Mapping and Monitoring the Canopy Cover and Greenness of Southern Yellow Pines (Loblolly, Shortleaf, and Virginia Pines) in Central-Eastern Tennessee Using Multi-Temporal Landsat Satellite Data

Clement Akumu,Raphael Smith,Solomon Haile

doi:10.3390/f12040499

Abstract

Southern yellow pines such as loblolly, Virginia and shortleaf pines constitute forest products and contribute significantly to the economy of the United States (U.S.). However, little is understood about the temporal change in canopy cover and greenness of southern yellow pines, especially in Tennessee where they are used for timber and pulpwood. This study aims to map and monitor the canopy cover and greenness of southern yellow pines i.e., loblolly (Pinus taeda), shortleaf (Pinus echinata), and Virginia (Pinus Virginiana) pines in the years 1988, 1999 and 2016 in central-eastern Tennessee. Landsat time-series satellite data acquired in December 1988, November 1999 and February 2016 were used to map and monitor the canopy cover and greenness of loblolly, shortleaf and Virginia pines. The classification and mapping of the canopy cover of southern yellow pines were performed using a machine-learning random forest classification algorithm. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used to monitor the temporal variation in canopy greenness. In total, the canopy cover of southern yellow pines decreased by about 35% between December 1988 and February 2016. This information could be used by foresters and forest managers to support forest inventory and management.

Highlights

IntroductionIn southeastern U.S such as in Tennessee, forests and forest products contribute more than $21 billion annually to the state’s economy [1,2]
The forest sector contributes significantly to the economy of the United States (U.S.).For example, in southeastern U.S such as in Tennessee, forests and forest products contribute more than $21 billion annually to the state’s economy [1,2]
The area covered by loblolly pine canopy was around 39,507 ha (21%), Virginia pine was approximately 3942 ha (2%) and shortleaf pine was about 145,522 ha (77%) in February 2016 (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

In southeastern U.S such as in Tennessee, forests and forest products contribute more than $21 billion annually to the state’s economy [1,2]. Southern yellow pines contribute to the diversity of forest products but are commercially marketed in the U.S Southern yellow pines commonly found in southeastern U.S include loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), Virginia pine (Pinus Virginiana) and shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata). Shortleaf pine is primarily grown for sawlogs. Virginia pine is the most preferred Christmas tree species of the southern yellow pines. It is used in the stabilization of mine spoils on strip-mined sites that helps to prevent soil erosion [3]. Southern yellow pines are more valuable for timber relative to hardwood such as red maple, low-grade oaks and sweetgum

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Conclusion