• Address:
  705 Spear Street
  South Burlington, Vermont 05403
  United States of America
  
  Phone: (802) 391-4135
  Email: femc@uvm.edu
  Website: www.uvm.edu/femc

The Vermont State Continuous Forest Inventory is a data collection program with a comprehensive measure of tree health, growth, and decay within Vermont state lands. It serves as a baseline data set for a variety of tree growth, landscape models, and climate predictive models. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to use this data.

• Label: Field10

• Label: Field9

• Label: Year

• Description: Year data was collected

• Storage Type: datetime

• Measurment Type: datetime
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Softwood / Hardwood

• Description: Is the material softwood or hardwood

• Storage Type: text

• Measurment Type: nominal
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Plot

• Description: Unique plot identifier

• Storage Type: int

• Measurment Type: nominal
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Notes

• Description: Observer notes

• Storage Type: text

• Measurment Type: nominal
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Middle Diameter (inches)

• Description: Middle diameter of fine woody material

• Storage Type: decimal

• Measurment Type: ratio
• Standard Unit: inch
• Precision: 0.1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Unit: inch
• Number Type: rational
• Bounds:
• Minimum: 2.9
• Maximum: 0

• Label: Location (feet)

• Description: Location along transect that fine woody was found

• Storage Type: decimal

• Measurment Type: ratio
• Standard Unit: foot
• Precision: 0.1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Unit: foot
• Number Type: rational
• Bounds:
• Minimum: 80
• Maximum: 100

• Label: Length (feet)

• Description: Length in feet of fine woody material

• Storage Type: decimal

• Measurment Type: ratio
• Standard Unit: foot
• Precision: 0.1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Unit: foot
• Number Type: rational
• Bounds:
• Minimum: 2.9
• Maximum: 0

• Label: ID Number

• Description: Unique data entry identifier

• Storage Type: int

• Measurment Type: nominal
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Decay Class

• Description: Subjective measure of decay on a scale of 1 – 5, from freshly fallen to almost dirt.

• Storage Type: int

• Measurment Type: ordinal
• Standard Unit: -1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Number Type: -1

• Label: Azimuth

• Description: Azimuth transect follows

• Storage Type: int

• Measurment Type: ratio
• Standard Unit: degree
• Precision: 1
• String Format: DD/MM/YYYY
• Unit: degree
• Number Type: rational
• Bounds:
• Minimum: 0
• Maximum: 360

• Fine Woody Material Transect: 80' - 100'
  • Method Description: Along the same transect as the coarse woody material the fine woody material is measured from 80’ to the end of the transect. Fine woody material (FWM) is defined for this study as being >0.9’ in length and 1.0” – 2.9” diameter at point of intersection. Each piece of FWM that intersects the ground tape has its location recorded, length and middle diameter measure, whether it is softwood or hardwood and its decay class is recorded. Decay class is a subjective measure of decay on a scale of 1 – 5, from freshly fallen to almost dirt.
  Instrumentation: Hypsometer (Haglof Vertex IV), 100’ steel logger’s diameter tape, 100’ fiber glass ground tape, compass, bark scribe, blue paint pen, PVC pipe, orange, blue, and pink flagging, data collection sheets, pencils, Garmin gps

• Plot Location
  • Method Description: Plots are randomly distributed within the study area and stratified by natural community type at a density of approximately 1 per 200ac

• Plot Design
  • Method Description: These are all nested plots. Plot center is marked with PVC pipe painted fluorescent orange. At the plot there are three main plots nested around the center stake. The overstory plot is 52.7’ in radius, the large sapling plot is 26.3’ in radius and the small sapling is 16.6’ in radius. To organize the data each plot is divided into 10, 36 degree sectors. At each plot the sectors are flagged out with a blue flag at 16.6’, an orange flag at 26.3’ and a pink flag at 52.7’. At each cardinal direction there are seedling plots located 26.3’ from plot center. At each of the seedling plots an orange painted PVC pipe is at plot center. From plot center a 100’ transect is established at a random azimuth and a PVC pipe is located at the end of the transect. Along this transect course woody material is measured from 0’-100’ and fine woody material is measured from 80’-100’.

• Fine Woody Material Transect - 80-100'
• Sampling Description: Along the same transect as the coarse woody material the fine woody material is measured from 80’ to the end of the transect. Fine woody material (FWM) is defined for this study as being >0.9’ in length and 1.0” – 2.9” diameter at point of intersection. Each piece of FWM that intersects the ground tape has its location recorded, length and middle diameter measure, whether it is softwood or hardwood and its decay class is recorded. Decay class is a subjective measure of decay on a scale of 1 – 5, from freshly fallen to almost dirt.
• Frequency: Each plot will be remeasured on a 7-year rotation following the original measurement protocols.

• Tools
• Sampling Description: Hypsometer (Haglof Vertex IV), 100’ steel logger’s diameter tape, 100’ fiber glass ground tape, compass, bark scribe, blue paint pen, PVC pipe, orange, blue, and pink flagging, data collection sheets, pencils, Garmin gps