scholarly journals Disentangling the Legacies of Climate and Management on Tree Growth

Ecosystems ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Marqués ◽  
Drew M. P. Peltier ◽  
J. Julio Camarero ◽  
Miguel A. Zavala ◽  
Jaime Madrigal-González ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Tree Growth ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Ring Formation ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Past Climate ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Ecological Memory ◽  
Historical Forest

AbstractLegacies of past climate conditions and historical management govern forest productivity and tree growth. Understanding how these processes interact and the timescales over which they influence tree growth is critical to assess forest vulnerability to climate change. Yet, few studies address this issue, likely because integrated long-term records of both growth and forest management are uncommon. We applied the stochastic antecedent modelling (SAM) framework to annual tree-ring widths from mixed forests to recover the ecological memory of tree growth. We quantified the effects of antecedent temperature and precipitation up to 4 years preceding the year of ring formation and integrated management effects with records of harvesting intensity from historical forest management archives. The SAM approach uncovered important time periods most influential to growth, typically the warmer and drier months or seasons, but variation among species and sites emerged. Silver fir responded primarily to past climate conditions (25–50 months prior to the year of ring formation), while European beech and Scots pine responded mostly to climate conditions during the year of ring formation and the previous year, although these responses varied among sites. Past management and climate interacted in such a way that harvesting promoted growth in young silver fir under wet and warm conditions and in old European beech under drier and cooler conditions. Our study shows that the ecological memory associated with climate legacies and historical forest management is species-specific and context-dependent, suggesting that both aspects are needed to properly evaluate forest functioning under climate change.

scholarly journals Efficacy of Trans-geographic Observational Network Design for Revelation of Growth Pattern in Mountain Forests Across Europe

2021 ◽  
pp. 141-187
Author(s):  
H. Pretzsch ◽  
T. Hilmers ◽  
E. Uhl ◽  
M. del Río ◽  
A. Avdagić ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Norway Spruce ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Statistical Evaluation ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Mountain Forests ◽  
Mixed Species ◽  
Yield Data

AbstractUnderstanding tree and stand growth dynamics in the frame of climate change calls for large-scale analyses. For analysing growth patterns in mountain forests across Europe, the CLIMO consortium compiled a network of observational plots across European mountain regions. Here, we describe the design and efficacy of this network of plots in monospecific European beech and mixed-species stands of Norway spruce, European beech, and silver fir.First, we sketch the state of the art of existing monitoring and observational approaches for assessing the growth of mountain forests. Second, we introduce the design, measurement protocols, as well as site and stand characteristics, and we stress the innovation of the newly compiled network. Third, we give an overview of the growth and yield data at stand and tree level, sketch the growth characteristics along elevation gradients, and introduce the methods of statistical evaluation. Fourth, we report additional measurements of soil, genetic resources, and climate smartness indicators and criteria, which were available for statistical evaluation and testing hypotheses. Fifth, we present the ESFONET (European Smart Forest Network) approach of data and knowledge dissemination. The discussion is focussed on the novelty and relevance of the database, its potential for monitoring, understanding and management of mountain forests toward climate smartness, and the requirements for future assessments and inventories.In this chapter, we describe the design and efficacy of this network of plots in monospecific European beech and mixed-species stands of Norway spruce, European beech, and silver fir. We present how to acquire and evaluate data from individual trees and the whole stand to quantify and understand the growth of mountain forests in Europe under climate change. It will provide concepts, models, and practical hints for analogous trans-geographic projects that may be based on the existing and newly recorded data on forests.

scholarly journals Growth response of mixed beech forests to climate change, various management and game pressure in Central Europe

2019 ◽  
Vol 65 (No. 9) ◽  
pp. 331-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stanislav Vacek ◽  
Anna Prokůpková ◽  
Zdeněk Vacek ◽  
Daniel Bulušek ◽  
Václav Šimůnek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stand Structure ◽  
Abies Alba ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Timber Production ◽  
Beech Forests ◽  
Great Density ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Growth Variability ◽  
Browsing Damage

The growth, structure and production of mixed beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forests were analysed  in the Broumovsko Protected Landscape Area, Czech Republic. The objective of the paper was to evaluate stand structure, timber production and dynamics of forests with historically different silvicultural practices in relation to climate conditions, management and game damage. The results indicate that scree forests (coppices and coppices with standards) were stands with high-rich species diversity and structure compared to herb-rich beech forests (high forests) with higher timber production. The Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) was the most sensitive tree species compared to low growth variability in European beech. The climate factors had the highest effect on radial growth from June to August. Natural regeneration showed great density potential (13,880–186,462 recruits·ha<sup>–1</sup>), especially in expansion of maples and European ash (Fraxinus excelsior L.). However, recruits were seriously limiting by damage caused by hoofed game, especially in silver fir (Abies alba Mill.; 53% browsing damage), wych elm (Ulmus glabra Hudson; 51%) and rowan (Sorbus aucuparia L.; 50%).

scholarly journals Identifying decision-relevant uncertainties for dynamic adaptive forest management under climate change

2020 ◽  
Vol 163 (2) ◽  
pp. 891-911
Author(s):  
Naomi Radke ◽  
Klaus Keller ◽  
Rasoul Yousefpour ◽  
Marc Hanewinkel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Volume Growth ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Forest Growth ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Forest Growth Model ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Planning Cycle

AbstractThe decision on how to manage a forest under climate change is subject to deep and dynamic uncertainties. The classic approach to analyze this decision adopts a predefined strategy, tests its robustness to uncertainties, but neglects their dynamic nature (i.e., that decision-makers can learn and adjust the strategy). Accounting for learning through dynamic adaptive strategies (DAS) can drastically improve expected performance and robustness to deep uncertainties. The benefits of considering DAS hinge on identifying critical uncertainties and translating them to detectable signposts to signal when to change course. This study advances the DAS approach to forest management as a novel application domain by showcasing methods to identify potential signposts for adaptation on a case study of a classic European beech management strategy in South-West Germany. We analyze the strategy’s robustness to uncertainties about model forcings and parameters. We then identify uncertainties that critically impact its economic and ecological performance by confronting a forest growth model with a large sample of time-varying scenarios. The case study results illustrate the potential of designing DAS for forest management and provide insights on key uncertainties and potential signposts. Specifically, economic uncertainties are the main driver of the strategy’s robustness and impact the strategy’s performance more critically than climate uncertainty. Besides economic metrics, the forest stand’s past volume growth is a promising signpost metric. It mirrors the effect of both climatic and model parameter uncertainty. The regular forest inventory and planning cycle provides an ideal basis for adapting a strategy in response to these signposts.

scholarly journals Tree-Related Microhabitats Follow Similar Patterns but are More Diverse in Primary Compared to Managed Temperate Mountain Forests

Ecosystems ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Asbeck ◽  
Daniel Kozák ◽  
Andreea P. Spînu ◽  
Martin Mikoláš ◽  
Veronika Zemlerová ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Abies Alba ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Minor Role ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Mountain Forests ◽  
Managed Forests ◽  
A Minor ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Primary Forests

AbstractThe impact of forest management on biodiversity is difficult to scrutinize along gradients of management. A step towards analyzing the impact of forest management on biodiversity is comparisons between managed and primary forests. The standardized typology of tree-related microhabitats (TreMs) is a multi-taxon indicator used to quantify forest biodiversity. We aim to analyze the influence of environmental factors on the occurrence of groups of TreMs by comparing primary and managed forests. We collected data for the managed forests in the Black Forest (Germany) and for the primary forests in the Western (Slovakia) and Southern Carpathians (Romania). To model the richness and the different groups of TreMs per tree, we used generalized linear mixed models with diameter at breast height (DBH), altitude, slope and aspect as predictors for European beech (Fagus sylvatica (L.)), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.)) and silver fir (Abies alba (Mill.)) in primary and managed temperate mountain forests. We found congruent results for overall richness and the vast majority of TreM groups. Trees in primary forests hosted a greater richness of all and specific types of TreMs than individuals in managed forests. The main drivers of TreMs are DBH and altitude, while slope and aspect play a minor role. We recommend forest and nature conservation managers to focus: 1) on the conservation of remaining primary forests and 2) approaches of biodiversity-oriented forest management on the selection of high-quality habitat trees that already provide a high number of TreMs in managed forests based on the comparison with primary forests.

scholarly journals Projected effects of climate change on the carbon stocks of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forests in Zala County, Hungary

2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoltán Somogyi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Carbon Stocks ◽  
Carbon Accounting ◽  
Climate Change Scenarios ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica L ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Recent studies suggest that climate change will lead to the local extinction of many tree species from large areas during this century, affecting the functioning and ecosystem services of many forests. This study reports on projected carbon losses due to the assumed local climate change-driven extinction of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) from Zala County, South-Western Hungary, where the species grows at the xeric limit of its distribution. The losses were calculated as a difference between carbon stocks in climate change scenarios assuming an exponentially increasing forest decline over time, and those in a baseline scenario assuming no climate change. In the climate change scenarios, three different sets of forest management adaptation measures were studied: (1) only harvesting damaged stands, (2) additionally salvaging dead trees that died due to climate change, and (3) replacing, at an increasing rate over time, beech with sessile oak (Quercus petraea Matt. Lieb.) after final harvest. Projections were made using the open access carbon accounting model CASMOFOR based on modeling or assuming effects of climate change on mortality, tree growth, root-to-shoot ratio and decomposition rates. Results demonstrate that, if beech disappears from the region as projected by the end of the century, over 80% of above-ground biomass carbon, and over 60% of the carbon stocks of all pools (excluding soils) of the forests will be lost by 2100. Such emission rates on large areas may have a discernible positive feedback on climate change, and can only partially be offset by the forest management adaptation measures.

scholarly journals Above-ground net primary productivity in young stands of beech and spruce

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jozef Pajtík ◽  
Bohdan Konôpka ◽  
Róbert Marušák
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Primary Productivity ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Net Primary Productivity ◽  
Standing Stock ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Tree Species Composition ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Resistant Species

AbstractOne of the expected consequences of climate change and its inherent phenomena to forest ecosystems is the gradual modification of their tree species composition (i.e. expansion of resistant species instead of less resistant ones). Climate change accompanied with increasing temperatures and a lack of precipitations may present a threat especially to spruce stands in the European part of the temperate zone. European beech is one of the possible forest tree species which might replace the potentially endangered spruce. In this paper, we observed, by using a combination of continual measurements and destructive whole-tree sampling, standing stocks of above-ground biomass (i.e. stem, branches, and foliage) and its annual net primary productivity (NPP) in naturally regenerated young stands of beech and spruce. We intentionally selected a site where the changing climate conditions are better suited to the ecological demands of beech rather than spruce (the species is dominant in the observed area). We recorded only small differences in the standing stock of stems of the beech, if based on tons per ha. However, this is in favor of spruce if based on cubic meters per ha. The largest difference between the species was found for the standing stock of foliage, spruce retained three times the biomass of beech. Also, beech allocated more carbohydrates to stem than spruce. On the other hand, we estimated nearly the same production of foliages and branches in both stands.

scholarly journals Modelling of Climate Conditions in Forest Vegetation Zones as a Support Tool for Forest Management Strategy in European Beech Dominated Forests

Forests ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivo Machar ◽  
Veronika Vlckova ◽  
Antonin Bucek ◽  
Vit Vozenilek ◽  
Lubomir Salek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Management Strategy ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Forest Vegetation ◽  
Support Tool ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Vegetation Zones

scholarly journals Hydraulic Water Redistribution by Silver Fir (Abies alba Mill.) Occurring under Severe Soil Drought

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Töchterle ◽  
Fengli Yang ◽  
Stephanie Rehschuh ◽  
Romy Rehschuh ◽  
Nadine K. Ruehr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Drought Stress ◽  
Abies Alba ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Temperate Climate ◽  
Future Climate Change ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Soil Drought ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Dry Soil

Hydraulic redistribution (HR) of water from wet- to dry-soil zones is suggested as an important process in the resilience of forest ecosystems to drought stress in semiarid and tropical climates. Scenarios of future climate change predict an increase of severe drought conditions in temperate climate regions. This implies the need for adaptations of locally managed forest systems, such as European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) monocultures, for instance, through the admixing of deep-rooting silver fir (Abies alba Mill.). We designed a stable-isotope-based split-root experiment under controlled conditions to test whether silver fir seedlings could perform HR and therefore reduce drought stress in neighboring beech seedlings. Our results showed that HR by silver fir does occur, but with a delayed onset of three weeks after isotopic labelling with 2H2O (δ2H ≈ +6000‰), and at low rates. On average, 0.2% of added ²H excess could be recovered via HR. Fir roots released water under dry-soil conditions that caused some European beech seedlings to permanently wilt. On the basis of these results, we concluded that HR by silver fir does occur, but the potential for mitigating drought stress in beech is limited. Admixing silver fir into beech stands as a climate change adaptation strategy needs to be assessed in field studies with sufficient monitoring time.

scholarly journals The productivity of mixed mountain forests comprised of Fagus sylvatica, Picea abies, and Abies alba across Europe

2019 ◽  
Vol 92 (5) ◽  
pp. 512-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torben Hilmers ◽  
Admir Avdagić ◽  
Leszek Bartkowicz ◽  
Kamil Bielak ◽  
Franz Binder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Picea Abies ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Abies Alba ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Mountain Forests ◽  
Mountain Areas

Abstract Mixed mountain forests of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst), and silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) cover a total area of more than 10 million hectares in Europe. Due to altitudinal zoning, these forests are particularly vulnerable to climate change. However, as little is known about the long-term development of the productivity and the adaptation and mitigation potential of these forest systems in Europe, reliable information on productivity is required for sustainable forest management. Using generalized additive mixed models this study investigated 60 long-term experimental plots and provides information about the productivity of mixed mountain forests across a variety of European mountain areas in a standardized way for the first time. The average periodic annual volume increment (PAI) of these forests amounts to 9.3 m3ha−1y−1. Despite a significant increase in annual mean temperature the PAI has not changed significantly over the last 30 years. However, at the species level, we found significant changes in the growth dynamics. While beech had a PAI of 8.2 m3ha−1y−1 over the entire period (1980–2010), the PAI of spruce dropped significantly from 14.2 to 10.8 m3ha−1y−1, and the PAI of fir rose significantly from 7.2 to 11.3 m3ha−1y−1. Consequently, we observed stable stand volume increments in relation to climate change.

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