Drought and ForestsTrinity Neches
Forest Landowners Association MeetingApril 6, 2013
Jeremy Stovall, Ph.D., CFArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Outline
• Texas droughts• Drought and our forests• Drought stress
– Tree‐level effects– Stand‐level effects
• Managing with droughtPhoto Credit: Ron Billings, Texas A&M Forest Service, bugwood.org
Walker County, September 2000, Ips and drought
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
2011 Texas Drought
Video Credit: http://atmo.tamu.edu/osc/drought/
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Texas Drought History
Figure Credit: http://climatexas.tamu.edu/files/osc_pubs/2011_drought.pdf
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Texas Drought History
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Figure Credit: http://thinkprogress.org/
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Outline
• Texas droughts• Drought and our forests• Drought stress
– Tree‐level effects– Stand‐level effects
• Managing with droughtPhoto Credit: Ron Billings, Texas A&M Forest Service
Drought‐Killed Trees in Kimble County
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests
• 301 Million trees killed in forest and woodland areas
• Equivalent to 2.5 M acres of complete mortality at stocking of 120 TPA– East Texas = 12.1 M acres of forestland for comparison
• Mature stands hit harder
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Citation: Billings, R. and C. Edgar. 2013. Impact of the 2011 drought on thinned and unthinned pine plantations. Texas Forestry 53:1‐4.
Photo Credit: USDA Forest Service
Davy Crockett National Forest
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests
• Near total losses on some older stands reported in Trinity, Montgomery, Walker, and Grimes, Counties
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Citation: Billings, R. and C. Edgar. 2013. Impact of the 2011 drought on thinned and unthinned pine plantations. Texas Forestry 53:1‐4.
Photo Credit: Mabry Campbell
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests• 5.6 Million trees killed in urban areas
• >90% pine mortality in Houston’s Memorial Park
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Citation: Billings, R. and C. Edgar. 2013. Impact of the 2011 drought on thinned and unthinned pine plantations. Texas Forestry 53:1‐4.
Photo Credit: Ron Billings, Texas A&M Forest Service
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests• 0‐25% of trees killed in typical midrotation plantations, with a mean of 4% mortality in unthinned and 1.2% in thinned stands
• 15% reduction in growth in surviving trees
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Citations: Billings, R. and C. Edgar. 2013. Impact of the 2011 drought on thinned and unthinned pine plantations. Texas Forestry 53:1‐4.Fox, Thomas, Forest Productivity Cooperative, Personal Communication.
Photo Credit: Tim Tigner, VDOF, bugwood.org
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests
• Pine plantation survival surveys in East Texas showed 66% mortality of 1‐year‐old pine seedlings
• 116,000 acres will need reforestation
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Citations: Billings, R. and C. Edgar. 2013. Impact of the 2011 drought on thinned and unthinned pine plantations. Texas Forestry 53:1‐4. Texas A&M Forest Service. 2012. East Texas forest recovery. http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/
Photo Credit: www.messenger‐news.com
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Drought Effects on East Texas Forests• Lost Stumpage Value
– $558 M merchantable– $111 M precommercial– $669 M total tree loss
• Lost Delivered Value– $1.1 B merchantable– $1.2 B total tree loss
• Lost Product Value• EXCLUDES FIRE LOSSES
– $208 M loss (delivered)– $1.6 B in forest products lost– $3.4 B total economic impact
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Citations: Texas A&M Forest Service. 2012. Preliminary estimation of drought economic loss in East Texas forests. http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/Texas A&M Forest Service. 2012. East Texas forest recovery. http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/
Photo Credit: Paul Butts, Georgia Forestry Commission, bugwood.org
Salvage Logging
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Outline
• Texas droughts• Drought and our forests• Drought stress
– Tree‐level effects– Stand‐level effects
• Managing with droughtPhoto Credit: Texas A&M Forest Service, http://texasclimatenews.org/wp/?p=3779
Drought‐Killed Hardwood Tree
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil Plant Air Continuum (SPAC)
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Figure Credit: Postaire, O., L. Verdoucq, and C. Maurel. 2007. Aquaporins in Plants: From Molecular Structure to Integrated Functions. Pages 75‐136 in K. Jean‐Claude and D. Michel, editors. Advances in Botanical Research. Academic Press.
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSOIL Plant Air Continuum (SPAC)
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Which soil texture has the least plant available water?
A. SandB. ClayC. Silt Loam
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSOIL Plant Air Continuum (SPAC)
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Figure Credit: © 2012 Nature Education www.nature.com All rights reserved.
Implications for Drought• No soils are holding more than
~25% volumetric soil water• Drought may rapidly deplete plant
available water in sands, and even in clays
• Even loams are susceptible eventually
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSOIL PLANT Air Continuum (SPAC)
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Figure Credit: http://www.robinsonlibrary.com/science/botany/anatomy/roots.htm
Implications for Drought• Roots grow by turgor pressure
alone• Roots can’t grow if tree is
drought stressed• Fine roots have high mortality• Trees get many nutrients
dissolved in water
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil PLANT Air Continuum (SPAC)
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Figure Credit: http://woodmagic.vt.edu/kids/anatomy/
Figure Credit: Brodersen, C. R., A. J.McElrone, B. Choat, M. A. Matthews, andK. A. Shackel. 2010. The Dynamics ofEmbolism Repair in Xylem: In VivoVisualizations Using High‐ResolutionComputed Tomography. Plant Physiology154:1088‐1095.
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil PLANT Air Continuum (SPAC)
Stomata
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Figure Credit: http://www.aucoeurdelarbre.ca
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil PLANT Air Continuum (SPAC)
Stomata
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Figure Credit: http://plantcellbiology.masters.grkraj.org
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Carbon starvation hypothesis1. Trees can’t open stomata
due to drought stress2. Trees can’t photosynthesize
without stomata open3. Trees eventually starve
because they can’t make enough sugar
Figure Credit: https://www.bgc‐jena.mpg.de
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil Plant AIR Continuum (SPAC)
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Figure and Table Credit: http://ohioline.osu.edu/aex‐fact/0804.html
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought EffectsSoil PLANT AIR Continuum (SPAC)
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Photo Credit: http://www.kitchenpantryscientist.com
• Transpiration: 540,000 gallons per acre per year in upland hardwoods
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: http://botanicaleducation.blogspot.com
• Drought Adaptations– Desiccation Avoidance– Desiccation Tolerance
• Dehydration Tolerance• Dehydration Postponement
Desert Annual Plants
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Video Credit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdB_pmzhhbE
• Drought Adaptations– Desiccation Avoidance– Desiccation Tolerance
• Dehydration Tolerance• Dehydration Postponement
Resurrection Fern: 2 hours in 15 seconds
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Texas Parks & Wildlife Department
• Drought Adaptations– Desiccation Avoidance– Desiccation Tolerance
• Dehydration Tolerance• Dehydration Postponement
Post Oak Savannah
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Jeremy Stovall
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
6‐Year‐Old Loblolly
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Jeremy Stovall
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
Red Buckeye
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: www.greenhousegoodlife.com
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
Opuntia texana?
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Joe Martinez, Biosphere 2, University of Arizona
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
Pinyon Pine Drought Study
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Bernard Gagnon 2007
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
Adansonia grandidieri, Madagascar
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Figure Credit: Bray, E.A. 2007. Plant Response to Water‐deficit Stress. In: eLS. JohnWiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net
Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)
Osmotic Adjustment: Sweetgum, Oaks, Dogwoods, Ashes,
Cherries, Magnolias, Sycamore
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Tree‐Level Drought Effects
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Dehydration Postponement1. Deep wide‐spreading root
system (i.e. Bastrop pines)2. Leaf adaptations (orientation,
rolling, drooping, hairs, abscission)
3. Stomata (close early, open at night like CAM plants)
4. Metabolic (hormonal regulation)
5. Water storage (capacitance)6. Osmotic adjustment (change
salt content to get more water)Figure Credit: © 2012 Nature Education www.nature.com All rights reserved.
Osmotic Adjustment: Sweetgum, Oaks, Dogwoods, Ashes,
Cherries, Magnolias, Sycamore
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Outline
• Texas droughts• Drought and our forests• Drought stress
– Tree‐level effects– Stand‐level effects
• Managing with droughtPhoto Credit: Pat Sullivan, Associated Press
Removal of Drought‐Killed Trees in a Stand
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Mike Ryon, Oak Ridge National Lab Photo Credit: http://www.floridadisaster.org
More than 4200 ac were killed by SPB in Kisatchie Hills Wilderness, Natchitoches Parish, LA, in 1984‐5. Control efforts were too late, with 350 ac infested before suppression started. In 1987 a wildfire burned 7500 acres, including the beetle kill.
Citation: T.W. Coleman, Martin, A., et al. 2010. Disturbance from southern pine beetle, suppression, and wildfire affects vegetation composition in central Louisiana: A case study. General Technical Report SRS‐129. USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Asheville, NC.
SYNERGISM
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects
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Photo Credit: Bouton Lake, Angelina County, USDA Forest Service
Bottomland trees tend to be shallowly rooted, and are thus more susceptible to drought. Additionally, drought stressed trees in bottomlands suffer root mortality during the drought. If subsequent years are very wet, the root zone is then flooded. Stresses compound, resulting in mortality.
SYNERGISM
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects
• Stand Density is Key to Stand Health– Overstocked stands more susceptible to drought and other disturbances
– Maintain stocking between A and B lines
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Citation: Goelz, J. C. G. 1995. A stocking guide for southern bottomland hardwoods. Southern Journal of Applied Forestry 19:103‐104.
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects
• Trees are competing in a stand– Large trees have access to lots of resources
– Small trees have access to fewer resources
– Drought may affect certain trees more than others
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Photo Credit:Mike Fountain
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects• Different species will respond differently to drought
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Citation: Streng, D. R., J. S. Glitzenstein, and P. A. Harcombe. 1989. Woody seedling dynamics in an East Texas floodplain forest. Ecological Monographs 59:177‐204.
Bottomland Hardwood Forests in Jasper County
water oak
deciduous holly
American holly
American elm
American hornbeam
sweetgumred maple
Sebastian bush
DROUGHT
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Stand‐Level Drought Effects
• Different species will respond differently to drought
• Seedlings are particularly susceptible to acute drought stress
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Citation: Streng, D. R., J. S. Glitzenstein, and P. A. Harcombe. 1989. Woody seedling dynamics in an East Texas floodplain forest. Ecological Monographs 59:177‐204.
Bottomland Hardwood Forests in Jasper County
American hornbeamsweetgum
red maple
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Outline
• Texas droughts• Drought and our forests• Drought stress
– Tree‐level effects– Stand‐level effects
• Managing with droughtPhoto Credit: http://forwarn.forestthreats.org/
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought
• Droughts are projected to become more frequent, longer, and more intense in Texas
• How do we manage for this?
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Citation: Allen, C. D., A. K. Macalady, et al. 2010. A global overview of drought and heat‐induced tree mortality reveals emerging climate change risks for forests. Forest Ecology and Management 259:660‐684.
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought
• Maintain healthy stands– Proper density management
• Thinning• Invasive species• Competition control
– Protection• Insects• Disease
– Manage for fire before the fire
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought• Maintain healthy stands
– Proper density management
• Thinning• Invasive species• Competition control
– Protection• Insects• Disease
– Manage for fire before the fire
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Photo Credit: Tim Tigner, VDOF, bugwood.org
Photo Credit: SFIWCA, bugwood.org
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought
• Maintain healthy stands– Proper density management
• Thinning• Invasive species• Competition control
– Protection• Insects• Disease
– Manage for fire before the fire
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Photo Credit: USFWS, http://www.fws.gov/southeastlouisiana/fire_mgt.html
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought• Species selection
– Right species on right sites– Provenance
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UPLANDS FLOODPLAIN TERRACE
Flat Flat SwampFlat
River Base Level
Citation: Hodges, J. D. 1995. The southern bottomland hardwood region and brown loam bluffs subregion. Pages 227‐270 in J. W. Barrett, editor. Regional Silviculture of the United States. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY.
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought• Species selection
– Right species on right sites– Provenance
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Citation: Schmidtling, R. C. 2001. Southern pine seed sources. General Technical Report SRS‐44. Asheville, NC: USDA, Forest Service, Southern Research Station
Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought• The value of diversity
– Stand ages– Stand structures– Composition / Genetics– Stand sizes
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Jeremy StovallArthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture
Stephen F. Austin State University
Managing Forests with Drought• Active management
– Is your forest is at risk?– Intervene early
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Photo Credit: http://www.vtnews.vt.edu
Photo Credit: http://www.msuextension.org
Questions?Jeremy Stovall, Ph.D., CF
Arthur Temple College of Forestry and AgricultureStephen F. Austin State University
[email protected](936) 468 – 2127
To download a PDF of this powerpoint google:“Jeremy Stovall Outreach Presentations”