Current Research

• Plant community and tree regeneration under variable retention harvests in red pine
• Long-term effects of prescribed fire on soils, fuels, vegetaton, and productivity of red pine forests
• Global study of forest influence on plant and beetle communities in harvest areas
• Using fire, harvest, and mechical treatments to restore barrens, savannahs, woodlands, and forests of northern dry pine forests
• Cutting methods in old and second-growth northern hardwoods
• Role of group or harvest gap size on tree regeneration and plant communities
• Role of microtopography in northern hardwood tree growth, regeneration, and diversity
• Seedbank potential for restoration and adaptation of forest ecosystems

Research Interests

• Short and long term influence of conventional and ecological forestry approaches on forest structure and composition
• Functional diversity of understory plant communities response to silvicultural treatments
• Adaptive silviculture for changing conditions

Why This Research is Important

Long term perspectives on a variety of approaches to forest management are exceptionally important as environmental conditions and societal values continue to change. My work focuses on ecological underpinnings of plant community dynamics in managed forests both at present and retrospectively over past decades. Analysis of past work provides a rare insight into long term trends and responses that cannot be detected in a short term study or even during one's career! In light of this, I have the fortunate opportunity to study decades of silvicultural research from earlier scientists to evaluate impacts on complex issues such as forest sustainability and ecosystem integrity. These research results will provide information and tools to adapt silvicultural systems to the changing needs of the future.

Education

• University of Minnesota, Ph.D. Natural Resource Science and Management 2011
• University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, M.S. Natural Resources 2000
• University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, B.S. Biology 1997

Professional Organizations

• Arbeitsgemeinschaft Naturgemäße Waldwirtschaft, Honorary Member (2014 - Current)
• Ecological Society of America, Member (2014 - Current)
• Prosilva, Germany (2014 - Current)
• Certified Silviculturist, Usda Fs Eastern Region (2006 - Current)
• Society of American Foresters, Member (2001 - Current)
• Forest Guild (2015 - )

Awards & Recognition

Featured Publications & Products

• Kern, Christel C.; Burton, Julia I.; Raymond, Patricia; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Keeton, William S.; Royo, Alex; Walters, Michael B.; Webster, Christopher R.; Willis, John L. 2017. Challenges facing gap-based silviculture and possible solutions for mesic northern forests in North America.
• Kern, Christel; Erdmann, Gus; Kenefic, Laura; Palik, Brian; Strong, Terry. 2014. Development of the selection system in northern hardwood forests of the Lake States: an 80-year silviculture research legacy.
• Kern, Christel C.; D’Amato, Anthony W.; Strong, Terry F. 2013. Diversifying the composition and structure of managed late-successional forests with harvest gaps: What is the optimal gap size.
• Kern, Cristel C.; Reich, Peter B.; Montgomery, Rebecca A.; Strong, Terry F. 2012. Do deer and shrubs override canopy gap size effects on growth and survival of yellow birch, northern red oak, eastern white pine, and eastern hemlock seedlings.
• Kern, Christel C.; Montgomery, Rebecca A.; Reich, Peter B.; Strong, Terry F. 2014. Harvest-created canopy gaps increase species and functional trait diversity of the forest ground-layer community.
• Kern, Christel C.; Montgomery, Rebecca A.; Reich, Peter B.; Strong, Terry F. 2013. Canopy gap size influences niche partitioning of the ground-layer plant community in a northern temperate forest.

Publications

• Quigley, K.M. ; Wildt, R.E. ; Sturtevant, B.R. ; Kolka, R.K. ; Dickinson, M.B. ; Kern, C.C. ; Donner, D.M. ; Miesel, J.R. . 2019. Fuels, vegetation, and prescribed fire dynamics influence ash production and characteristics in a diverse landscape under active pine barrens restoration.
• Kern, Christel C.; Schwarzmann, John ; Kabrick, John ; Gerndt, Kathryn ; Boyden, Suzanne ; Stanovick, John S. 2019. Mounds facilitate regeneration of light-seeded and browse-sensitive tree species after moderate-severity wind disturbance.
• Kubiske, Mark ; Woodall, Christopher ; Kern, Christel C. 2018. Increasing Atmospheric CO2 Concentration Stand Development in Trembling Aspen Forests: Are Outdated Density Management Guidelines in Need of Revision for All Species.
• James, Joshua A.; Kern, Christel C.; Miesel, Jessica R. 2018. Legacy effects of prescribed fire season and frequency on soil properties in a Pinus resinosa forest in northern Minnesota.
• Scherer, Sawyer S.; Kern, Christel C.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Palik, Brian J.; Russell, Matthew R. 2018. Long-term pine regeneration, shrub layer dynamics, and understory community composition responses to repeated prescribed fire in Pinus resinosa forests.
• Webster, Christopher R.; Dickinson, Yvette L.; Burton, Julia I; Frelich, Lee E.; Jenkins, Michael A.; Kern, Christel C.; Raymond, Patricia ; Saunders, Michael R.; Walters, Michael B.; Willis, John L. 2018. Promoting and maintaining diversity in contemporary hardwood forests: Confronting contemporary drivers of change and the loss of ecological memory.
• Hupperts, Stefan ; Dickinson, Yvette ; Webster, Christopher ; Kern, Christel C. 2018. Promoting structural and species diversity in Great Lakes northern hardwoods: a conceptual model and its application.
• Fahey, Robert T.; Alveshere, Brandon C.; Burton, Julia I; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Dickinson, Yvette L.; Keeton, William S.; Kern, Christel C.; Larson, Andrew J.; Palik, Brian J.; Puettmann, Klaus J.; Saunders, Michael R.; Webster, Christopher R.; Atkins, Jeff W.; Gough, Christopher M.; Hardiman, Brady S. 2018. Shifting conceptions of complexity in forest management and silviculture.
• McWilliams, William H.; Westfall, James A.; Brose, Patrick H.; Dey, Daniel C.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Dickinson, Yvette L.; Fajvan, Mary Ann; Kenefic, Laura S.; Kern, Christel C.; Laustsen, Kenneth M.; Lehman, Shawn L.; Morin, Randall S.; Ristau, Todd E.; Royo, Alejandro A.; Stoltman, Andrew M.; Stout, Susan L. 2018. Subcontinental-scale patterns of large-ungulate herbivory and synoptic review of restoration management implications for midwestern and northeastern forests.
• Wilcox, Kevin R.; Tredennick, Andrew T.; Koerner, Sally E.; Grman, Emily; Hallett, Lauren M.; Avolio, Meghan L.; La Pierre, Kimberly J.; Houseman, Gregory R.; Isbell, Forest; Johnson, David Samuel; Alatalo, Juha M.; Baldwin, Andrew H.; Bork, Edward W.; Boughton, Elizabeth H.; Bowman, William D.; Britton, Andrea J.; Cahill, James F.; Collins, Scott L.; Du, Guozhen; Eskelinen, Anu; Gough, Laura; Jentsch, Anke; Kern, Christel; Klanderud, Kari; Knapp, Alan K.; Kreyling, Juergen; Luo, Yiqi; McLaren, Jennie R.; Megonigal, Patrick; Onipchenko, Vladimir; Prevéy, Janet; Price, Jodi N.; Robinson, Clare H.; Sala, Osvaldo E.; Smith, Melinda D.; Soudzilovskaia, Nadejda A.; Souza, Lara; Tilman, David; White, Shannon R.; Xu, Zhuwen; Yahdjian, Laura; Yu, Qiang; Zhang, Pengfei; Zhang, Yunhai; Gurevitch, Jessica. 2017. Asynchrony among local communities stabilises ecosystem function of metacommunities.
• Gleason, Kelly E.; Bradford, John B.; Bottero, Alessandra; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Fraver, Shawn; Palik, Brian J.; Battaglia, Michael A.; Iverson, Louis; Kenefic, Laura; Kern, Christel C. 2017. Competition amplifies drought stress in forests across broad climatic and compositional gradients.
• Roberts, Margaret W.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Kern, Christel C.; Palik, Brian J. 2017. Effects of variable retention harvesting on natural tree regeneration in Pinus resinosa (red pine) forests.
• Kern, Christel C.; Schoelch, Manfred; Crocker, Paul; Fellman, Dean; Marsh, Angela; Mausel, Dave; Pecore, Marshall; Phillippi, Joseph; Waukau, Ronald; Waupochick, Anthony. 2017. Group opening outcomes, sustainable forest management, and the Menominee Nation lands.
• Curzon, Miranda ; Baker, Susan ; Kern, Christel ; Palik, Brian ; D'Amato, Anthony . 2017. Influence of Mature Overstory Trees on Adjacent 12-Year Regeneration and the Woody Understory: Aggregated Retention versus Intact Forest.
• Bottero, Alessandra ; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Palik, Brian J.; Kern, Christel C.; Bradford, John B.; Scherer, Sawyer S. 2017. Influence of Repeated Prescribed Fire on Tree Growth and Mortality in Pinus resinosa Forests, Northern Minnesota.
• Kabrick, John M.; Clark, Kenneth L.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Dey, Daniel C.; Kenefic, Laura S.; Kern, Christel C.; Knapp, Benjamin O.; MacLean, David A.; Raymond, Patricia; Waskiewicz, Justin D. 2017. Managing hardwood-softwood mixtures for future forests in eastern North America: assessing suitability to projected climate change.
• Young, Brian D.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Kern, Christel C.; Kastendick, Douglas N.; Palik, Brian J. 2017. Seven decades of change in forest structure and composition in Pinus resinosa forests in northern Minnesota, USA: Comparing managed and unmanaged conditions.
• Baker, Susan C.; Halpern, Charles B.; Wardlaw, Timothy J.; Kern, Christel; Edgar, Graham J.; Thomson, Russell J.; Bigley, Richard E.; Franklin, Jerry F.; Gandhi, Kamal J. K.; Gustafsson, Lena; Johnson, Samuel; Palik, Brian J.; Spies, Thomas A.; Steel, E. Ashley; Weslien, Jan; Strengbom, Joachim. 2016. A cross-continental comparison of plant and beetle responses to retention of forest patches during timber harvest.
• Scherer, Sawyer S.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Kern, Christel C.; Palik, Brian J.; Russell, Matthew B. 2016. Long-term impacts of prescribed fire on stand structure, growth, mortality, and individual tree vigor in Pinus resinosa forests.
• Roberts, Margaret W.; D'Amato, Anthony W.; Kern, Christel C.; Palik, Brian J.; Marini, Lorenzo. 2016. Long-term impacts of variable retention harvesting on ground-layer plant communities in Pinus resinosa forests.
• Kern, Christel C.; Kenefic, Laura S.; Stout, Susan L. 2015. Bridging the Gender Gap: The demographics of scientists in the USDA Forest Service and academia.
• Kenefic, Laura S.; Kern, Christel C. 2015. Early northern hardwood silvicultural research at the Dukes Experimental Forest, Michigan.
• Kenefic, Laura S.; Kern, Christel C.; Brissette, John; Russell, Matthew; Irland, Lloyd; Weiskittel, Aaron; Berven, Kate. 2013. Suggestions for maintaining records for long-term field studies. A supplement to papers by Berven et al. and Kenefic and Kern (this volume).
• Kenefic, Laura S.; Kern, Christel C. 2013. The remarkable story of the partial cutting study at the Dukes Experimental Forest.
• Ostry, M.E.; Moore, M.J.; Kern, C.C.; Venette, R.C.; Palik, B.J. 2012. Multiple diseases impact survival of pine species planted in red spine stands harvested in spatially variable retention patterns.
• Kern, Christel C. 2012. Values and limitations of applied science in the real world book review.
• D'Amato, Anthony W.; Palik, Brian J.; Kern, Christel C. 2010. Growth, yield, and structure of extended rotation Pinus resinosa stands in Minnesota, USA.
• Kern, Cristel C.; Palik, Brian J.; Strong, Terry F. 2006. Ground-layer plant community responses to even-age and uneven-age silvicultural treatments in Wisconsin northern hardwood forests.
• Lugo, Ariel D.; Swanson, Frederick J.; González, Olga Ramos; Adams, Mary Beth; Palik, Brian; Thill, Ronald E.; Brockway, Dale G.; Kern, Christel; Woodsmith, Richard; Musselman, Robert. 2006. Long-term research at the USDA Forest Service's experimental forests and ranges..
• Palik, Brian J.; Batzer, Darold P.; Kern, Christel. 2005. Upland Forest Linkages to Seasonal Wetlands: Litter Flux, Processing, and Food Quality.
• Palik, Brian J.; Kern, Christel C.; Mitchell, Robert; Pecot, Stephen. 2005. Using spatially variable overstory retention to restore structural and compositional complexity in pine ecosystems.
• Coleman, Mark D.; Kern, Christel C. 2004. Carbon allocation and nitrogen acquisition in a developing Populus deltoides plantation.
• Coleman, Mark D.; Kern, Christel C. 2004. Carbon allocation and nitrogen acquisition in a developing Populus deltoides plantation.
• Kern, Christel C.; Friend, Alexander L.; Johnson, Jane M.; Coleman, Mark D. 2004. Fine root dynamics in a developing Populus deltoides plantation.
• Kern, Christel C.; Johnson, Jane M.-F.; Coleman, Mark D. 2004. Fine root dynamics in a developing Populus deltoides plantation.
• Harrington, Constance A.; Kern, Christel C. 2002. Will Garry oak respond to release from overtopping conifers.

Research Highlights

Highlight	Title	Year
NRS-2016-84	Hardwood-Softwood Mixtures for Future Forests in Eastern North America: Assessing Suitability to Projected Climate Change Despite growing interest in management strategies for climate change adaptation, there are few methods for assessing the ability of stands to en ...	2016
NRS-2017-36	Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration alters forest stand development, so do management guidelines need revision? A decade ago, increased atmospheric carbon dioxide was at the heart of the Aspen Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment Experiment. Forest Service r ...	2017
NRS-2017-14	Tribal forestry and western science come together to sustain forests for future generations The Menominee Nation uses available science, local field testing, and professional experience to formulate an adaptive approach within their way ...	2017