Oak mast history from dendrochronology : a new technique demonstrated in the southern Appalachian region

The main objective of this research was to develop a technique for mast reconstruction using dendrochronology. During this work I collected cores from 845 individual trees from white (Quercus alba), chestnut (Q. prinus), northern red (Q. rubra), black (Q. velutina), and scarlet oaks (Q. coccinea), at 17 sites in the southern Appalachians. I identified five basic steps that are necessary for mast reconstruction. 1) Crossdate the tree-ring series; 2) Standardize the series with a flexible cubic smoothing spline; 3) Use multiple regression to remove climate; 4) Use simple linear regression between the climate residuals and a known mast record to define a regression equation; 5) Use the regression equation to reconstruct mast beyond the scope of the known mast record.