Growth Patterns in Forests of the Canton of Berne, Switzerland, Based on Inventory Data

Abstract

Monitoring forest condition and changes over time has a long tradition in Switzerland. The idea of describing stand development on the basis of permanent observa- tions emerged during the last century. Gurnaud (1878), working in France, elaborated rules for the application of repeated measurements in estimating increment; this procedure is known as the control method. These rules were first applied in Switzerland by Biolley in 1890 to the forest of Couvet in the Jura (Biolley 1921; Kurt, 1987). Schrnid (1963, 1967) combined the techniques of continuous forest inventory (CFI) with the control method to establish an inventory system which has now been implemented in many Swiss cantons. Control sampling is based on permanent plots; increment is determined by comparing data taken from successive inventories. In this study, data will be used that have been assessed in forest management planning inventories in the canton of Berne. We are grateful to the Bernese Forest Service, especially to Dr. J. Grilc, who generously made the data for this study available. The findings of this study will be complemented by the reports of Zingg and Braker (in this volume), who worked with data from permanent growth and yield plots and with tree ring data.