Matti Sirén, Jari Ala-Ilomäki, Harri Lindeman, Jori Uusitalo, Kalle E.K. Kiilo, Aura Salmivaara, Ari Ryynänen. (2019). Soil disturbance by cut-to-length machinery on mid-grained soils. Silva Fennica vol. 53 no. 2 article id 10134. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.10134

Keywords: rut formation; soil compaction; sandy soil; silty soil; harvesting damage

Highlights: The number of machine passes, volumetric water content in the mineral soil and the depth of the organic layer were the controlling factors for rut formation; The harvester rut depth was a good predictor of the forwarder rut formation; Changes in the penetration resistance were highest at depths of 20–40 cm.

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Factors affecting soil disturbance caused by harvester and forwarder were studied on mid-grained soils in Finland. Sample plots were harvested using a one-grip harvester. The harvester operator processed the trees outside the strip roads, and the remaining residues were removed to exclude the covering effect of residues. Thereafter, a loaded forwarder made up to 5 passes over the sample plots. The average rut depth after four machine passes was positively correlated to the volumetric water content at a depth of 0–10 cm in mineral soil, as well as the thickness of the organic layer and the harvester rut depth, and negatively correlated with penetration resistance at depths of both 0–20 cm and 5–40 cm. We present 5 models to predict forwarder rut depth. Four include the cumulative mass driven over a measurement point and combinations of penetration resistance, water content and the depth of organic layer. The fifth model includes harvester rut depth and the cumulative overpassed mass and provided the best fit. Changes in the penetration resistance (PR) were highest at depths of 20–40 cm. Increase in BD and VWC decreased PR, which increased with total overdriven mass. After four to five machine passes PR values started to stabilize.

Sirén, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) c/o Aalto University, P.O. Box 15600, FI-00076 Aalto, Finland E-mail: matti.siren@luke.fi
Ala-Ilomäki, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) c/o Aalto University, P.O. Box 15600, FI-00076 Aalto, Finland http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6671-7624 E-mail: jari.ala-ilomaki@luke.fi
Lindeman, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Korkeakoulunkatu 7, FI-33720 Tampere, Finland E-mail: harri.lindeman@luke.fi
Uusitalo, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Korkeakoulunkatu 7, FI-33720 Tampere, Finland http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3793-1215 E-mail: jori.uusitalo@luke.fi
Kiilo, Versowood, Teollisuuskatu 1, FI-11130 Riihimäki, Finland E-mail: kalle.kiilo@versowood.fi
Salmivaara, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), P.O. Box 2, FI-00791 Helsinki, Finland E-mail: aura.salmivaara@luke.fi
Ryynänen, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Kaironiementie 15, FI-39700 Parkano, Finland E-mail: ari.ryynanen@luke.fi

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