PCT Description of Work

Precommercial Thinning Survey

Precommercial Thinning Survey

Most units are accessible by four-wheel drive vehicles and ATV, but there may be walk-in required.
The protocol for the Precommercial Thinning Survey is designed to determine if stands will be thinned at a young age, with chronological ages ranging from 15 to 30 years or older in some cases. The range in age is principally dependent on the species, site capability, and other factors contingent on the existing species' ability to compete for limiting environmental factors, fire adaptations along with insect and disease resistance. These factors will be used to determine if a site requires treatment.
All data collected shall be made electronic using a PDF Electronic Form Template that can be loaded onto a mobile device. The customized template provided shall be used to create a .pdf for each stand, with the blanks filled in with the stand data requested. A customized template will be provided to the surveyor. All stand maps will be provided as a .pdf map that can be loaded on a Mobile Device and accessed through an Avenza Maps App.
Plot Placement
Precommercial Thinning Survey data shall be collected within the delineated stand where tree data is to be quantified. The average stand characteristics will be represented by 3 to 5 plots. In stands 50 acres or smaller, 3 plots shall be taken using 1/100-acre plot size. Plot 1 and Plot 2 will represent the stand average trees per acre, and Plot 3 will represent the densest trees per acre in the stand. In stands 51 acres and larger, 5 plots shall be taken using 1/100-acre plot size. Plot 1, Plot 2, Plot 4, and Plot 5 will represent the stand average trees per acre, and Plot 3 will represent the densest trees per acre in the stand.
Plot locations shall be determined after walking through the stand and finding where the stand’s average trees per acre are most representative for Plots 1 and 2, Plots 1, 2, 4, and 5, and where the stand is the most dense for Plot 3. After finding the plot center on the ground, place a pin on the map to mark the plot center on the .pdf stand map that is provided (loaded onto a tablet through an Avenza Maps App). On the ground, mark plot center with flagging, and hang 3 additional flags that correlate to plot center on the ground. Table 1. Stem Density
Minimum Maximum
Density
Density
Density
Low
Medium
1500
High
1501
3000
Over High
3001
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Tree Plot Data Collection

Precommercial Thinning Survey