Succession of understory vegetation in managed and seminatural Scots pine forests in eastern Finland and Russian Karelia

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 1422-1441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anneli Uotila ◽  
Juha-Pekka Hotanen ◽  
Jari Kouki
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Scots Pine ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Understory Vegetation ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Ground Vegetation ◽  
Tree Seedlings ◽  
Dwarf Shrubs ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Eastern Finland

The aim of this study was to compare the understory vegetation in chronosequences representing seminatural and managed Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) forests on dryish heaths of the Vaccinium type. The data represent the middle boreal vegetation zone and were collected in eastern Finland and the Dvina area of Karelia, on both sides of the border between Finland and the Russian Federation. Species diversity and the coverage of the various life-form groups (ground lichens, mosses, liverworts, grasses, herbs, dwarf shrubs, and tree seedlings) were used to analyse the properties of the ground vegetation over the succession from open forest land to closed forest communities. The clearest differences in diversity between the seminatural forests mainly influenced by fire and managed forests occurred in the early stages of succession. Forest management appeared to increase the species richness at the beginning of succession. The seminatural stands were rich in Cladonia lichens and dwarf shrubs up until tree canopy closure; however, the abundance of mosses was lower in the seminatural stands. Forest management favoured an abundance of grasses, notably Deschampsia flexuosa, which was common after clear-cutting. The use of prescribed burning in silviculture could result in more natural vegetation succession dynamics in managed stands.

Spatial simulation of forest succession and timber harvesting using LANDIS

2000 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric J Gustafson ◽  
Stephen R Shifley ◽  
David J Mladenoff ◽  
Kevin K Nimerfro ◽  
Hong S He
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Forest Succession ◽  
Forest Type ◽  
Timber Harvesting ◽  
Forest Edge ◽  
Size Class ◽  
Forest Composition ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Wide Range

The LANDIS model simulates ecological dynamics, including forest succession, disturbance, seed dispersal and establishment, fire and wind disturbance, and their interactions. We describe the addition to LANDIS of capabilities to simulate forest vegetation management, including harvest. Stands (groups of cells) are prioritized for harvest using one of four ranking algorithms that use criteria related to forest management objectives. Cells within a selected stand are harvested according to the species and age cohort removal rules specified in a prescription. These flexible removal rules allow simulation of a wide range of prescriptions such as prescribed burning, thinning, single-tree selection, and clear-cutting. We present a case study of the application of LANDIS to a managed watershed in the Missouri (U.S.A.) Ozark Mountains to illustrate the utility of this approach to simulate succession as a response to forest management and other disturbance. The different cutting practices produced differences in species and size-class composition, average patch sizes (for patches defined by forest type or by size class), and amount of forest edge across the landscape. The capabilities of LANDIS provide a modeling tool to investigate questions of how timber management changes forest composition and spatial pattern, providing insight into ecological response to forest management.

scholarly journals Water and nitrogen processes along a typical water flowpath and streamwater exports from a forested catchment and changes after clear-cutting: a modelling study

2005 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 657-674 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Laurén ◽  
L. Finér ◽  
H. Koivusalo ◽  
T. Kokkonen ◽  
T. Karvonen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Buffer Zone ◽  
Organic N ◽  
Ground Vegetation ◽  
Spring Flood ◽  
Total N ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
N Fluxes ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Eastern Finland

Abstract. A two dimensional model, FEMMA, to describe water and nitrogen (N) fluxes within and from a forested first-order catchment (Kangasvaara in Eastern Finland) was constructed by linking the most significant processes affecting the fluxes of water, ammonium, nitrate and dissolved organic nitrogen along a hillslope from the water divide to the stream. The hillslope represents the average flowpath of water in the catchment and the model was used to estimate the N fluxes for a catchment in eastern Finland before and after clear-cutting. The simulated results were in reasonable agreement with the nitrate, dissolved organic N and dissolved total N measurements from the study catchment and with other results in the literature. According to the simulations, the major sinks of N after clear-cutting were immobilisation by soil microbes, uptake by ground vegetation and sorption to soil. These sinks increased downslope from the clear-cut area, indicating the importance of an uncut buffer zone between the stream and the clear-cut area in reducing N exports. The buffer zone retained 76% of the N flux coming from the clear-cut area. Nitrification was a key process in controlling the N export after clear-cutting and N increases were mainly as nitrate. Most of the annual N export took place during the spring flood, when uptake of N by plants was minimal.

Effect of clear-cutting on the understory vegetation, soil and diversity of litter beetles in scots pine-dominated forest

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (8) ◽  
pp. 791-808
Author(s):  
Laima Česonienė ◽  
Remigijus Daubaras ◽  
Vytautas Tamutis ◽  
Vilma Kaškonienė ◽  
Paulius Kaškonas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Scots Pine ◽  
Understory Vegetation ◽  
Clear Cutting

scholarly journals Continuous-cover management and attractiveness of managed Scots pine forests

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (8) ◽  
pp. 819-828
Author(s):  
Matti Koivula ◽  
Harri Silvennoinen ◽  
Hanna Koivula ◽  
Jukka Tikkanen ◽  
Liisa Tyrväinen
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Scots Pine ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Forest Ownership ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Gap Cutting ◽  
Intensively Managed

Forest management, characterized in many northern countries by the predominance of clear cutting and growing even-aged and -sized trees, has simplified the structure of boreal forests. Consequences include alterations in cultural ecosystem services such as forest attractiveness, i.e., combined aesthetic and recreational values. Continuous-cover forestry might mitigate these effects through the use of selection and gap cutting, but these methods have been little studied, particularly from the attractiveness viewpoint. We used photo surveys to assess Finnish citizens’ perceptions of attractiveness of in-stand scenery of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) forests logged using different methods. (i) The attractiveness scores, given by respondents, declined steadily from unharvested forest through continuous-cover methods to seed-tree and clear-cut methods. (ii) Respondents with a negative attitude to forest management gave lower scores than respondents with a positive attitude, but the declining slopes of attractiveness against logging intensity were similar. (iii) In unharvested and less intensively managed stands, summer photos received higher scores than corresponding winter photos. (iv) Background variables (gender, education, living environment, memberships in recreational or nature NGOs, forestry profession, and forest ownership) had negligible effects on the scores. We recommend the use of continuous-cover logging methods in settlement and recreational areas.

scholarly journals Prescribed Burning and Clear-Cutting Effects on Understory Vegetation in aPinus canariensisStand (Gran Canaria)

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Ramón Arévalo ◽  
Silvia Fernández-Lugo ◽  
Celia García-Domínguez ◽  
Agustín Naranjo-Cigala ◽  
Federico Grillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Understory Vegetation ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Fire Intensity ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Fire Hazards ◽  
Clear Cutting

Prescribed fires are a powerful tool for reducing fire hazards by decreasing amounts of fuel. The main objective is to analyze the effects of prescribed burning on the understory vegetation composition as well as on the soil characteristics of a reforested stand ofPinus canariensis. The study attempts to identify the effects of the preburning treatment of cutting understory vegetation on the floristic parameters of the vegetation community. This study was carried out for two years following a prescribed fire in a Canarian pine stand. Cutting and burning treatment affected species composition and increased diversity. Burnt and cut plots were characterized by a diverse array of herbaceous species and by a lower abundance ofTeline microphylla(endemic legume), although burning apparently induced its germination. Cut treatment was more consistently differentiated from the control plots than burnt treatment. Soil K decreased after both treatments, pH slightly decreased after cutting, while P and Ca increased after fire. From an ecological point of view, prescribed burning is a better management practice than cutting the woody species of the understory. However, long-term studies would be necessary to evaluate the effects of fire intensity, season and frequency in which the prescribed burning is applied.

scholarly journals Earthworms as indicators for different forest management types and human disturbance in Ilam oak forest, Iran

2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 121-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mehdi Heydari ◽  
Hassan Poorbabaei ◽  
Masoud Bazgir ◽  
Ali Salehi ◽  
Javad Eshaghirad
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Positive Direction ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
The World

Abstract There has been observed widespread destruction of natural ecosystems around the world due to population growth, land use change and clear cutting which have affected soil properties. Different management strategies have been so far implemented to reduce this crisis in various regions of the world, such as e.g. short-term and long-term conservation management in the Zagros region. However, any management approach should be evaluated with appropriate measures to determine how managed areas respond. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the potential of earthworms as an indicator for different forest management strategies and human disturbances in Zagros oak (Quercus persica Jaub. and Spach) forest. The sites selected included undisturbed one as the control (Un), the sites under five-year conservation management (FCM) and twenty-year conservation management (TCM) as well as the disturbed site (D). The results of principal component analysis (PCA) showed that different regions separated into the components: PC1 and PC2. Un and TCM sites gathered together and represented higher values of the factors such as pH, Kavailable, OC, clay content, Pavailable, CEC, overstory tree canopy, Ntot, biomass and abundance of earthworms. The positive direction of the first axis reflected a gradient of EC, BD and Ptot. According to the logistic model, NH4-N and EC played the most important role in earthworm presence and absence in Zagros forest ecosystem. Earthworm abundance and biomass could be a good indicator to evaluate different forest management strategies in the study area.

Prescribed burning of canopy gaps facilitates tree seedling establishment in restoration of pine-dominated boreal forests

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (9) ◽  
pp. 1225-1231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannes Pasanen ◽  
Virve Rehu ◽  
Kaisa Junninen ◽  
Jari Kouki
Keyword(s):  
Scots Pine ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Study Groups ◽  
Canopy Gaps ◽  
Canopy Gap ◽  
Tree Seedlings ◽  
Tree Seedling ◽  
Tree Species Composition

Because many currently protected forests are former timber production areas, restoration activities are often used to re-establish their natural structures. In this experimental study, we monitored the establishment of tree seedlings in previously managed but currently protected Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) dominated stands in boreal forests 5 years after restoration measures. The study included eight study areas (115 sample plots) in southern Finland. We compared seedling abundance between five study groups: untreated control forest, unburned canopy gap, burned full-canopy forest, burned canopy gap, and thinned and burned forest. Density of tree seedlings was highest in burned canopy gaps (mean 25.4 seedlings/100 m2 compared with 6.0 seedlings/100 m2 in control sites). In particular, birch (Betula spp.) and Scots pine were significantly more abundant within burned canopy gaps than in unburned gaps. We conclude that opening within-stand canopy gaps, especially in combination with prescribed burning, can be useful in forest restoration as the gaps diversify age-class structure and tree species composition of single-cohort pine stands.

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