Seed Tree Harvest
Source: PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 28–29
What it is
Seed tree harvest changes a stand’s stocking, species composition and vertical structure. It opens crown space so natural regeneration can establish, while leaving trees of the desired species standing as a seed source.
Eligibility
- The stand holds at least 20 m²/ha of desired species: eastern hemlock, red spruce, white spruce, black spruce, white pine, white ash, red oak, yellow birch, sugar maple, red maple.
- 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.
- Goal: build vertical structure and provide seed of the desired species for natural regeneration.
Standards and assessment
| Measure | Standard |
|---|---|
| Residual basal area | An average of at least 8 m² (the manual gives no area unit; per hectare is the usual reading) |
| Windfirmness | Residual trees appear windfirm |
| Distribution | Spread the first cuts, and the seed trees left, as evenly as possible through the stand |
| Damage | Minimize damage to the residual stand; damage means broken limbs and/or bark damage exposing more than 10 cm² of sapwood on a tree |
| Ground conditions | Don’t harvest or extract when conditions would cause rutting or damage residual trees (see Soil Compaction) |
Doing it in a single pass
When the harvest is done in one pass over existing advanced regeneration:
- Regeneration: live crown ratio of at least 50%, stocked at or above the full-planting level for the desirable species present.
- Canopy trees kept: must be windfirm. Their density can be adjusted to give the regeneration the right light.
- Machine strips: wide enough that the machine can drive and stack wood inside them, instead of leaving processed wood on top of the regeneration.
- Leave strips: width set by the reach of the equipment used.
Based on the PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 28–29. Where this guide and the manual differ, the manual governs.