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The Case of Yatir Forest

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Forest Management and the Water Cycle

Part of the book series: Ecological Studies ((ECOLSTUD,volume 212))

Abstract

Pinus halepensis (Mill.) forest canopy transpiration was measured, using the heat-pulse method, in a forest plantation growing under semi-arid climatic conditions at the edge of the Israeli Negev desert, during 3 successive hydrological years (2003–2006). The daily transpiration rates were related to soil water content and ambient meteorological parameters measured by the flux tower erected in the geographical centre of the forest. The overall measured and estimated canopy transpiration (Tcanopy) of 300 trees ha−1 summed to 148, 181 and 135 mm year−1, representing ∼65%, ∼48% and ∼60%, respectively, of the annual rainfall in the hydrological years 2003–2004, 2004–2005, 2005–2006. Summed daily Tcanopy during the measurement periods in the 3 hydrological years constituted ∼59%, ∼51%, and ∼70%, respectively, of the summed ecosystem evapotranspiration (ET, mm day−1) during the day (0600–1,900 h); furthermore, summed daily Tcanopy constituted ∼14%, ∼20% and ∼15%, respectively, of the summed potential evapotranspiration (PET, mm day−1). The importance of rain-storm intensity, in addition to rain-storm amounts, in this semi-arid area was revealed. The hydrological years 2003–2004 and 2005–2006 had similar rain amounts of 231 and 224 mm, respectively, but very different storm intensities: hence, very different impacts on the soil profile water content were observed, resulting in very different daily transpiration (T) rates and different T/PET ratios. Slope aspect influences on daily Tcanopy rates were more pronounced in droughty years. Trees growing on north-facing slopes transpired less than those on the plateau or south-facing slopes, a situation which enables fine-tuning of the stocking density on the different slope aspects.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Natural Resources, Agricultural Research Organization, the Volcani Centre, 6, Bet Dagan, 50250, Israel

    Gabriel Schiller

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  1. Gabriel Schiller
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Correspondence to Gabriel Schiller .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Forschungszentrum Waldökosysteme, Universität Göttingen, Büsgenweg 2, Göttingen, 37077, Germany

    Michael Bredemeier

  2. , ARO Volcani Center, Institute of Soil, Water and Environment, Bet Dagan, 50250, Israel

    Shabtai Cohen

  3. College of Natural Sciences, School of the Environment & Natural Reso, University of Wales, Bangor, LL57 2UW, Gwynedd, United Kingdom

    Douglas L. Godbold

  4. , Institute of Ecology, Tallinn University, Uus-Sadama 5, Tallinn, 10120, Estonia

    Elve Lode

  5. Faculty of Forestry, Department of Natural Environment, Technical University Zvolen, T.G. Masaryka 24, Zvolen, 96053, Slovakia

    Viliam Pichler

  6. Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow, Zürcherstr. 111, Birmensdorf, 8903, Switzerland

    Patrick Schleppi

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Schiller, G. (2010). The Case of Yatir Forest. In: Bredemeier, M., Cohen, S., Godbold, D., Lode, E., Pichler, V., Schleppi, P. (eds) Forest Management and the Water Cycle. Ecological Studies, vol 212. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9834-4_9

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