Date of Award
8-2025
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science - Forestry
Department
Forestry
First Advisor
Dr. Jeremy Stovall
Second Advisor
Dr. Matthew McBroom
Third Advisor
Dr. Yuhui Weng
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Yanli Zhang
Abstract
Trees assist in stormwater retention basin functionality as efficient sources of water removal, and determining stand structure and leaf area of forests can be a measure of their effectiveness. The structure of forest stands on these basins managed for runoff mitigation has received little attention. We investigated the structure and species composition/diversity (tree and herbaceous) of planted, managed stands and naturally regenerated stands on stormwater retention basins managed by Harris County Flood Control District in Harris County, Texas. We determined stand structure variables (trees per hectare, basal area per hectare, quadratic mean diameter, relative density, average tree height, and percent canopy coverage) as they relate to leaf area index (LAI) and stand age. Simple linear regressions were used to determine relationships for: structure variables with LAI, structure variables with age, hemispheric canopy photography/LI-COR LAI-2200c measurements, and dormant/growing season LAI. Positive, increasing relationships (p< 0.05) were found for: LAI with structure variables, dormant/growing season LAI, and hemi photography/LAI-2200c measurements. No relationship was found between structure variables and age. Two-way t-tests and PERMANOVAs showed significant differences (p< 0.05) between the planted and unplanted area stands for: structural variables and LAI (except dormant LAI, hemi photography LAI, and relative density), species composition (tree and herbaceous), and tree species abundance. Overall, our results for the structure variable with LAI relationships and species composition/diversity were in line with studies on other forest stands regarding the effects of management regimes and stand dynamics (density, disturbance, and light competition) on stand structure and composition.
Repository Citation
Lanza, Jason, "Stand Strucuture of Planted Stands in Storm-Water Retention Basins" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 637.
https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/637
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Included in
Forest Biology Commons, Forest Management Commons, Other Forestry and Forest Sciences Commons, Other Plant Sciences Commons
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