Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative(802) 656-0683femc@uvm.eduwww.uvm.edu/femc705 Spear StreetSouth BurlingtonVermont05403United States of AmericaHarvard University Harvard ForestleadDuke Forest partnerForest Research at Harvard ForestSince 1907, the Harvard Forest has served as a center for research and education in forest biology and conservation. The Forest's Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) program, established in 1988 and funded by the National Science Foundation, provides a framework for much of this activity.Forest Research at Harvard ForestBooseEmerybrowsingforest healthcontinuous forest inventory forest regenerationresearchGap Partitioning Among Maples at Harvard Forest 1986-19891986-01-011989-12-31We measured shoot architecture, photosynthesis, survival and growth by seedlings of three shade-tolerant species of maple (Acer pensylvanicum, A. rubrum, A. saccharum) in an experimental test of the gap partitioning hypothesis. Trees were felled to create a total of six cleared, elliptical canopy gaps of two sizes (8m x 12m, 75m2; 16m x 24m, 300m2). Naturally-established, undamaged, unbranched seedlings (15-30 cm tall, 10-20+ years old) of the three study species (2160 total, 720 per species) were transplanted into five plot locations (center and NW, NE, SW, and SE gap edges) within all six gaps and matching understory sites one year before gap creation. All plots were weeded regularly and spaded annually along the edges to remove above and below-ground competition. Measurements of microclimates and Non-competitive seedling responses were made over one year before and two years following gap release.This project used shade tolerant maple seedlings to test the gap partitioning hypothesis.VMC.1387.2841mySQLSipe T, Bazzaz F. 2003. Gap Partitioning Among Maples at Harvard Forest 1986-1989. Harvard Forest Data Archive: HF049. Available at: http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu:8080/exist/apps/datasets/showData.html?id=hf049/femc/data/archive/project/Harvard_Forest_Research/dataset/gap-partitioning-among-maples-harvard-forestsppSpp field in HF Gap Partitioning Tree Seedling Growth datasetSpecies field in the Harvard Forest Gap Partitioning Among Maples Tree Seedling Growth dataset (hf049-03))textD-M-YY-1