Research on Refining Reforestation Under Climate Change
Adapting our forests to climate change means planting more resilient trees. Since 250-300 million seedlings are planted in British Columbia every year, planting climate-resilient seed sources will improve long-term forest health and productivity.
To guide these major reforestation initiatives, this research discovers and models the adaptive capacity of tree species that are foundational to BC's forests. This work develops cutting-edge tools to assess resilience traits in trees, assesses quantitative genetics methodologies, identifies hotspots of forest maladaptation through ecological genetics experiments and data pools to guide interventions, and enhances datasets for forest resilience research.
Working with provincial end-users in forest genetics, tree breeding and growth and yield modeling, as well as academic specialists in remote sensing, plant ecophysiology, forest pathology and genomics, we work to find the most suitable seed sources for reforestation under climate change.