Joe, I am curious to hear Bob's answer. The key adjective in your question is "GOOD" old growth sites. There likely are many sites, but they may be populated by small trees. Here in PA, not exactly Northeast I suppose, there are what appear to be primary forests growing amidst steep rocky talus and scree slopes around many of the mountains. These represent hundreds or thousands of acres. The trees are small. They may not even be that old, but there is no evidence that they have ever been cut. Their age is likely limited by fire frequency, If they had been cut in the past, in spite of their small size, then subsequent events have removed all trace of any human alteration. Can a forest become primary once again after it has been affected by logging? I think so if the forest is essentially restarted again from scratch by fires or floods and is reestablished in its original form and structure.
Many of the areas in PA, such as Marion Brooks Natural Area, and the Quehanna Wild Area were logged and then subject to a sequence of intense fires. The evidence of the original logging is gone, but the forest have not reestablished in their original form. The intensity of the fire destroyed most of the organic content of the original soil leaving a mineral soil that is colonized by various pioneering species. Perhaps there should be a name for forests that are reestablishing themselves after a cleansing event, such as fire, tornado, derecho, or flood that has removed the evidence of human logging. There should be other areas that have never been cut because of boundary disputes, areas that have never been cut because of the steepness of the terrain, areas that have never been cut because they were on a private estate. Many of these areas may be small and may cover only a few acres. I have become interested in these small patches and how they could be managed or preserved to form the core of a future old growth patch. Ed "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science." - Albert Einstein --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
