scholarly journals Improved productivity and modified tree morphology of mixed versus pure stands of European beech (Fagus sylvatica) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) with increasing precipitation and age

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 1047-1061 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric A. Thurm ◽  
Hans Pretzsch
Keyword(s):  
Pseudotsuga Menziesii ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Douglas Fir ◽  
Tree Morphology ◽  
Increasing Precipitation

scholarly journals How Does Radial Growth of Water-Stressed Populations of European Beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) Trees Vary under Multiple Drought Events?

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Tamalika Chakraborty ◽  
Albert Reif ◽  
Andreas Matzarakis ◽  
Somidh Saha
Keyword(s):  
Soil Water ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
Tree Growth ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Canopy Openness ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica L ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Neighborhood Competition

European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) trees are becoming vulnerable to drought, with a warming climate. Existing studies disagree on how radial growth varies in European beech in response to droughts. We aimed to find the impact of multiple droughts on beech trees’ annual radial growth at their ecological drought limit created by soil water availability in the forest. Besides, we quantified the influence of competition and canopy openness on the mean basal area growth of beech trees. We carried out this study in five near-natural temperate forests in three localities of Germany and Switzerland. We quantified available soil water storage capacity (AWC) in plots laid in the transition zone from oak to beech dominated forests. The plots were classified as ‘dry’ (AWC < 60 mL) and ‘less-dry’ (AWC > 60 mL). We performed dendroecological analyses starting from 1951 in continuous and discontinuous series to study the influence of climatic drought (i.e., precipitation-potential evapotranspiration) on the radial growth of beech trees in dry and less-dry plots. We used observed values for this analysis and did not use interpolated values from interpolated historical records in this study. We selected six drought events to study the resistance, recovery, and resilience of beech trees to drought at a discontinuous level. The radial growth was significantly higher in less-dry plots than dry plots. The increase in drought had reduced tree growth. Frequent climatic drought events resulted in more significant correlations, hence, increased the dependency of tree growth on AWC. We showed that the recovery and resilience to climatic drought were higher in trees in less-dry plots than dry plots, but it was the opposite for resistance. The resistance, recovery, and resilience of the trees were heterogeneous between the events of drought. Mean growth of beech trees (basal area increment) were negatively impacted by neighborhood competition and positively influenced by canopy openness. We emphasized that beech trees growing on soil with low AWC are at higher risk of growth decline. We concluded that changes in soil water conditions even at the microsite level could influence beech trees’ growth in their drought limit under the changing climate. Along with drought, neighborhood competition and lack of light can also reduce beech trees’ growth. This study will enrich the state of knowledge about the ongoing debate on the vulnerability of beech trees to drought in Europe.

scholarly journals Distribution of the timber quality attribute ‘knot surface’ in logs of Fagus sylvatica L. from pure and mixed forest stands

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsten Höwler ◽  
Torsten Vor ◽  
Peter Schall ◽  
Peter Annighöfer ◽  
Dominik Seidel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
Mixed Forest ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Forest Stands ◽  
Species Identity ◽  
Mixed Stands ◽  
Mixed Forests ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Timber Quality ◽  
Positive Effects

AbstractResearch on mixed forests has mostly focused on tree growth and productivity, or resistance and resilience in changing climate conditions, but only rarely on the effects of tree species mixing on timber quality. In particular, it is still unclear whether the numerous positive effects of mixed forests on productivity and stability come at the expense of timber quality. In this study, we used photographs of sawn boards from 90 European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) trees of mixed and pure forest stands to analyze internal timber quality through the quality indicator knot surface that was quantitatively assessed using the software Datinf® Measure. We observed a decrease in knot surface with increasing distance from the pith as well as smaller values in the lower log sections. Regarding the influence of neighborhood species identity, we found only minor effects meaning that timber qualities in mixed stands of beech and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) tended to be slightly worse compared to pure beech stands.

scholarly journals A Circular Chloroplast Genome of Fagus sylvatica Reveals High Conservation between Two Individuals from Germany and One Individual from Poland and an Alternate Direction of the Small Single-Copy Region

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
Bagdevi Mishra ◽  
Bartosz Ulaszewski ◽  
Sebastian Ploch ◽  
Jaroslaw Burczyk ◽  
Marco Thines
Keyword(s):  
Chloroplast Genome ◽  
Fagus Sylvatica ◽  
Pollen Dispersal ◽  
European Beech ◽  
Single Copy ◽  
Migration History ◽  
Chloroplast Genomes ◽  
Long Read ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Small Single Copy

Chloroplasts are difficult to assemble because of the presence of large inverted repeats. At the same time, correct assemblies are important, as chloroplast loci are frequently used for biogeography and population genetics studies. In an attempt to elucidate the orientation of the single-copy regions and to find suitable loci for chloroplast single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based studies, circular chloroplast sequences for the ultra-centenary reference individual of European Beech (Fagus sylvatica), Bhaga, and an additional Polish individual (named Jamy) was obtained based on hybrid assemblies. The chloroplast genome of Bhaga was 158,458 bp, and that of Jamy was 158,462 bp long. Using long-read mapping on the configuration inferred in this study and the one suggested in a previous study, we found an inverted orientation of the small single-copy region. The chloroplast genome of Bhaga and of the individual from Poland both have only two mismatches as well as three and two indels as compared to the previously published genome, respectively. The low divergence suggests low seed dispersal but high pollen dispersal. However, once chloroplast genomes become available from Pleistocene refugia, where a high degree of variation has been reported, they might prove useful for tracing the migration history of Fagus sylvatica in the Holocene.

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