Wood stakes will be installed on the Good Creek watershed (Flathead National Forest) as part of a study designed to evaluate the effects of different timber harvesting intensities on the restoration of old-growth forest characteristics in subalpine (Abies lasiocarpa)/Douglas-fir stands. Three harvest treatment will be studied: 1) heavy overstory removal, 2) moderate overstory removal, and 3) no overstory removal. Two microplots will be established around soil moisture and temperature data collectors in each treatment plot.

Mineral soil - twenty-five stakes (2.5 x 2.5 x 30 cm) of loblolly pine and aspen will be installed in the mineral soil at each microplot – for a total of 600 stakes (25 stakes x 2 species x 3 treatment plots x 2 microplots x 2 replicates). Five stakes of each species will be removed from each microplot every six months.

Litter layer (forest floor) - fifty wood stakes (2.5 x 2.5 x 15 cm) of each tree species will be installed at each microplot - 25 stakes at the forest floor/mineral soil interface, and 25 stakes placed on the litter layer surface for a total of 1200 stakes (25 stakes x 2 species x 3 treatment plots x 2 microplots x 2 litter layer locations x 2 replicates). Temperatures will be measured at the mineral soil/litter interface and at the soil surface.

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