Southern Research Station

Title: Scenic Beauty in Summer the Year Before, the Year After, and 4 Years After Harvest

Author: Rudis, Victor A.; Jang, Hochan; Gramann, James H.

Date: 2004

Source: Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-74. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. pp. 113-120

Description: Abstract - This study examined the effects of four silvicultural options (clearcut, group selection, shelterwood, and untreated) on the perceived scenic beauty of shortleaf pine-oak (Pinus echinata-Quercus spp.) stands of national forest land in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas. Twelve randomly selected stands were selected and nine were cut in the winter of 1993. Color images of the stands were captured in June 1992, July 1994, and July 1997. Texas A&M University undergraduate students rated the scenic beauty of five images per plot and summer season results are reported here. The visual impact of cutting these stands was severe a year (two growing seasons) after treatment, with intensive treatments yielding the lowest scenic beauty preferences. Four years after treatment, however, no statistical differences were detected among treated and untreated stands. Results are preliminary, but clearly show that the negative visual aspects of harvesting declines with time.

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Citation

Rudis, Victor A.; Jang, Hochan; Gramann, James H.  2004.  Scenic Beauty in Summer the Year Before, the Year After, and 4 Years After Harvest.   Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-74. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. pp. 113-120