Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Sprouting characteristics of Quercus pubescens Willd. and Quercus frainetto Ten. trees after a wildfire: To cut or not to cut the burned trees?

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
European Journal of Forest Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The aims of this study were to analyze the sprouting characteristics of Quercus pubescens and Q. frainetto trees after a wildfire and to recommend the appropriate silvicultural treatments in order to achieve dense sprout origin regeneration. This study was carried out in the area that was burned in a wildfire in northeastern Greece. Three years later, 140 Q. pubescens trees and 140 Q. frainetto trees were selected. Seventy trees for each species were individuals that were cut after the fire and were in the form of stumps, while 70 trees were intact top-killed trees, as a result of fire. In each stump and intact tree that was selected, various parameters were measured or counted: the diameter at the level of ground, the number of the developed sprouts (if any) and the height as well as the basal diameter of the tallest sprout, etc. Both species have similar sprouting behavior after a wildfire. Mother tree dimensions positively influenced the number of sprouts and the growth of the tallest sprout per individual. The mean height of the tallest sprout per stump, after three growing seasons from the forest fire, is high in both species (2.08 m for Q. pupescens and 2.29 m for Q. frainetto). Cut stumps had more sprouts than intact trees in both species. Forest practice, in order to maximize the sprouting of Q. pubescens and Q. frainetto trees after a forest fire, should cut the burned trees before the next growing season.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anthopoulos P, Karamanidis A, Galazoulas A (2008) Study of protection and management of the “Notios” forest. Managing period 2008–2017. Forest Service of Alexandroupolis, Region of Eastern Macedonia—Thrace, Greece

  • Ashish P, Latif KM, Kumar DA (2010) Effect of stump girth and height on resprouting of Rhododendron arboretum following disturbance in temperate mixed broad leaved forest of Arunachal Pradesh, India. J For Res 21(4):433–438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Athanasiadis N (1986) Forest botany, Part II. Giahoudis-Giapoulis, Thessaloniki (in Greek)

    Google Scholar 

  • Barberis A, Dettori S, Filigheddu MR (2003) Management problems in Mediterranean cork oak forests: post-fire recovery. J Arid Environ 54:565–569

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barton AM (1999) Pines versus oaks: effects of fire on the composition of Madrean forests in Arizona. For Ecol Manage 120:143–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Batziou M, Milios E, Kitikidou K (2017) Is diameter at the base of the root collar a key characteristic of seedling sprouts in a Quercus pubescens–Quercus frainetto grazed forest in north-eastern Greece? A morphological analysis. New For 48(1):1–16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-016-9552-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bergmeier E, Dimopoulos P (2008) Identifying plant communities of thermophilous deciduous forest in Greece: species composition, distribution, ecology and syntaxonomy. Plant Biosyst 142(2):228–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/11263500802150357

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bond WJ, Midgley JJ (2001) Ecology of sprouting in woody plants: the persistence niche. Trends Ecol Evol 16:45–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(00)02033-4

  • Bond WJ, Midgley JJ (2003) The evolutionary ecology of sprouting in woody plants. Int J Plant Sci 164(3 Suppl.):S103–S114. https://doi.org/10.1086/374191

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boratynski A, Browicz K, Zielinski J (1992) Chorology of trees and shrubs in Greece. Kornik, Poznan

    Google Scholar 

  • Christensen KI (1997) Fagaceae. In: Strid A, Tan K (eds) Flora Hellenica. Koeltz Scientific Books, Konigstein, pp 40–50

  • Espelta JM, Retana J, Habrouk A (2003) Resprouting patterns after fire and response to stool cleaning of two coexisting Mediterranean oaks with contrasting leaf habits on two different sites. For Ecol Manage 179:401–414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ho R (2006) Handbook of univariate and multivariate data analysis and interpretation with SPSS. Chapman & Hall/CRC, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Izenman A (2008) Modern multivariate statistical techniques: regression, classification, and manifold learning. Springer, Berlin

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Jung CG, Seo YO, Moon KM (2013) Study on growth and sprouts of Oak Forest for Forest fire site in South Korea. Life Sci J 10(2):1256–1260

    Google Scholar 

  • Kazanis D, Arianoutsou M (2004) Long-term post-fire vegetation dynamics in Pinushalepensis forests of Central Greece: a functional group approach. Plant Ecol 171:101–121

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kennard DK, Gould K, Putza FE, Fredericksen TS, Morales F (2002) Effect of disturbance intensity on regeneration mechanisms in a tropical dry forest. For Ecol Manage 162:197–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-1127(01)00506-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Khanm ML, Tripathi RS (1986) Tree regeneration in a disturbed sub-tropical wet hill forest of north-east India: effect of stump diameter and height on sprouting of four tree species. For Ecol Manage 17:199–209

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Khanm ML, Tripathi RS (1989) Effects of stump diameter, stump height and sprout density on the sprout growth of four tree species in burnt and unburnt forest plots. Acta Oecol 10(4):303–316

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitikidou K, Milios E, Tsirekis E, Pipinis E, Stampoulidis A (2015) Site quality assessment of degraded Quercus frainetto stands in central Greece. iForest 8:53–58. https://doi.org/10.3832/ifor1069-007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Konstantinidis P, Tsiourlis G, Galatsidas S (2005) Effects of wildfire season on the resprouting of kermes oak (Quercus coccifera L.). For Ecol Manage 208:15–27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2004.09.021

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Konstantinidis P, Tsiourlis G, Xofis P (2006) Effect of fire season, aspect and pre-fire plant size on the growth of Arbutus unedo L. (strawberry tree) resprouts. For Ecol Manage 225:359–367. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2006.01.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Korakis G (2015) Forest botany (e-book). Association of Greek Academic Libraries, Athens. http://hdl.handle.net/11419/742 (in Greek)

  • Masaka K, Yasuyuki O, Yamada K (2000) Fire tolerance and the fire-related sprouting characteristics of two cool-temperate broad-leaved tree species. Ann Bot 85:137–142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milios E, Pipinis E, Kitikidou K, Batziou M, Chatzakis S, Akritidou S (2014) Are sprouts the dominant form of regeneration in a lowland Quercus pubescens-Quercus frainetto remnant forest in Northeastern Greece? A regeneration analysis in the context of grazing. New For 45(2):165–177. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-013-9399-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milios E, Kitikidou K, Dalakouras V, Pipinis E (2016) Diameter at breast height estimated from stumps in Quercusfrainetto in the region of Evros in northeastern Greece. Cerne. https://doi.org/10.1590/01047760201622032193

    Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Agriculture (1992) Results of the first national forest inventory. The final data process was made by Tsaprounis I., Publication of Department of forest mapping, Athens (in Greek)

  • Moreira F, Duarte I, Catry F, Acacio V (2007) Cork extraction as a key factor determining post-fire cork oak survival in a mountain region of southern Portugal. For Ecol Manage 253:30–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2007.07.001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moreira F, Catry F, Duarte I, Acacio V, Silva JS (2009) A conceptual model of sprouting responses in relation to fire damage: an example with cork oak (Quercus suber L.) trees in Southern Portugal. Plant Ecol 201:77–85. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-008-9476-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pausas JG (1997) Resprouting of Quercus suber in NE Spain after fire. J Veg Sci 8:703–706

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pausas JG (2015) Bark thickness and fire regime. Funct Ecol 29:315–327. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12372

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pausas JG, Pratt RB, Keeley JE, Jacobsen AL, Ramirez AR, Vilagrosa A, Paula S, Kaneakua-Pia IN, Davis SD (2016) Towards understanding resprouting at the global scale. New Phytol 209:945–954. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.13644

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Quevedo L, Arnan X, Rodrigo A (2013) Selective thinning of Arbutus unedo coppices following fire: effects on grow that the individual and plot level. For Ecol Manage 292:56–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2012.12.007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sakai A, Sakai S, Akiyama F (1997) Do sprouting tree species on erosion-prone sites carry large reserves of resources? Ann Bot 79:625–630

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sands BA, Abrams MD (2009) Effects of stump diameter on sprout number and size for three Oak species in a Pennsylvania clearcut. North J Appl For 26(3):122–125

    Google Scholar 

  • Tavsanoglu C, Gurkan B (2014) Long-term post-fire dynamics of co-occurring woody species in Pinus brutia forests: the role of regeneration mode. Plant Ecol 255:355–365

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thanos CA, Marcou S (1991) Post-fire regeneration in Pinus brutia forest ecosystems of Samos island (Greece): 6 years after. Acta Oecol 12:633–642

    Google Scholar 

  • Thanos CA, Marcou S, Christodoulakis D, Yannitsaros A (1989) Early post-fire regeneration in Pinus brutia forest ecosystems of Samos island (Greece). Acta Oecol 10:79–94

    Google Scholar 

  • Theodoropoulos KG (1996) The vegetation of a small downy oak (Quercuspubescens Willd.) forest in the thessalian plain (C. Greece). In: Proceedings of the ‘‘6th scientific conference of the hellenic botanical society and the biological society of Cyprus’’, Paralimni, 6–11 April 1996, Cyprus, pp 89–98 (in Greek)

  • Theodoropoulos K, Reif A, Athanasiadis N (1995) Quercus dalechampii forests in Central Macedonia, Greece. Bot Helv 105(1):37–54

    Google Scholar 

  • Thompson MTC, Koyama A, Kavanagh KL (2017) Wildfire effects on physiological properties in conifers Idaho forests, USA. Trees 31:545–555. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-016-1489-z

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Trabaud L, Michels C, Grosman J (1985) Recovery of burnt Pinus halepensis Mill. forests. II. Pine reconstitution after wildfire. For Ecol Manage 13:167–179

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valor T, Pique M, Lopez BC, Gonzalez-Olabarria JR (2013) Influence of tree size, reduced competition, and climate on the growth response of Pinus nigra Arn. salzmannii after fire. Ann For Sci 70:503–513. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-013-0284-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu L, Shinzato T, Chen C, Aramoto M (2008) Sprouting characteristics of a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest following clear-cutting in Okinawa, Japan. New For 36:239–246. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-008-9096-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xue Y, Zhang W, Zhou J, Ma C, Ma L (2013) Effects of stump diameter, stump height, and cutting season on Quercus variabilis stump sprouting. Scand J For Res 28(3):223–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/02827581.2012.723742

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to the Directorship of the Forest Service of Evros and the Forest Service of Alexandroupolis for their cooperation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forestry and Management of the Environment and Natural Resources, Democritus University of Thrace, Pantazidou 193, 682 00, Orestiada, Greece

    Elias Milios, Kyriaki Kitikidou & Panagiota Andreadou

Authors
  1. Elias Milios
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kyriaki Kitikidou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Panagiota Andreadou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Elias Milios.

Additional information

Communicated by Gediminas Brazaitis.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Milios, E., Kitikidou, K. & Andreadou, P. Sprouting characteristics of Quercus pubescens Willd. and Quercus frainetto Ten. trees after a wildfire: To cut or not to cut the burned trees?. Eur J Forest Res 136, 971–979 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-017-1085-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-017-1085-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation