The expanded Industry/University Cooperative Research center for Advanced Forestry Systems will link four of the top forestry research programs in the US, and will expand the current Center for Tree Genetics to build on the strengths of the research programs to create a multi-university, interdisciplinary I/UCRC that will solve industry-wide problems through multi-faceted approaches. Researchers will approach questions on multiple scales, including the molecular, cellular, individual-tree, stand, and ecosystem.
The research conducted by the center will increase the competitiveness of forest products industries and forest landowners by solving problems on multiple temporal and spatial scales and determining fundamental solutions that transcend traditional species, regional, and disciplinary boundaries.
The Center for Advanced Forestry Systems (CAFS) develops and evaluates advanced technological approaches for enhancing the management of forest tree plantations. Research conducted by CAFS increases the competitiveness of forest products industries and forest landowners by solving problems that transcend traditional species, regional, and disciplinary boundaries. At Oregon State University, we focused on genetic improvement of Douglas-fir, poplar, and eucalyptus trees. In Douglas-fir, we studied how foresters can use new climate models, soils information, and genetics to better predict which sites and trees are best for producing fast-growing plantations of trees with little stem defect. Although relationships between site productivity and site characteristics were subtle, cold season temperatures and available water capacity explained variation in test site productivity. We also developed new approaches for identifying which Douglas-fir and hemlock trees have high quality (stiff) wood, which is a desirable trait for structural wood products. In poplar and eucalyptus, we studied how genetic engineering might be used to alter plantation growth and flowering. Poplars and eucalyptus are fast growing species and models for studying plant growth, development, and genetics. We also developed genetic markers for western white pine, which will be used for breeding trees with enhanced resistance to white pine blister rust, an introduced disease pathogen.
