2016 GYCC Whitebark Pine Seedling Acquisition

General Project Information

Project Title: GYCC Whitebark Pine Seedling Acquisition

Project Dates: 2016

Year project implementation started:

How many more years is this project expected to continue, if any?

Project Contact: (Please provide complete information for primary contact(s), e.g., name, position, phone number, email, agency name, unit/sub-unit)

Ellen Jungck; GYCC WBP Subcommittee Chair; PO Box 186; Dubois, WY  82513; ejungck@fs.fed.us; 307-455-4164 (office); 307-250-8849 (cell)

Location (Land management agency or ownership and name of geographic area(s) where project was implemented. This information should be specific enough to identify a general project location on a map but not specific enough to compromise the project.)

Beaverhead-Deerlodge (BD), Custer Gallatin (CG), Bridger-Teton (BT), and Shoshone (SHO) National Forests in Montana and Wyoming

Cooperators: (List cooperating agencies and sub-units, other companies/organizations, and individuals as needed.)

 

Project Funding

Funding Sources (amount FHP/amount other incl. in-kind)

Forest Health Protection funding                   $  20,000.00

Other funding                                                 $446,545.21

Total                                                               $466,545.21

 

Did Whitebark Restoration funding get used or obligated? (If not, please explain.)

Yes.  All $20,000 received through this proposal was transferred to the Coeur d’Alene Nursery in May, 2016, and allocated to each forest proportional to the number of seedlings the forest was planting in each fiscal year.

 

Project Details

Scope and/or Size of Project or Treated Area: (Include a short description of the project or treatment area if helpful in understanding the scope of the project.)

Number of Acres or Other Units Treated, Monitored, or Surveyed:

167,170 seedlings/571 acres (both 2016, 2017)

 

2016 Actual:*                        2017 Planned:*

BD =   127                             BD =   150

BT =      87                             CG =     30

CG =    65                             SHO = 112

* See next section for acronym definition.

 

Specific location of project or treated area(s): (If desired, add more specific project location information here, e.g., UTMs, Lat-long, specific landmark. Otherwise, indicate if more information is available by request.)

 

2016:

BD = Eureka Basin Fire

BT = Hardscrabble Fire

CG = Millie Fire

 

2017:

BD = Eureka Basin Fire

CG = Millie Fire

SHO = Burroughs Creek Fire

 

Objective(s) (from original request):

Planting: (Please answer the following questions if the project includes plantings or cone collections.)

Number of seedlings planted (List by location if applicable):

 

2016 Seedlings Planted:                2017 Trees Planned:

BD = 31,970                                      BD =   45,000

BT =  25,200                                     CG =     8,800

CG = 16,000                                     SHO = 40,200

 

Was the seed source screened for resistance? (If other, explain.)

Seed sources came from areas of known resistance based on Mahalovich et al. 2016. In addition, each cone lot collected has been screened for its level of rust resistance.  Improved seed is not yet available from the Greater Yellowstone-Grand Teton Seed Orchard as first grafts were just out-planted in the last couple of years.

Were Plus trees used? Unknown

Results/Outcome:

Project Status (Is the project complete? If not, what remains to be accomplished and when?

All FY2016 planting is completed. FY2017 planting will be completed either in the spring or fall, 2017.

Will outcome meet objectives?

Mostly. Germination rates for seedlots used for the BT planting location in 2016 were slightly lower than anticipated. Fewer seedlings were grown than expected.

 

Project Follow-Up

Are there plans for monitoring or follow-up? (If not, please explain.)

Survival surveys for plantings will be conducted after the first and third full growing seasons.

Changes Needed or Problems Encountered: None encountered.

Sharing Results/Products/Outcomes: (Please include pertinent photos and links to any relevant reports or publications)

In Service Agreement for transfer of funds to the nursery is attached.

 

Reference

Mahalovich, M.F., K.E. Burr, and D.L. Foushee, 2006. Whitebark pine germination, rust resistance, and cold hardiness among seed sources in the Inland Northwest: planting strategies for restoration. USDA Forest Service Proceedings, RMRS-P-43