US Forest Service Research and Development Fort Valley Experimental Forest - Rocky Mountain Research Station - RMRS - US Forest Service
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Fort Valley Experimental Forest

[image] In the midst of an enormous ponderosa pine forest spreading across northern Arizona and New Mexico is the Fort Valley Experimental Forest that totals about 2,130 noncontiguous ha around Flagstaff, Arizona. The 'Fort Valley' term derives from an open, parklike, bowl-shaped area that was the site of an LDS stockade fort built in 1881. Two excellent springs supply the valley that sits at the base of the southwestern side of the San Francisco Peaks at an altitude of 2,156 m., but the area is also subject to extreme weather and settlement was sparse. Hence, the surrounding ponderosa pine forest had not been heavily logged. Its prime condition caused the USFS to open its first research station in an existing ranger's cabin located in the northwest corner of Fort Valley in August 1908. The scientists' task was to study how the ponderosa pine regenerates as the entire forest was being decimated through extensive logging, yet not regrowing. The ranger's cabin became the Coconino Experiment Station. In 1911, its name changed to the Fort Valley Experiment Station to avoid confusion with the Coconino National Forest. Being the nation's first USFS Research facility, many pioneer USFS scientists were assigned there. The Experimental Forest designation of 1,108 ha came in 1931 and more forested lands were added in 1941 for a total of 2,130 ac. In 1927, the Fort Valley Experiment Station expanded to include range studies, primarily the effects of domestic grazing animals on ponderosa pine. At that time, the name changed to the Fort Valley Forest and Range Experiment Station.

Climate

The climate is semi-arid to arid, with cool temperatures and early summer drought. Mean annual precipitation is 574 mm, with about half of this falling as snow. The average frost-free growing season is 94 days. Mean annual temperature is about 7 C. Large diurnal temperature changes are common.

Soils

Surveys of Fort Valley conducted by the Coconino National Forest have classified the main soil type as fine montmorillonitic, frigid Typic Argiborolls, derived from basalt and cinders.

Vegetation

The predominant ponderosa pine forest type at Fort Valley consists of pole-size trees, 10 to 28 cm in d.b.h. and 60 to 100 years old. There are scattered groups of older trees (28 to 120 cm d.b.h. and 200 to 500 years old), over dense thickets of sapling-size trees ranging from 1.5 to 10 cm in d.b.h. and 60 to 70 years old.

Long-Term Data Bases

At Fort Valley, data bases are maintained on the following subjects: weather (1908 to present), effects of weather on Ponderosa pine seed regeneration (1909 to 1944), range research (1927 - present), mistletoe research (1910 to present), image database of historical photos (2000 - ongoing), and stress physiology of western conifers (1980-2001).

Research, Past and Present

Studies on natural and artificial regeneration, stand improvement methods, ponderosa pine and piñon nut production, and mensurational studies are part of the research conducted at Fort Valley in the early 1900s. Other studies focused on range monitoring, forest types, fence-post durability, logging, and timber-sale monitoring. Permanent sample plots established in 1909 are still being measured. Historical archives containing all work done at Fort Valley are located at the Rocky Mountain Research Station in Flagstaff, Arizona; these include annual reports, photos, maps, project reports, personnel, and tree-inventory sheets.

Current studies are addressing forest pathology, forest restoration, wildland-urban interface treatments, and fire effects.

Major Research Accomplishments and Effects on Management

Fort Valley was established primarily to understand why ponderosa pine was not regenerating after heavy logging. Recommendations derived from research here were the basis of many US Forest Service
management practices.

Collaborators

Collaborators working at Fort Valley include the Coconino National Forest, Northern Arizona University, and the Ecological Restoration Institute.

Research Opportunities

Fort Valley is an ideal location for research on the ponderosa pine ecosystem and other forest research. It has a water source, which can be valuable to research projects in the Southwest. Past research projects provide a basis for continued research.

Facilities

There are 14 buildings located on the Fort Valley Experimental Station within the Fort Valley Experimental Forest. The Station is listed on the National Historic Register. Some of the buildings have been rehabilitated. The site is not open to the public.

Lat. 35°16'06" N, long. 111°44'25" W

Contact Information

Fort Valley Experimental Forest
US Forest Service

Rocky Mountain Research Station
Flagstaff Laboratory
2500 S. Pine Knoll Drive
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
Tel: (928) 556-2001

Forest website

Related Links
Fort Valley Experimental Forest Website
 

The material for the Experimental Forests pages was originally published in:

Adams, Mary Beth; Loughry, Linda; Plaugher, Linda, comps. 2004. Experimental Forests and Ranges of the USDA Forest Service. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-321. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station. 178 p. GTR-NE-321 - 5.5 mb pdf

Information has been updated since original publication.

Rocky Mountain Research Station
Last Modified: Monday, 28 April 2008 at 17:14:18 EDT (Version 1.0.5)