Forest recovery in set-aside windthrow is facilitated by fast growth of advance regeneration

Autor: Anna Gazda, Jerzy Szwagrzyk, Andrzej Tomski, Ewa Maciejewska, Zbigniew Maciejewski
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2018
Předmět:
Zdroj: Annals of Forest Science
Annals of Forest Science, Springer Nature (since 2011)/EDP Science (until 2010), 2018, 75 (3), pp.80. ⟨10.1007/s13595-018-0765-z⟩
ISSN: 1286-4560
1297-966X
DOI: 10.1007/s13595-018-0765-z⟩
Popis: Funding This study was conducted as a part of research project 2012/07/ B/NZ8/01908 “Patterns and drivers of the regeneration processes following catastrophic wind disturbances in forests” funded by the Polish National Science Foundation (NCN) and research project Poland N N304 048934 “Comparison of the dynamics of woody species and vascular plants in active and passive protected areas of the Roztoczański National Park” funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland. This work was also partially supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland (DS 3421/ZBL).
The disturbance of a research plot by a windstorm allowed us to study the role of the seedling bank in the regeneration processes. The released advance regeneration dominated among the saplings; taller individuals retained their position until the end of the study. Pioneer species occurred sporadically. Seven years after the disturbance, the windthrow was covered by a dense thicket of young trees. Context: The dominant role played by advance regeneration in natural regeneration processes after intense wind disturbances is still a matter of dispute. Aims: We took advantage of a windstorm in one of our research plots to study the role of the seedling bank released by the disturbance in the regeneration processes. Methods: We collected data in 70 plots, recording the survivorship of seedlings, annual height growth, and signs of browsing. The height ranking was analyzed with Kendall’s concordance coefficient, and the height growth rates were compared using Dunn’s test. Results: The density of seedlings increased from 6.7/m2 in 2008 to 8.1/m2 in 2010 and then decreased to 1.2/m2 in 2015. The density of saplings increased continuously from 0.14 to 1.9/m2. The highest size differentiation occurred in sycamore maple; the individuals which were taller before the windstorm retained their position until the year 2015. The only species that was recruited mainly from germinants was European hornbeam. Conclusion: The advance regeneration released by the windstorm played a major role in the regeneration process, while pioneer species occurred only sporadically. Seven years after the disturbance, the windthrow was already covered by a dense thicket of young trees.
NCN
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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