A ponderosa pine natural area reveals its secrets

Monument Canyon Research Natural Area preserves an unlogged 259-hectare stand of old-growth ponderosa pine in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico. This preserve, established in 1932, is the oldest research natural area in the state. This two-tiered forest displays an old-growth density of 100 stems per hectare (Muldavin et al. 1995), with an understory thicket of stagnant saplings and poles that raises the total stand density to an average of 5,954 stems per hectare, with concentrations as high as 21,617 stems per hectare (Fig. 1).