Information Report Western Forest Products Laboratory

Information about the biology, ecology, and management of quaking aspen on the mountains and plateaus of the interior western United States, and to a lesser extent, Canada, is summarized and discussed. The biology of aspen as a tree species, community relationships in the aspen ecosystem, environments, and factors affecting aspen forests are reviewed. The resources available within and from the aspen forest type, and their past and potential uses are examined. Silvicultural methods and other approaches to managing aspen for various resources and uses are presented.

Forests in the United States contain a significant amount of small-diameter and underutilized material. These overstocked stands not only increase the risk of insect, disease, fire, and drought damage, but also are costly to remove. Finding economical and marketable uses for small-diameter and underutilized material would alleviate these problems while improving watershed health and providing economic opportunities for local communities to help offset forest management costs. An extensive research program at the Forest Products Laboratory of the USDA Forest Service is focused on searching for economical and marketable uses for small-diameter material. The projects described in this report range from conserving timber through improving sawing technology to developing businesses for using small-diameter material.