Master’s Examination Committee:

Using historical and contemporary data, we examined the changes in species composition and structure, and patterns of development of an old-growth and a second-growth beech-maple stand located at Crall Woods, a 37.4-hectare tract of forest land located in Ashland County, Ohio. We used data collected in 1964 by John Aughanbaugh, as well as data collected in 2006 from seven plots in the old-growth stand and two plots in the second-growth stand. During both years, all stems ≥ 30 cm diameter at breast height (d.b.h.) in the old-growth stand and all stems ≥ 10 cm d.b.h. in the second-growth stand were sampled. Species, d.b.h., and crown class of all individuals were recorded. We calculated relative basal areas, relative densities, Importance Values, diameter distributions, and age distributions for all major species in both stands using the 1964 and 2006 data sets. We found that there were changes in species composition and stand structure in both stands over the 42-year period. Overall, the species composition in the old-growth stand remained dominated by shade-tolerant species (sugar maple and American beech), whereas the second-growth stand experienced an increase in shade