Contemporary forest planning has tasked managers with developing goals focused on resistance and resilience. In practice, silviculturists use forest structure and tree species composition to define these goals, outline desired future conditions, design management prescriptions, and monitor outcomes related to resistance and resilience.
Although rarely discussed in the rapidly growing literature on forest resistance and resilience, silvicultural regeneration methods are vital yet underutilized tools to achieve these objectives. We propose alternative silvicultural systems to enhance resistance and resilience against two common large-scale bark beetle disturbance agents in the Intermountain West, United States: the mountain pine beetle (*Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins*) and the spruce beetle (*Dendroctonus rufipennis Kirby*).
Shelterwood and shelterwood-with-reserves systems offer valuable benefits. They maintain mature overstory characteristics, which support the growth of advanced reproduction and the establishment of new cohorts of desirable tree species. These systems also enable the timely regeneration of large treatment areas, crucial for promoting desired future conditions in response to inevitable disturbances.
When implemented proactively, regeneration treatments allow silviculturists to leverage existing vegetation to create age class and tree species diversity. Generally, these examples highlight the importance of proactive planning for regeneration in response to disturbances, particularly when desired future conditions include specific species.
Moreover, we argue that timely silvicultural interventions focused on regenerating trees can be essential in meeting resilience goals for particular types of disturbances. Delaying action until after a disturbance has occurred could result in missed opportunities to establish the preferred species composition or stand structure, potentially leading to significant restoration challenges.