Abstract
Old-growth forests are spontaneously developed forest ecosystems without direct human influence in which only natural processes take place. In this study we analyzed the structural sustainability of beech-fir-spruce old-growth forests on dolomite and limestone in the Bosnian Dinaric Mountains. The field work was carried out on permanent experimental plots of 1.0 hectare in size. Thereby, the diameters (d1.30) and the height (h) of all trees within the plots were measured. Based on the available literature, we hypothesized that the structure of old-growth forests provides sustainability through tree-size demographic equilibrium. Thus, the data collected were used to test possible differences between the actual and the theoretically balanced structure in the studied old-growth forests. Statistically significant difference in the actual structure between the two old-growth forests on limestone and dolomite was determined. However, both of them exhibited sustainable diameter distributions. These results point to the importance of preserving old-growth forests for future research as they exemplify the tree-size demographic sustainability and can thus serve as an appropriate reference to managed forests. Concretely, certain structural attributes from old-growth forests could be embedded into the management objectives for increased resilience of managed forests.
Highlights
Sustainability in forestry was first mentioned in 1713 by Hans Carl von Carlowitz [1] and was first defined by Georg-Ludwig Hartig at the end of the 18th century [2]: “All wise foresters use the woods as much as possible, but in such a way that later generations will be able to derive at least as much benefit from them as the present generation claims for itself”
The principle of site class determination based on heights is difficult to apply in the study area because old-growth forests are usually composed of three layers: thin trees, medium-sized trees and large upperstory trees with site classes III, II and I, respectively [39,40,41]
In the old-growth forest Janj, the fir height curve generally shows a uniform flow and it is more flattened for the heights that correspond to diameters above 60 cm (Figure 2)
Summary
Sustainability in forestry was first mentioned in 1713 by Hans Carl von Carlowitz [1] and was first defined by Georg-Ludwig Hartig at the end of the 18th century [2]: “All wise foresters use the woods as much as possible, but in such a way that later generations will be able to derive at least as much benefit from them as the present generation claims for itself”. The concept of sustainable, natural and diverse forests has evolved from the idea of sustainability. It is in terms of research into the development process and structure best represented by old-growth forests. The application of natural principles in the managed beech-fir-spruce forests should provide sustainability at the landscape scale. These forests, if they are in equilibrium (close to normal) by composition and structure, express the naturalness, stability and dynamics of the processes similar to those in old-growth forests. The application of close-to-nature silviculture as a concept has long been known in forestry [3] and enables the sustainable development of forest ecosystems on the basis of natural processes [4]
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