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Achieving successful reforestation is critical to restore the growing backlog of California's fire damaged forests. Recommended practices have been developed as a result of 50 years of concentrated effort to improve reforestation success and reduce costs under the difficult conditions present in most of California.
Reforestation is a complex, multi-year process involving a sequence of seed collection, soil preparation, planting, and seedling maintenance. Because reforesting burned forestland depends on natural precipitation and not costly irrigation systems, proper planning and implementation of these time-sensitive steps are required.
To successful reforest an area, planning should begin as soon as stand mortality occurs. Careful evaluation of each site and availability of locally adapted native seeds must be identified. If seeds are available, then foresters can prescribe treatments for the site and the identify quantity of seedlings of each species needed. Over the next two years, the forester may then plan and implement site preparation, plant nursery grown seedlings, and arrange follow-up treatments as needed. Careful control of competing vegetation results in the retention of sufficient soil moisture for excellent seedling survival rates, even on very dry sites during prolonged droughts, when high quality, locally adapted native seedlings are planted properly. Reforestation without proper planning and implementation of each time-critical reforestation step will result in a waste of money, time, and valuable conifer seed.
The University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR) publications office has released a new book, “Reforestation Practices for Conifers in California”. This manual presents a planning process, with a detailed explanation of the options at each step to provide landowners and managers with the why, where, who, when, what, and how of getting sustainable forests back into California's diverse landscape. Significant lessons have been learned since the last reforestation manual for California was published in 1971. The 16 co-authors of this new book present the best practices gleaned from their combined experience of planting over 100 million conifer seedlings on hundreds of thousands of acres of public and private land in the state. Funding for the preparation of this book was provided by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Vegetation Management Conference, and private donors.
California Reforestation Manual
| Chapter 1 | Reforesting California Herb Baldwin, William Stewart, Sari Sommarstrom |
| Chapter 2 | Investing in Reforestation William Stewart, Richard Standiford, Susie Kocher, Jeff Webster |
| Chapter 3 | Planning a Reforestation Project Jeff Webster, Ed Fredrickson, Bob Rynearson |
| Chapter 4 | Site Assessment Jeff Webster, Ed Fredrickson, Bob Rynearson |
| Chapter 5 | Seeds Teri Griffis, Laurie Lippitt |
| Chapter 6 | Seedlings Thomas Jopson, Mark Gray |
| Chapter 7 | Site Preparation Mark Gray, Jeff Webster |
| Chapter 8 | Vegetation Management Ed Fredrickson, Mark Gray |
| Chapter 9 | Planting Bob Rynearson |
| Chapter 10 | Precommercial Thinning in CA Forests Martin Ritchie, John-Pascal Berrill |
| Chapter 11 | Damage Don Owen, Greg Giusti |
| Chapter 12 | Reforestation of Area Burned by Large Wildfires Mark Gray |
Reforestation Webinars
Cone and Seed Harvesting
Cone Collection Workshop Vocabulary
California Tree Seed Zones
Cone Seed Insects
Cone Crop Survey Form
Cone Cutting Test
Seedling Availability
How to Obtain Seedlings in CA- NRCS
UCCE Forest Factsheet Planting Guide
Aspen Restoration
Aquatic Ecosystem Response to Timber Harvesting for the Purpose of Restoring Aspen
Oak Restoration
McCreary 2009 Regenerating Rangeland Oaks in California
Kraetsch 2002 Oak Restoration in Walnut Creek
Anderson 2010 Procedures for Planting Fully Sheltered Acorns
Harris 2013 Placer County Conservation Plan Oak Woodland Restoration Potential
Harris 2013 Placer County Conservation Plan Appendix
Reforestation Pests
Diseases of Conifer Regeneration, Tom Smith, CAL FIRE, 2018 Workshop
Diseases of Conifer Regeneration, Beverly Bulaon, US Forest Service R5
Reforestation after Disaster
What to Replant after the Trees Die
Forest Mortality and Regeneration - Life After Death, Dr. Jodi Axelson/Susie Kocher, UC Berkeley, 2017 Workshop
Tree Mortality in the Sierra Nevada, Susie Kocher, UC Cooperative Extension, 2018 Workshop
Reforestation at the Landscape Scale Involving Multiple Landowners, Richard Harris, NorCal SAF, 2018 Workshop
Tree Hazard Awareness for Forest Workers, Brian Mattos, CAL FIRE, 2018 Workshop
Reforestation Basics, Mark Egbert, El Dorado County Resource Conservation District, 2018 Workshop
Controlling Seedling & Resprouting Brush, Guy Anderson, CAL FIRE, 2018 Workshop
Selection of Nursery stock (Tuolumne County) , Dorus Van Goidsenhoven, CAL FIRE, 2017 Workshop
Funding
California Forest Improvement Program, Zsolt Katay, CAL FIRE
CAL FIRE's California Forest Improvement Program , Mary Huggins, CAL FIRE, 2018 Workshop
NRCS Forestry Environmental Quality Incentive Program, Chris Zimney, Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2018 Workshop