Complex interactions of deer herbivory, soil chemistry, and competing vegetation explain oak-hickory forest tree regeneration in central Pennsylvania, USA

The root causes of forest tree regeneration failure are difficult to resolve, although numerous studies show ungulate herbivory, soil conditions, and competition from undesirable vegetation as likely contributors. To better understand the relative importance of each issue, we conducted a 7-year manipulative experiment to assess the interactive effects of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) herbivory, soil acidity, and competing vegetation on tree regeneration in oak-hickory forests of central Pennsylvania, USA. Outcomes depended on initial tree seedling abundance, and all three factors had significant interactions. At low initial seedling abundance, fencing resulted in the greatest increase, but all treatments had a positive effect on seedling growth and abundance. At higher initial seedling abundance, abundance failed to recover 7 years after herbicide treatment and soil pH was an important predictor. When soil pH was > 4.6 from lime application, seedling growth and abundance..., 2.1 Study area
The study area was located on portions of the Rothrock and Bald Eagle state forests in central Pennsylvania in the Ridge and Valley Physiographic Province. The study area was primarily a contiguous forest dominated by hardwood stands of red oak (Quercus rubra), chestnut oak (Q. montana), black oak (Q. velutina), and scarlet oak (Q. coccinea) at higher elevations and red oak and yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) at lower elevations. Red maple (Acer rubrum) was common in the understory and black birch (Betula nigra) was oftentimes an abundant species in early successional stands. The mean tree basal area across the study area from 2014-2021 was 22.40 m2/ha (SD = 11.97, n = 261). The most common plant community was the oak-heath association (Zimmerman et al., 2012) with an oak overstory, and an understory dominated by mountain laurel, huckleberry (Gaylussacia spp.), and blueberry (Vaccinium spp.), especially at higher elevations on dry soils. At the time of full plot e..., , # Complex interactions of deer herbivory, soil chemistry, and competing vegetation explain oak-hickory forest tree regeneration in central Pennsylvania, USA

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.z8w9ghxnk](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.z8w9ghxnk)

Summarized seedling, competing vegetation, and soil data by vegetation treatment type (lime, herbicide, fence, combination, or control). Data collected for the Deer-Forest Study in Rothrock and Bald Eagle State Forests in central, PA, USA. 

## Description of the data and file structure

This is a single Excel file with 21 columns and 262 rows (first-row headers). 

COLUMN VARIABLE Followed by description.

* STUDY_AREA: State Forest Name where plots are located (Rothrock or Bald Eagle).
* UID: Unique ID is a combination of state forest, plot, and subplot ID that denotes where data are collected. The first digit is state forest (1=Rothrock, 2=Bald Eagle), the second two digits are plot ID (01-50), and the last two digits are subplot ID (01-11).
* PL...