Ms Jie-Lian
Beh
PhD student
Topic: Improving fine-scale soil
mapping to support precision forest management
Australian National University
Email: jie-lian.beh@anu.edu.au
A detailed understanding of forest soils is fundamental to
precision or site-specific forest management. The difficulties
associated with soil measurement are a significant limitation to
developing quantitative models of soil variation, at scales
appropriate for precision forestry.
Existing methods of mapping soil properties have had limited
success at the fine scale.
The goal of Jie-Lian’s research project is to explore a
novel method for predicting fine-scale variation in soil
properties, using correlations between soils and easily measureable
attributes of tree growth, with particular focus on stem shape and
taper in the base of the tree.
Clarifying the nature of the relationship between the stem
profile in the base of the tree and soil parameters has several
benefits. The ability to use trees to indirectly measure soil
properties will enable more effective management and manipulation
of pruning and thinning regimes, and optimisation of plantation
re-establishment preparations and post-thinning fertilisation.
Conversely, the ability to better predict tree characteristics from
soil parameters will extend our capacity to optimise
performance.
Jie-Lian’s supervisors are:
Professor
Cris Brack, Australian National University (ANU) and Waiariki
Institute of Technology (New Zealand)
Dr Richard Greene, ANU
Professor
Peter Kanowski, ANU
Ms Jody
Bruce, CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences
My PhD studies contribute to the Monitoring and
Measuring Project (1.1) of the CRC for Forestry.
To browse other PhD projects available with the
Managing and Monitoring for Growth and Health Research
Programme, click here
