Ashland RNA

Ashland Research Natural Area (RNA) was established to represent dry ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa)-Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) forest found in the Siskiyou Mountains of Southern Oregon.  The RNA lies on intrusive granitoid rocks and has steep to very steep slopes with many spur ridges and subdrainages. Ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana), white fir (Abies grandis) and Pacific madrone (Arbutus menziesii) are the dominant tree species throughout the RNA. Bigleaf maple (Acer macrophyllum), white alder (Alnus rhombifolia), Pacific yew (Taxus brevifolia), and vine maple (Acer circinatum) are common along riparian areas.  Frequent fires are important to maintaining ecological conditions within the RNA and both thinning and prescribed fire is being used to restore these processes after more than a century of fire suppression.