Patch Harvest
Source: PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 24–25
What it is
Patch harvest clears openings in a pole-stage or older stand, over several passes. Each opening is 0.3 to 2 stand heights across, and no opening may exceed 0.5 ha (the manual equates this to roughly 70 m across). Patches are used to:
- change the stand’s vertical structure,
- open space that speeds the height growth of established seedlings,
- create micro-habitat for natural regeneration, and coarse woody debris.
Patches can be cut in different shapes to create different shade conditions, which can shift species composition according to shade tolerance.
Eligibility
- Over 75% of the stand has reached pole stage or beyond.
- The remaining stand has an average live crown ratio of at least 30%.
- The stand is normally well rooted and windfirm, with little existing windthrow. The exception is a stand managed mainly to speed the height growth of tolerant planted seedlings.
- Keep the residual stand for as long as the management plan prescribes, until the objective is met:
- For natural regeneration, normally at least 5 years after treatment, and until the patches are adequately stocked with planted or natural seedlings.
- Other objectives may mean managing the stand much longer, with a series of incremental cuts after the first one.
Standards and assessment
| Measure | Standard |
|---|---|
| Patch size | As prescribed in the management plan; no more than 0.5 ha |
| Distribution | Spread the first patches as evenly as possible through the stand; the residual stand appears windfirm |
| Scarification | Where desirable regeneration is missing, use extraction methods that scarify the ground — up to a maximum of 2,500 prepared micro-sites/ha, evenly spread through the patch |
| Merchantable wood | Except legacy trees, snags and cavity trees, remove all merchantable wood, stage it for extraction, and/or pile it as wildlife habitat |
| Slash | Spread through the patch unless the plan prescribes another treatment |
| Damage limit | No more than 5% of crop trees damaged; damage means broken limbs and/or bark damage exposing more than 10 cm² of sapwood on a tree |
Where to place patches first: over injured trees, trees with reduced live crown ratios, less windfirm trees, and areas of advanced regeneration.
Based on the PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 24–25. Where this guide and the manual differ, the manual governs.