Seasonal Climate Forecast Nov. 2023 – Jan. 2024 Issued: October 19, 2023
Posted on 11/18/2023 8:26:08 AM PST by ProtectOurFreedom
Iconic red cedars — known as the “Tree of Life” — in the Pacific Northwest have been dying because of climate-induced drought. Deep inside a forest in Oregon’s Willamette Valley stands a dead “Tree of Life.” Its foliage, normally soft and green, is tough and brown or missing altogether. Nonetheless, the tree’s reddish bark, swooping branches and thick, conical base identify it as the Pacific Northwest’s iconic western red cedar.
The rings become thinner over time, indicating the tree’s growth slowed before the tree finally died, a sign that this red cedar died from drought. “That’s why it’s the canary,” says Buhl. “Any tree that’s less drought tolerant is going to be the canary in the coal mine. They’re going to start bailing (out).”
For thousands of years, people have used red cedar to make everything from canoes to clothing. Red cedar’s many uses have earned the species endearing names, including the “Tree of Life.” More recently, scientists have started calling this water-loving relative of redwoods by a less flattering name: “the climate canary.”
Last year, Buhl and colleagues reported that red cedars were dying throughout the tree's growing range not because of a fungus or insect attack, but due to the region's "climate change-induced drought." In recent years, at least 15 native Pacific Northwest tree species have experienced growth declines and die-offs, 10 of which have been linked to drought and warming temperatures, according to recent studies and reports.
Many researchers, Buhl included, are now arguing that these drought-driven die-offs are the beginning of a much larger and long-predicted shift in tree growing ranges due to climate change.
Daniel DePinte, Forest Service aerial survey program manager, suspects range changes are driving “Firmageddon". “The forests are moving uphill,” said DePinte.
(Excerpt) Read more at opb.org ...
Small young trees don’t do well next to giants as they are constantly shaded and nutrient-starved by the Big Guy.
Healthy forests have trees spaced out 30 to 50 ft apart and no understory growth.
Unhealthy forests are packed with closely-spaced trees and choked out with heavy understory growth.
The forestry people in Idaho are constantly thinning out the trees and removing the understory.
We did a wonderful tour to Glacier National Park a year ago and took a boat tour of Lake McDonald. The young man who narrated the tour was incredibly intelligent and talked a lot about the devasting “Howe Ridge Fire on the lake. It was ignited by a thunderstorm on the evening of August 11, 2018 and burned 15,000 acres.
What always strikes you about these events is the succession forests that grow back. The species that burned does not grow back, but other species that are more suitable to the now-open landscape which gets different amounts of sun and water as well as different minerals resulting from the fire ash.
Forest species succession has been around forever.
Seasonal Climate Forecast Nov. 2023 – Jan. 2024 Issued: October 19, 2023
Doug fir is a great source of lumber in older trees. Straight, vertical grain fir is beautiful. But, that’s not a commercially viable product. It has to be sourced from old growth timber or recycled wood.
The author forgot to mention that part of the reason for less rain in 2022-2023 has been colder than normal temperatures.
In Seattle, we had near record low average temps in Feb-Mar-Apr.
October and November have also been cooler than average.
For those five months, we have had near record cold Pacific Ocean water pressed against our shore line, which disrupts our normal rain making weather systems.
My point...
Global warming?
Nope. More like global cooling.
The drought in Seattle is moderate.
About 20% below normal for 2023.
And, slightly above average since October, which is the start of our rainy season.
Our house was built 30 years ago and whoever built it planted four stands of way too many tightly packed fir, spruce, and Ponderosa Pine trees. Today, there are evident health problems (exacerbated by drought).
A later owner planted a dogwood and two firs very close to the house (like 1 to 2 feet from the foundation). In our five years here, they have grown about about a foot per year and had reached 10 - 20 feet in height. I cut them down in July this year.
It’s astonishing how even “professional” landscapers don’t understand trees.
Yup.
All the crap the weather geo engineers use to seed the clouds isn’t good for the soil water trees or any life form either.
Douglas Fir is a ratty little weed, IMO, until i gets to be over 60 feet tall, and that doesn’t come close to happening in modern silviculture. There’s some forest land, well, everywhere, here, but the spot I’m thinking of is on Highway 42 in Oregon. It was planted sometime in the ‘80s, I think. When last harvested, I noticed they’d left a “log” laying over the stump of a tree that had been harvested a couple of cycles ago. It may have been from virgin forest first cut in the ‘20s or ‘30s. The new tree looked like a wilted carrot laying across that stump.
No, poor forestry management is…
Weyhauser was not available for comment.
Old growth forests are best either managed selectively cut or clear cut and replanted.
The damage those things have done to the forest is Arizona is unreal.
Total nonsense. I live in the middle of those fir forests, and I’m here to tell you that there is no climate change going on.
I keep records of temperature and precipitation in my yard, and there have been only minor variations in the past ten years. There are certainly no trees dying from drought.
OFFS! Fidiots. You know what doesn’t care about their proclamations? The climate doesn’t care.
Periodic droughts are very very normal and have nothing to do with the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Oh just STFU! No one believes you.
Nothing like the sound of a chainsaw in the morning! Somebody’s getting a new house and deer are getting better habitat
Bark Beetle damage is all over the west. It is horrible to see. The worst I’ve seen is in the Rockies north of Denver.
-in the Pacific Northwest have been dying because of climate-induced drought.
“Tell them “the forests are dying!”
But not because of drought.
Drought is a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water. It is also when the ground water that feeds the land and, in this case, trees goes away.
Precipitation trends are changing throughout the region. In Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, recent years have seen a reduction in summer precipitation and an increase in winter and spring precipitation. More winter precipitation is now falling as rain rather than snow due to warmer temperatures. Those warmer temperatures are a 2 degree increase since 1900. So the snow pack still exists, the lakes never dry up, the streams and rivers continue to flow...where’s the drought? It’s in someone’s mind trying to con the public into glabal warming problems.
wy69
I live in Western Wa, we have record amounts of rainfall. Believe me, last year about this time I was in Port Orchard visiting grandkids and fixing the furnace. When it was time to go home, of course it was raining...it is Washington. 90 miles south where I live, the interstate was blocked off because of flooding. Of course, being a local I drove around the cones and came to my exit. I got home to my permanent winter lake of a driveway. Got my things to head back to my daughters and had to reroute, the main road was now about 18 inches of running river water.
The point is, trees are dying all around. My theory is something is being sprayed from the sky. I know people call it a conspiracy theory, but chemtrails are a real phenomenom. They are likely spraying defoliants or something to dry out vegetation. We have plenty of water, then why is the foliage on trees drying up? The grass is green on the ball fields, but a lot of evergreens look like they have given up on life. Instead of green needles, they look blackish from a short distance. It is NOT because of a 1 or 2 degree increase in overall temperature. That is silly. Something vile and corrupt is going on with government. What WOULDN’T they do to force us into a gulag? My answer is NOTHING. They would do anything for their plan.
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