's (Hl), Simpson's (D), and evennes s (e) indices) tended to increase from 1 to 12 years after reproduction cut ting. In the sapling-size classes, H ' and D diversity indices were highest at 17 years and lowest at 59 years after reproduction cutting. For small-t ree size classes, H ', and D were highest at 7 years and lowest at 12 years after reproduction cutting. Across all but the large-tree size classes, wo ody species richness peaked 7 years after reproduction cutting, Naturally r egenerated pines achieved complete crown closure by 17 years after reproduc tion cutting; consequently, the presence of shade-tolerant woody plants inc reased in the understory, and shade-intolerant herbaceous plants disappeare d from the forest floor. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.