Episode
Chemical Thinning and Mixed-Species Forestry in the US South | Timber University #608
- Podcast
- Natural Resources University
- Published
- Sep 5, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3564
- Processing state
not_requested
Actions
POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/natural-resources-university-3422040/episodes/chemical-thinning-and-mixed-species-forestry-in-the-us-south-timber-university-608/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/natural-resources-university-3422040/chemical-thinning-and-mixed-species-forestry-in-the-us-south-timber-university-608.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.
Summary
Forest management decisions are made under biological, financial, and market conditions that can change considerably during the life of a stand. In this episode of Timber University , Dr. Adam Polinko, formerly of Mississippi State University (now at Northern Arizona University), joins us to discuss two applied research projects examining how landowners and foresters can respond to those challenges: chemical thinning in overstocked pine stands and the long-term development of mixed cherrybark oak and sweetgum plantings. Dr. Polinko's research focuses broadly on silviculture and forest stand dynamics, including how forests respond to disturbances such as thinning, harvesting, and other management interventions. The first part of the conversation examines whether chemical thinning could help landowners manage dense pine stands that can no longer be commercially thinned because of weak pulpwood markets. Dr. Polinko explains how a modified "hack-and-squirt" treatment can be used to thin a stand from below by killing smaller trees in place, opening growing space for larger trees, and accelerating a process that would otherwise occur gradually through natural self-thinning. We discuss how chemical thinning differs from conventional row thinning and why it may be particularly useful on smaller properties where logging access, tract size, or limited markets make a commercial thinning difficult. Because the work can be completed by people on foot using relatively simple equipment, it could give some landowners a practical way to place an overstocked stand back on a more productive growth trajectory. The episode also explores the risks and trade-offs of killing trees in place. The research team is examining how treatment timing affects Ips engraver beetles, southern pine beetles…