Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative(802) 656-0683femc@uvm.eduwww.uvm.edu/femc705 Spear StreetSouth BurlingtonVermont05403United States of AmericaAppalachian Mountain Club leadComparing performance of low-cost dendrometers to traditional dendrometers in tracking tree growth in a changing climateThe northeastern United States is experiencing some of the greatest shifts in climate in the US, with warming winters, increased frequency of extreme precipitation events, and severe droughts. For instance, annual mean temperatures across the northeast have risen ~1.7 °F since the 1930s. Currently, we are lacking adequate information to connect potential montane tree growth and productivity trends across the broader context of the Northern Appalachian region, which is critical to understand adaptation under future climate scenarios. Broad-scale study of tree growth is limited in feasibility due to the cost-restrictive dendrometer instruments (devices that measure the radial, or outward growth of tree stems) required to reliably measure these characteristics. In this project, we captured variation in tree radial growth as measured by traditional and low-cost dendrometers across climate and edaphic gradients linked to elevation, and between different age classes of trees and tree species within Tuckerman’s Ravine (White Mountain National Forest) in New Hampshire. Our project provided valuable comparative data for the performance of traditional point dendrometers, priced at approximately $400 (Ecomatik, Germany), to the performance of low-cost point dendrometers, priced at approximately $100 (TOMST, Czechia), to determine the accuracy of low-cost dendrometers for the study of tree growth dynamics.Comparing performance of low-cost dendrometers to traditional dendrometers in tracking tree growth in a changing climateTourvilleJordonLinemanBraedonMurray Georgia dendrometerstree growthnorthern forestRaw Dendrometer Data2023-10-01Dendrometer readings and temperature data from each unit on each tree at each site.Z1817_4027_I66DT2VMC.1817.4027mySQL/femc/data/archive/project/comparing-performance-of-low-cost-dendrometers-to-traditional-dendrometers-in-tracking-tree-growth-in-a-changing-climate-/dataset/raw-dendrometer-databaselinebaselineInitial tree radial displacement of dendrometer sensordecimaldatedateDay of measurement dateM/D/YYYYdiffdiffMean daily difference between measured tree radial displacement and baseline displacement for individual dendrometer sensorsdecimalelevationelevationSite elevation (m above sea level)intididSensor unique identifier textinit_diaminit_diamInitial measured diameter of study treedecimalmean_valuemean_valueDaily mean value of measured radial displacement of dendrometer sensor decimalsd_valuesd_valuestandard deviation of daily radial displacement decimalsensor_typesensor_typeDendrometer sensor type used (Ecomatik vs. TOMST)textsize_classsize_classSize class of tree: small (less than 15 cm dbh), large (more than 15 cm dbh) or krummholz (treeline position)textspeciesspeciesSpecies of study tree: ACSA = sugar maple; ABBA = balsam firtexttemperaturetemperatureDaily mean temperature recorded by TOMST devicedecimaltreetreeUnique tree idtextun_idun_idShortened sensor unique identifier text