Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Recruitment of tree species in mixed selection and irregular shelterwood forest stands

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Annals of Forest Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Context

Recruitment is an important process in forest stand dynamics, especially in uneven-aged stands. Continuous recruitment is a prerequisite for diverse, uneven-aged silvicultural systems, but patterns may vary significantly.

Aims

The main goals of the study were to examine the recruitment of the main tree species in selection and irregular shelterwood stands in silver fir–European beech–Norway spruce forests and to determine the main predictors of the recruitment occurrence.

Methods

Data from 5,486 permanent inventory plots were used to study recruitment of saplings into the tree layer (diameter at breast height ≥10 cm).

Results

Recruitment rate differed significantly between selection (7.6 trees ha−1 year−1) and irregular shelterwood (26.1 trees ha−1 year−1) stands. Shade-tolerant fir and beech recruited with higher probability in selection stands, while light-dependent sycamore recruited with higher probability in irregular stands. In addition, forest types, soil pH, stand basal area, mean diameter, and the basal area of the same tree species with respect to recruitment were found to be important predictors of recruitment occurrence.

Conclusions

The application of different uneven-aged silvicultural systems and their forms makes it possible to considerably influence the future tree species composition of uneven-aged forests.

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

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Allison PD (1999) Logistic regression using SAS system: theory and application. SAS Institute Inc, Cary

    Google Scholar 

  • Boncina A (2011) History, current status and future prospects of uneven-aged forest management in the Dinaric region: an overview. Forestry 84:467–478. doi:10.1093/forestry/cpr023

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brassel P, Lischke H (2001) Swiss National Forest Inventory: methods and models of the second assessment. WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute, Birmensdorf, Switzerland

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron AD, Hands MOR (2010) Developing a sustainable irregular structure: an evaluation of three inventories at 6-year intervals in an irregular mixed-species stand in Scotland. Forestry 83:469–475. doi:10.1093/forestry/cpq029

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collet C, Lanter O, Pardos M (2001) Effects of canopy opening on height and diameter growth in naturally regenerated beech seedlings. Ann For Sci 58:127–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diaci J (2006) Gojenje gozdov: pragozdovi, sestoji, zvrsti, nacrtovanje, izbrana poglavja (in Slovene). Biotechnical faculty. Department for Forestry and Renewable Forest Resources, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Google Scholar 

  • Duc P (1991) Untersuchungen zur Dynamik des Nachwuchses im Plenterwald. Schweiz Z Forstwes 142:299–319

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferlin F (2002) The growth potential of understorey silver fir and Norway spruce for uneven-aged forest management in Slovenia. Forestry 75:375–383. doi:10.1093/forestry/75.4.375

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ficko A, Poljanec A, Boncina A (2011) Do changes in spatial distribution, structure and abundance of silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) indicate its decline? For Ecol Manage 261:844–854. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2010.12.014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gill RMA (1992) A review of damage by mammals in north temperate forests. 3. Impact on trees and forests. Forestry 65:363–388. doi:10.1093/forestry/65.4.363-a

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guisan A, Zimmermann N (2000) Predictive habitat distribution models in ecology. Ecol Model 135:147–186. doi:10.1016/S0304-3800(00)00354-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jerina K (2012) Roads and supplemental feeding affect home-range size of Slovenian red deer more than natural factors. J Mammal (in press)

  • Klopcic M, Jerina K, Boncina A (2010) Long-term changes of structure and tree species composition in Dinaric uneven-aged forests: are red deer an important factor? Eur J For Res 129:277–288. doi:10.1007/s10342-009-0325-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kneeshaw DD, Prevost M (2007) Natural canopy gap disturbances and their role in maintaining mixed-species forests of central Quebec, Canada. Can J For Res 37:1534–1544. doi:10.1139/x07-112

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lähde E, Laiho O, Norokorpi Y, Saksa T (2002) Development of Norway spruce dominated stands after single-tree selection and low thinning. Can J For Res 32:1577–1584. doi:10.1139/x02-075

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leinbundgut H (1952) Rolle und Grundlagen der Planung beim schweizerischen Femelschlag- und Plenterbetrieb. Allg Forst- und Jagdzeitung 123:93–100

    Google Scholar 

  • Lexerød N (2005) Recruitment models for different tree species in Norway. For Ecol Manage 206:91–108. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2004.11.001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lexerød N, Eid T (2005) Recruitment models for Norway spruce, Scots pine, birch and other broadleaves in young growth forests in Norway. Silva Fenn 39:391–406

    Google Scholar 

  • Lundqvist L (2004) Stand development in uneven-aged sub-alpine Picea abies stands after partial harvest estimated from repeated surveys. Forestry 77:119–129. doi:10.1093/forestry/77.2.119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Malcolm DC, Mason WL, Clarke GC (2001) The transformation of conifer forests in Britain—regeneration, gap size and silvicultural systems. For Ecol Manage 151:7–23. doi:10.1016/S0378-1127(00)00692-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mathews JD (1999) Silvicultural systems. Oxford University Press Inc, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Motta R (1996) Impact of wild ungulates on forest regeneration and tree composition of mountain forests in the Western Italian Alps. For Ecol Manage 88:93–98. doi:10.1016/S0378-1127(96)03814-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagel T, Svoboda M, Rugani T, Diaci J (2010) Gap regeneration and replacement patterns in an old-growth Fagus–Abies forest of Bosnia–Herzegovina. Plant Ecol 208:307–318. doi:10.1007/s11258-009-9707-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliver CD, Larsen BC (1996) Forest stand dynamics. Wiley, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Petritan AM, von Lüpke B, Petritan IC (2007) Effects of shade on growth and mortality of maple (Acer pseudoplatanus), ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and beech (Fagus sylvatica) saplings. Forestry 80:397–412. doi:10.1093/forestry/cpm030

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raymond P, Bedard S, Roy V, Larouche C, Tremblay S (2009) The irregular shelterwood system: review, classification, and potential application to forests affected by partial disturbances. J For 107:405–413

    Google Scholar 

  • Rozenbergar D, Mikac S, Anic I, Diaci J (2007) Gap regeneration patterns in relationship to light heterogeneity in two old-growth beech-fir forest reserves in South East Europe. Forestry 80:431–443. doi:10.1093/forestry/cpm037

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schäffer A, Gazin A, d’Alverny A (1930) Sapinieres: Le jardinage par contenance (Methode du controle par les courbes). Presses Universitaire de France, Paris

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz JP (1975) Dynamique et conditions d’équilibre de peuplements jardinés sur les stations de la hêtraie à sapin. Schweiz Z Forstwes 126:637–671

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz JP (2001) Der Plenterwald und weitere Formen strukturierter und gemischter Wälder. Parey, Berlin, Germany

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz JP (2006) Modelling the demographic sustainability of pure beech plenter forests in Eastern Germany. Ann For Sci 63:93–100. doi:10.1007/s10342-006-0111-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SFS (2010) Databases on forest stand characteristics and permanent sampling plots. Slovenia Forest Service, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Google Scholar 

  • Stancioiu PT, O’Hara KL (2006) Regeneration growth in different light environments of mixed species, multiaged, mountainous forests of Romania. Eur J For Res 125:151–162. doi:10.1007/s10342-005-0069-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tjoelker MG, Boratiński A, Bugała W (2007) Biology and ecology of Norway spruce. Springer, Dordrecht

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Yoshida T, Noguchi M, Akibayashi Y, Noda M, Kadomatsu M, Sasa K (2006) Twenty years of community dynamics in a mixed conifer—broad-leaved forest under a selection system in northern Japan. Can J For Res 36:1363–1375. doi:10.1139/x06-041

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Slovenian Forest Service, especially Dragan Matijasic and Ales Poljanec, for providing the access to forest inventory data, which made our study feasible. The comments of the three anonymous reviewers significantly improved the earlier version of the manuscript.

Funding

The study was supported in part by a grant from Pahernikova ustanova (contract number 11/2011).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forestry and Renewable Forest Resources, University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Faculty, Vecna pot 83, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Matija Klopcic & Andrej Boncina

Authors
  1. Matija Klopcic
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Andrej Boncina
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matija Klopcic.

Additional information

Handling Editor: Douglass Jacobs

Contributions of the co-authors

The first author’s contribution to the paper was in preparing the data, runing the data analysis, processing results, and writing the paper.

The last author’s contribution was in producing the research idea, coordinating and supervising the work, and editing the final version of the paper.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Klopcic, M., Boncina, A. Recruitment of tree species in mixed selection and irregular shelterwood forest stands. Annals of Forest Science 69, 915–925 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-012-0224-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-012-0224-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation