IndexAmerican Hardwood ForestsTree DominanceSummaryWorks CitedForestry was commonly a misunderstood subject where it was thought to be the exclusive study of trees, but in reality it is much more than that. Forestry, in short, is known to be the science and understanding of managing forest trees and other natural resources derived from forested lands. Therefore, in addition to the study of forest trees, forestry encompasses studies of wildlife, soil, timber, and more. (The University of British Columbia, 2017) The importance of forestry in the United States became evident in the late 1800s. From 1876 to the early 1900s, the U.S. government worked to create forest reserves through the Forest Reserve Act of 1891 and responsibility for these preserves eventually fell into the hands of the United States Forest Service of which Gifford Pinchot became the first chief. (US Forest Service, n.d.) More recently, the United States and many other countries continue to protect their forests through appropriate regulations. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayForests have an important impact in several environmental aspects. A tree's environment integrates its abiotic factors, including soil and climate, with its biological elements such as animals, insects, and microorganisms that depend on the plants. Because trees may not permanently reside in their native environment, some trees may have difficulty thriving in their current habitat to reach their maximum potential. This will determine the success of that tree species in its current environment and may cause some species to prevail while others die. (The University of British Columbia, 2017) This project studies whether or not there is a relationship between the dominant tree in an area and the biomass of trees in that same area in order to further understand tree growth patterns. American Hardwood ForestsAmerican hardwood forests are widespread throughout the United States. These forests are made up mostly of deciduous trees, known for having broad leaves instead of pine needles like conifers. Although most of these trees have lost their leaves seasonally, biodiversity still exists among these types of forests. Biodiversity has been classified into phylogenetic (evolutionary) and/or functional (ecological) criteria. Biodiversity occurs due to genetic variation among each individual organism through phylogenetic and functional history and the means of future adaptive evolution. In terms of diversity, species that do not have much genetic variation become more susceptible to extinction due to nature or human interactions. (Colwell, n.d.) More specifically, ecologists and biologists have described forest biodiversity in terms of species. Species richness is the quantity of species of a specific life form that characterize a community, habitat or ecosystem. (Colwell, n.d.) Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (BEF) studies have manipulated plant species richness during experiments and suggested that ecosystem functions, such as biomass production and nutrient cycling, respond strongly to changes in biological diversity. (Cardinale, 2012)In addition to biodiversity, carbon sequestration is an important factor in American hardwood forests. It has been recognized that these deciduous forests represent large carbon sinks. Many of these forest trees balance carbon in the atmosphere by extracting it (carbon sequestration) and storing it in their leaves or soil. This causes the amount of carbonstored in forests is double the amount of carbon stored in the atmosphere. (Hui, 2016) Another important aspect that has made up American hardwood forests is succession, which can also influence carbon levels. Succession occurs after a disturbance clears an area of ​​land, and plant species grow in that area over time. In order for an ecosystem to fully regrow, it takes time, which is why succession occurs in stages. As observed in a recent study, during some of the intermediate stages of succession, the ecosystem's net production (the difference between the amount of carbon produced by photosynthesis and the amount used by respiration) and net primary production (the amount of carbon absorbed after plant respiration) ) may decrease or increase, depending on the frequency of the disturbance. (Gough, 2016) Because of this and other factors, succession is the process that keeps many forests functional today. Greenbelt ParkOne of Maryland's known forested areas resulting from succession is Greenbelt Park. Greenbelt Park is one of Maryland's national parks and has been a national park since 1950 under Public Law 643. Originally, the land flourished with trees, wildlife, and water. Once settlers arrived on Native American territory, they cleared the land over the next 150 years. years for agriculture and other convenient uses, and these factors, along with erosion, left the remaining land bare. The land has slowly begun to replenish itself over time and has recently blossomed into the vast array of trees, wildlife, bacteria and more. (National Park Service, n.d.) Greenbelt Park is important in Maryland because it is now a national park and is dedicated to protection and preservation. It contains some common tree species such as red maple and flowering dogwood. Red maples are one of the most abundant and widespread trees in North America. (US Forest Service, n.d.) The flowering dogwood tree is also found in Greenbelt Park and tends to be found in areas with improved drainage and lighter textured soils. (Viña, 2010) These tree species along with others in the park contribute to the animals, bacteria, fungi and lichens that interact with them and can help the trees grow or use their resources. Tree Dominance While there may be many species of trees in a forest, including Greenbelt Park, an important factor that can determine the fate of a forest is the dominant trees. A dominant tree is known as the one that appears the most in a specific area or range. A dominant tree can emerge due to different circumstances, but commonly due to disturbances, which can determine the success or failure of a plant. An example of a disturbance is human interaction or anthropogenic disturbances. These may include clearing to build homes or roads or even “a wave of intensive harvesting and clearing for agriculture in which harvesters select economically valuable species.” (Hanberry, 2013) These types of disturbances can destroy the balance of a forest ecosystem and can cause the growth of new species in the area surrounding the disturbance, as human interaction with that forest area could ruin seed production plants that were initially there or cause the mutualistic relationships between that tree species and animals to suffer. This could eventually cause another type of tree to flourish and create a different environment in which new tree species could better disperse their seeds and thrive until they take over. Another type of disturbance is natural disasters that could affect which tree becomes dominant in a plot. Disastersnatural forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes and hurricanes which can easily remove tree species that are not strong enough to resist and could cause some gains made by forest species to be offset. (Viña, 2010) This may also include periods of drought where many tree species have experienced mortality. (Fensham, 2015) This would ultimately let the stronger tree species survive and dominate. Invasive species can also be another way for a tree species to dominate in an area. According to research, seed dispersal plays a vital role in plant invasions. As long as seeds can be transported to different environments, exotic species will remain a threat to native species in an environment and have the potential to kill native species that they may dominate. Studies have redirected their attention from diversity and how this can increase resistance to invasion to instead study dispersal and how the characteristics of introduced species primarily determine the success of invasive species. Other factors, such as disease, seed predation, herbivory, and resource availability, influence the recruitment of an invasive species and whether or not it survives in its new environment. (Lichstein, 2017) Species richness must generally be estimated based on samples due to difficulty in detection, behavioral factors, and more. Relative abundance is the most important influence on the effort required to record a species. As species grow and develop, the rate of discovery of new species steadily decreases, as more and more rare species remain to be found. (Colwell, n.d.)BiomassIn forest ecosystems, tree biomass refers to the measure of the biological matter of trees in the forest. This includes all parts of the tree, where most come from scratch, however some parts, such as roots, need to be taken into account. Forest inventories usually consist of quantifying belowground biomass as well as aboveground biomass. The most common measurements used to determine forest tree biomass include DBH, known as diameter at breast height, tree height at distinct levels, and tree type related to the volume of timber measured. (Price, 2017) To understand the contribution of forest biomass changes to other important forest factors such as the global carbon cycle, climate change, and the relationship between tree diversity and productivity, conservationists need to make adequate estimates of forest demographic changes . rates. Permanent sample plots (PSPs) have been used to estimate forest population rates and to map the distribution of forest biomass, but these include only large trees. (Searle, 2017) This can be a problem when properly mapping the biomass of a forest. In the United States, the requirement for a woody plant to be considered a tree is that the DBH is 5 inches or more as of 2017. (Searle, 2017) This has led to experiments where the tree's biomass it was only taking into account the largest trees, which was not an accurate measurement of forest biomass. Summary The needs of a forest ecosystem have many determining factors to make it unique. Forestry is known for its trees, which contribute to many factors in the ecosystem and influence the environment as a whole. Trees can take many different shapes and forms and can have different niches depending on the species and their ecosystems. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get an essay.