Field Note: Learning from Early Application of a Transition Forest Climate Adaptation Planting Strategy Incorporating Assisted Migration in Southern New England

Abstract

This field note presents an early example of a forest climate adaptation tree planting project incorporating assisted migration in southern New England which is valuable in providing lessons that can inform future work in this region and elsewhere. This effort is notable for moving forward through the implementation and monitoring stages during a period when many similar projects encountered barriers. The project is located on watershed protection forestland owned by the Providence Water Supply Board, a public utility in Rhode Island. Using a suite of tools developed through the Climate Change Response Framework, watershed forest managers carried out a “transition” strategy climate adaptation planting in 2015, seeking to improve regeneration in an area of forest near the state’s main drinking water reservoir. Seedlings of both native and assisted migration tree species projected to be adapted to future climate conditions were planted in adjacent areas that had experienced oak regeneration failure. Half of the seedlings of each species were planted within a deer exclosure fence and half were planted in an unfenced area. Annual monitoring has allowed for comparison of survival and growth of a subset of planted trees at these two sites for 10 growing seasons. Deer herbivory is believed to be the most significant factor contributing to differences in tree survival rates between the fenced and unfenced areas. Both native and non-native species have been able to survive when protected from deer browse, while differences are inconclusive after nearly a decade. This informal experimental planting provides a case study illustrating some of the opportunities and challenges associated with implementing assisted migration in a non-research, operational-scale setting.

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