Comments on: More on Almagre Tree 31

By: Tamino and the Magic Flute « Climate Audit

Tamino and the Magic Flute « Climate Audit — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 22:07:01 +0000

[...] but have nothing to do with CO2 fertilization or previously identified issues. We found (See here here ) that strip bark forms can result in enormous (6-7 standard deviation) growth pulses in one [...]

By: Miracles and Strip Bark Standardization « Climate Audit

Miracles and Strip Bark Standardization « Climate Audit — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 21:04:33 +0000

[...] This is exactly the situation that we hypothesized at Almagre strip bark (our Tree 31 discussed here.) Here’s a ring width plot from the prior post. The glacier-scarred tree would yield a [...]

By: Re=post of “Tamino and the Magic Flute” « Climate Audit

Re=post of “Tamino and the Magic Flute” « Climate Audit — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 02:16:17 +0000

By: jeez

jeez — Tue, 20 May 2008 20:08:03 +0000

Ahah! More evidence of [snip]!

By: Steve McIntyre

Steve McIntyre — Tue, 20 May 2008 18:40:31 +0000

I was looking to contact Craig Brunstein about his sampling at Almagre. Subsequent to our sampling last summer, he died at the young age of 56. Graybill, Lamarche and now Brunstein - all very early deaths.

By: Euell Gibbons

Euell Gibbons — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 04:25:26 +0000

Ever eat a pine tree? Many parts are edible.

By: MrPete

MrPete — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 23:23:00 +0000

(My early posting got chopped somehow. I was listing several bio/dendro related fields.)
jae, I can’t answer your question. I don’t know many dendroclimatologists myself.

By: jae

jae — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 22:23:57 +0000

Were pretty amazed by the apparent difference between levels of field observation skill considered acceptable in dendroclimatology vs other bio-related fields. Its not clear that the conclusions being drawn would pass muster in any high altitude forest ecology,

Do most “dendroclimatologists” have a real expertise in dendrology?

By: MrPete

MrPete — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 20:03:55 +0000

Our snows don’t hold a candle to the Sierras… I’ll never forget learning about 50 foot deep snow, about nordic ski cabins that have second, even third story doors to the outside, etc etc…

the way such large volumes of snow come and go in short amounts of time I know our breathren along the Front Range are also quite used to this

But yes, I agree with the bottom line: our snow pack comes and goes. Rather unpredictable. Curious how to correlate “strange” snowfall with mountaintop tree growth. It’s tough enough predicting runoff for our precious reservoirs!

Adding to a previous list above:

(Case 1. Soil freezes before snow cover is thick enough to insulate the soil. // spring runoff lost due to frozen soil // growth only from released soil moisture; tree in danger of drought damage )

(Case 2. Soil does not freeze before snow cover is deep enough to insulate the soil. // spring runoff provides water for growth )

Case 3. Freezing rain/sleet creates thick ice layer, followed by snow. Partial melt throughout winter.

Case 4. Repeated freeze/melt cycles with light snows throughout winter. Heavy spring snow followed by rapid melt.

Case 5. Dry cold winter leaves ground bare but frozen. Spring thaw interrupted by occasional 1-2 foot snows. Spring snows typically melt to bare ground in 24 hours..

By: SteveSadlov

SteveSadlov — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 19:19:53 +0000

RE: #39 – My own experience in the Western US has been that in most years, there are heavy snows after the soil has begun to thaw. April and May are commonly beset by these late storms, in a few cases even early June. It has also been my experience that having the soil freeze prior to a snow pack getting started is rare. Tellingly, the (July 1 – June 30) precip years which are prone to either soil freezing prior to snow pack, or, soil thawing after the pack is gone in spring, tend to be years of drought. Years with ample moisture tend to have snow pack well prior to the soil freezing, and, a late renewal of the pack after it has begun to thaw. (Probably more amazing than the massive amounts of snow that make fodder for photos in places like Truckee is the way such large volumes of snow come and go in short amounts of time … I know our breathren along the Front Range are also quite used to this …)