System and method for forest management using stand development performance as measured by leaf area index

摘要

A system and method for identifying stands or portions thereof that are not growing as expected. In one embodiment, a computer system compares a measured leaf area index of a stand that is determined from remotely sensed data to an expected leaf area index. The computer system identifies stands or portions of stands where the measured leaf area index is greater than the expected leaf area index and/or stands or portions of stands where the measured leaf area index is less than the expected leaf area index. In one embodiment, the comparison is used to identify stands or portions thereof where silviculture treatments may be necessary. In another embodiment, measured vegetation index or leaf area index values are used to manage the growth of secondary crops in a stand. VI or leaf area index values are compared with expected values to determine if silviculture treatments should be applied.