This resource update provides an overview of forest 

resources in Nebraska based on inventories conducted 

by the USDA Forest Service, Forest Inventory and 

Analysis (FIA) program of the Northern Research 

Station. For annual inventory years 2001–2013, the 

sample length was equal to 5 years. Beginning in 2014, 

the cycle length was changed to 7 years. For the 2017 

inventory, estimates for current variables such as area, 

volume, and biomass are based on 8,248 field plot 

samples (317 forested) collected from 2011–2017. 

Change variables, such as net growth, removals, and 

mortality, are based on 8,223 samples (299 forested) 

collected in 2007–2012 and resampled in 2011–2017. 

Estimates from earlier annual and periodic inventories 

are shown for comparison. See Bechtold and Patterson 

(2005), O’Connell et al. (2014), and Gormanson et al. 

(2017) for definitions and technical details.

Overview

Nebraska is home to nearly 1.5 million acres of forest 

land (Table 1). Timberland accounts for about 92 

percent of all forest land, while the remaining 8 percent 

of forest land is reserved or unproductive. The area of 

forest land, number of trees, biomass, removals, and 

net volume of live trees decreased since 2012 while 

mortality has increased. The recent increase in 

mortality is mainly attributed to severe weather events, 

fire, and insects. Disease primarily affected American 

elm and green ash while fire was the leading cause of 

mortality for ponderosa pine, eastern redcedar, and bur 

oak. Ponderosa pine in particular has been heavily 

impacted by severe wildfires. 

A complete set of inventory tables is available at 

https://doi.org/10.2737/FS-RU-155.

RESOURCE UPDATE FS-XXX

United States Department of Agriculture

RESOURCE UPDATE FS-155

Forests of Nebraska, 2017 

Forest Service May 2018

1

Forest Land 2012

Estimate

Sampling 

error

(percent)

2017

estimate

Sampling 

error

(percent)

Change 

since 2012

(percent) 

Area (thousand acres) 1,569.2 4.2 1,474.6 4.1 -6.0

Number of live trees ≥1 inch diameter (million trees) 414.3 6.6 377.5 6.7 -8.9

Net volume of live trees ≥5 inches diameter (million ft3) 2,091.3 6.6 2,062.4 6.7 -1.4

Live-tree aboveground biomass (thousand oven-dry tons) 46,527.8 6.0 46,072.1 6.1 -1.0

Net growth of live trees ≥5 inches (thousand ft3/yr) 47,821.4 19.5 16,872.7 46.4 -64.7

Annual harvest removals of live trees ≥5 inches (thousand ft3/yr) 13,728.2 48.6 8,115.0 30.8 -40.9

Annual mortality of live trees ≥5 inches (thousand ft3/yr) 41,187.0 17.3 49,449.3 15.8 20.1

Timberland

Area (thousand acres) 1,441.6 4.4 1,353.9 4.4 -6.1

Number of live trees ≥1 inch diameter (million trees) 380.6 7.0 345.1 7.2 -9.3

Net volume of live trees ≥5 inches diameter (million ft3) 1,969.4 6.9 1,934.6 7.2 -1.8

Net volume of growing-stock trees ≥5 inches diameter (million ft3) 1,019.9 10.6 877.8 11.1 -13.9

Live-tree aboveground biomass (thousand oven-dry tons) 43,570.4 6.3 42,972.2 6.5 -1.4

Net growth of growing-stock trees (thousand ft3/yr) 11,307.8 61.4 444.0 1,221.4 -96.1

Annual harvest removals of growing-stock trees (thousand ft3/yr) 7,555.9 81.5 3,881.1 48.2 -48.6

Annual mortality of growing-stock trees (thousand ft3/yr) 21,133.5 27.6 24,817.7 23.3 17.4

Table 1.—Nebraska forest statistics, 2012 and 2017. Estimates for growing-stock trees are impacted by changes in 

tree class (e.g., form) and, therefore, have comparatively higher sampling errors than estimates for all live trees. 

Sampling errors and error bars shown in this report represent 68 percent confidence intervals.
After increasing steadily since the 1980s, the area of 

forest land in Nebraska is beginning to show signs of 

decreasing area (Fig. 1). Changing land uses impact 

forest land area. Forest land gains have been offset 

by losses, thus resulting in a net decrease in total 

forest area since 2012 (Fig. 2). Most forest land area 

is associated with riparian systems. 

Hardwoods are more common in the eastern half of 

the State while ponderosa pine forests are dominant 

in the west. Hardwood forest types, such as bur oak 

and eastern cottonwood, occupy 54 percent of all 

forested lands. Softwoods, primarily the eastern 

redcedar and ponderosa pine forest types, make up 

32 percent of all forest land while the eastern 

redcedar/hardwood forest type covers 6 percent. 

Eight percent of forest land is classified as 

nonstocked. 

Eighty-nine percent, or 1.3 million acres, of forest 

land is privately owned. Fifty-four percent of private 

forest lands are occupied by hardwoods, followed by 

softwoods (38 percent) and nonstocked areas (7 

percent). Hardwoods make up half of publicly 

owned forest lands while softwoods and nonstocked

areas comprise 40 and 10 percent, respectively. 

Sixty percent of forest land is occupied by largediameter trees while most of the remaining forest 

land is comprised of medium and small-diameter 

trees, 20 and 10 percent, respectively. The top five 

forest types by acreage make up 60 percent of total 

forest land area (Fig. 3). Eastern redcedar has 

surpassed ponderosa pine as the most prevalent 

forest type in Nebraska and has the most acreage in 

the small diameter class.

Forest Area

2 

RESOURCE UPDATE FS-155

Figure 1.—Area of timberland and forest land by year, 

Nebraska.

Figure 3.—Forest land by stand-size class for the 

top five forest types by acreage, Nebraska, 2017. 

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

1955 1983 1994 2005 2010 2015 2016 2017

Area (thousand acres)

Timberland Forest land

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Forest loss Forest gain

Area (thousand acres)

Rangeland

Other

Developed

Water

Agriculture

0

50

100

150

200

250

Area (thousand acres)

Large diameter Medium diameter Small diameter

Figure 2.—Area of forest loss to other land uses, and 

gain from other land uses, Nebraska, 2012–2017.
Nebraska’s forests contain approximately 377.5 

million live trees according to the 2017 inventory, 

which is a decrease of more than 36 million trees 

compared to the estimate from the 2012 inventory. 

Green ash had the largest decrease (12.7 million) in 

number of trees followed by Ponderosa pine (8.8 

million) since the 2012 inventory. Eastern redcedar 

remains the most numerous tree species by far, 

comprising 41 percent of the total of live-tree 

resource in Nebraska, compared to 37 percent in 

2012.

The top five species (Table 2) in terms of volume are 

eastern cottonwood, bur oak, ponderosa pine, eastern 

redcedar, and green ash; they make up 73 percent of 

net volume of live trees (≥5 inches diameter at breast 

height [d.b.h.]) on forest land. Eastern cottonwood 

remains at the top for volume and biomass, 

comprising 28 percent of total net volume and 23 

percent of aboveground biomass. Eastern redcedar 

has surpassed ponderosa pine in terms of biomass 

and now ranks third. 

Eastern redcedar has the largest number of trees and 

highest rate of net growth. Eastern cottonwood has 

the greatest mortality; it is much greater than that of 

Ponderosa pine. These two species are ranked first 

and second in terms of negative net growth. Most 

eastern cottonwood deaths were weather related, 

such as drought. Ponderosa pine has the greatest rate 

of harvest removals, followed by eastern redcedar 

and eastern cottonwood, respectively. Net growth of 

green ash was also negative; the most commonly 

recorded causes of death were disease and weather.

Volume, Biomass, and Trends

3 

RESOURCE UPDATE FS-155

Common Name Latin Name Million 

treesa

Net volumeb

(million ft3)

Aboveground

biomassa

(thousand dry 

tons)

Average 

net growthb

(thousand ft3/yr)

Average 

mortalityb

(thousand 

ft3/yr)

Average 

harvest 

removalsb

(thousand ft3/yr)

Eastern redcedar

Juniperus

virginiana 155.0 221.9 5,048.3 9,624.4 1,974.0 1,817.8

Ponderosa pine

Pinus

ponderosa 45.5 259.8 4,787.7 -4,220.3 8,338.0 3,284.3

Green ash

Fraxinus

pennsylvanica 29.3 123.4 3,522.6 -714.5 4,130.7 584.6

Hackberry

Celtis

occidentalis 29.3 87.5 2,207.8 2,813.3 1,256.6 105.5

Bur oak

Quercus

macrocarpa 22.6 305.9 8,487.3 2,871.6 3,978.67 195.6

Red mulberry Morus rubra 21.2 86.5 2,526.8 3,071.2 1,144.3 287.8

American elm

Ulmus

americana 17.9 73.9 1,731.9 3,181.1 2,161.9 55.5

Eastern 

cottonwood

Populus

deltoides 9.8 585.4 10,507.4 -4,991.7 18,351.7 1,106.1

Siberian elm

Ulmus

pumila 6.1 42.7 1,106.6 2,450.9 193.5 26.6

Honeylocust

Gleditsia

triacanthos 5.5 27.5 862.7 665.3 244.0 --

American 

basswood

Tilia

americana 3.1 69.9 1,054.1 933.3 865.3 --

Black walnut

Juglans

nigra 2.3 31.3 717.7 1,307.8 890.8 479.1

a Trees ≥1-inch diameter b Trees ≥5-inches diameter

Note: Table cells without data are indicated by --

Table 2.—Number, volume, biomass, growth, mortality, and removals of live trees on forest land for the top 12 

tree species by number, Nebraska, 2012-2017
Eastern redcedar

RESOURCE UPDATE FS-155

4

Eastern redcedar (ERC) is a native conifer that has been 

widely planted in the Great Plains as a windbreak species 

due to its hardy nature and ability to grow under extreme 

climatic conditions. This ability has allowed it to expand 

rapidly and widely. The wood can be utilized for various 

products so knowing where and how much ERC is 

present in the state is helpful for utilization efforts. 

The total net sawlog volume of sawtimber trees on 

timberland in Nebraska is estimated at more than 706 

million cubic feet while the eastern redcedar estimate is 

about 11 million cubic feet, or 1.6 percent of the total 

volume. ERC sawtimber volume is distributed among 

seven forest types (Fig. 4). Of these, ERC is most 

prevalent in the eastern redcedar and eastern 

redcedar/hardwood forest types, making up 54 and 46 

percent of the sawtimber volume, respectively. ERC 

comprises less than 5% of the sawtimber volume in the 

remaining forest types. The map below (Fig. 5) depicts 

the approximate locations of plots where ERC trees (at 

least 9.0 inches d.b.h.) have been observed, including 

sawtimber and non-sawtimber quality trees, and their 

associated forest types. Most of these larger ERC trees 

are found in the eastern redcedar and eastern 

redcedar/hardwood forest types. 

The estimate of total net merchantable bole volume of 

live trees (at least 5 inches d.b.h.) on forest land is more 

than 2 billion cubic feet and ERC makes up 11 percent of 

that volume, or nearly 222 million cubic feet. Thirty-nine 

percent of the ERC live-tree volume is made up of trees 

in the 5- and 7-inch diameter classes while 61 percent of 

the volume is contained in trees 9.0 inches d.b.h. or 

larger (Fig. 6). 

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Volume (million ft3)

Diameter class (inches)

Figure 6.—Eastern redcedar live-tree (≥5.0 inches 

d.b.h.) volume by diameter class, Nebraska, 2017.

Figure 5.—FIA field plots with 

eastern redcedar trees (≥9.0 inches 

d.b.h.) present by forest type, 

Nebraska.

Figure 4.—Eastern redcedar sawtimber volume (ft3) by 

forest type, Nebraska, 2017.

Eastern 

redcedar, 

4,852,300

Ponderosa 

pine, 

412,200

Eastern 

redcedar/hardwood, 

2,309,700

Bur oak, 

389,700

Mixed upland 

hardwoods, 

777,700

Cottonwood, 

624,400

Cottonwood/willow, 1,163,200
RESOURCE UPDATE FS-155

The published report is available online at https://doi.org/10.2737/FS-RU-155

How to Cite This Publication

Meneguzzo, Dacia M.; Nelson, Mark D. 2018. Forests of 

Nebraska, 2017. Resource Update FS-155. Newtown

Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,

Northern Research Station. 5 p.

https://doi.org/10.2737/FS-RU-155.

Northern FIA: https://nrs.fs.fed.us/fia/

National FIA: https://fia.fs.fed.us

Contact Information

Dacia Meneguzzo, Research Forester

USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station

1992 Folwell Ave.

St. Paul, MN 55108

Ph: 651-649-5129 / Fax: 651-649-5140

dmeneguzzo@fs.fed.us 

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer

5

Definitions

Average annual mortality—The average cubic foot volume of sound wood in growing-stock trees that died in 1 year.

Average annual removals—The average net growing-stock volume in growing-stock trees removed annually for 

roundwood forest products, in addition to the volume of logging residues and the volume of other removals. 

Biomass—The aboveground weight of wood and bark in live trees 1.0 inch (2.5 cm) d.b.h. and larger from the ground to 

the tip of the tree, excluding all foliage. The weight of wood and bark in lateral limbs, secondary limbs, and twigs under 

0.5 inch (1.3 cm) in diameter at the point of occurrence on sampling-size trees is included but is excluded on poletimber

and sawtimber-size trees. Biomass is typically expressed as green or oven-dry weight and the units are tons.

Forest land—Land that has at least 10 percent canopy cover of live trees of any size or formerly having had such tree 

cover and is not currently developed for nonforest uses. The area with trees must be at least 1 acre in size and at least 120

feet wide.

Forest type—A classification of forest land based upon and named for the tree species that forms the plurality of live-tree 

stocking. A forest type classification for a field location indicates the predominant live-tree species cover for the field 

location; hardwoods and softwoods are the first group to be determine predominant group, and forest type is selected 

from the predominant group.

Net annual growth—The average annual net increase in the volume of trees during the period between 

inventories. Components include the increment in net volume of trees at the beginning of the specific year surviving to 

its end, plus the net volume of trees reaching the minimum size class during the year, minus the volume of trees that died 

during the year, and minus the net volume of trees that became cull trees during the year. 

Net volume in cubic feet—The gross volume in cubic feet less deductions for rot, roughness, and poor form. Volume is 

computed for the central stem from a 1-foot stump to a minimum 4.0-inch top diameter outside bark, or to the point 

where the central stem breaks into limbs. 

Reserved forest land—Land permanently reserved from wood products utilization through statute or administrative 

designation. Examples include National Forest wilderness areas and National Parks and Monuments.

Timberland —Forest land that is producing or is capable of producing in excess of 20 cubic feet per acre per year of 

industrial wood in natural stands and is not withdrawn from timber utilization by statute or administrative regulation. 

References and Other Inventory Sources

Bechtold, W.A.; Patterson, P.L., eds. 2005. The enhanced Forest Inventory and Analysis Program: national sampling design and estimation 

procedures. Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-80. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 85 p.

https://doi.org/10.2737/SRS-GTR-80.

Gormanson, D.D.; Pugh, S.A.; Barnett, C.J. [et al.]. 2017. Statistics and quality assurance for the Northern Research Station Forest 

Inventory and Analysis program, 2016. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-166. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, 

Northern Research Station. 23 p. https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-GTR-166.

Meneguzzo, D.M.; Crocker, S.J.; Nelson, M.D. [et al.]. 2012. Nebraska’s Forests 2010. Resour. Bull. NRS-68. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station. 47 p. https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-RB-68.

O’Connell, B.M.; LaPoint, E.B.; Turner, J.A. [et al.]. 2014. The Forest Inventory and Analysis database: database description and user guide 

version 6.0.1 for Phase 2. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 748 p. https://doi.org/10.2737/fs-fiadb-p2-6.0.1.