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Research and data

Research themes – Plots – Projects – Types of data

The decades-long program of research at the Petawawa Research Forest (PRF) has resulted in a wealth of data that provides a solid foundation for future research and forest management undertakings.

Research in these areas bring together a combination of plots, projects, data, and results.

Plots are defined areas of forested land to which numbers are assigned for identification purposes. Any given plot may involve different research themes. Each of the over 2000 experimental plots are categorized according to the level of research activity.

Projects are categorized according to whether they are active or completed. Projects can be unique to a particular plot or research theme or may involve multiple plots and themes. Details of projects conducted at the PRF are contained in Project Reports and unpublished results in Binder Reports. These results provide a foundation for further study.

Data contained in the PRF archives are organized to ensure their availability and accessibility (wherever possible, via computer). The paper record goes back 90 years and fills 40 filing cabinets; it comprises tally sheets, calculation sheets, photos, maps, diagrams, instrument printouts, experimental plans, layouts, notes, and so on. Over the years, the various research activities have produced significant and varied data holdings:

Permanent sample plots (PSP): About 500 PSPs in natural stands and plantations, disturbed and control areas, exist. They track the development over long periods of time of a fixed area of forest; the oldest existing PSP dates from 1918. Data on tree growth, regeneration, ground vegetation, soils, and chicots are available.

Weather data: Data on temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, and wind have been collected since the 1930s by standardized weather stations. More recently, these data have been supplemented by information on soil moisture, solar radiation, evapotranspiration, and so on, gathered with in-field automated instrumentation.

Silviculture studies: Data have been collected on forest management treatments in over 100 experiments.

Genetics series: About 300 experiments comprising about 800 000 trees have been conducted. Data on the growth and development of individual trees of known seed origin or parentage are available.

Experimental plantations: Nearly 600 ha of planted forest have been under ongoing treatment since the 1920s; data are recorded in the Plantation Book.

Photographic materials: The collection includes aerial photographs dating back to 1928, several thousand documented slides, and about 25 000 negatives and prints of the forest and experiments. Time-lapse ground photographs of known and staked locations in plots are available—representative shots (camera location is different) or repetitive shots (camera location is the same).

Fire research sites: Prescribed burns have been documented for pre- and post-fire stand conditions, fire intensity and behavior, and meteorological conditions.

Project files: Descriptions, correspondence, methodology, and data from projects undertaken over the past half century have been archived. Information from completed projects are referred to as closed project files and are available for consultation.

Ecological reserves: Data have been collected from sites set apart and restricted from disturbance to allow natural succession.

Binder documents: Unpublished reports on PRF studies and other information have been maintained starting in1920.