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Through respiration and photosynthesis, terrestrial soils and plants control 1/6 of all carbon present in the atmosphere. Results from more than 100,000 individual measurements of forest soil respiration, conducted at the Harvard Forest by scientists from 8 institutions over 22 years, casts new light on how carbon cycles through these complex plant and soil systems. The research team

A brief synthesis of large, old tree dynamics, recently published by the journal Conservation Letters, shows that despite concerns of widespread declines of large trees, forest research from the USA, Sweden, European Union, and the tropics reveal that large trees have actually increased in many of the world’s forests in recent decades. The author of the article, Harvard

What makes land conservation succeed in New England?

A new study by Harvard Forest collaborators Bill Labich (from Highstead) and Sydne Record, recently published in the Journal of Forestry, evaluates how regional conservation partnerships (RCPs) protect land from development, and points to the critical role the lead partner organization plays in how quickly conservation can

A new Harvard Forest study released today in Global Change Biology provides the first detailed account of how carbon, water, and energy balances shift in the years following a clearcut of a broadleaf temperate forest.

Results show a steady loss of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from the clearcut area, primarily from exposed soils and decaying wood. The cleared area