Abstract
Our research of common aspen (Populus tremula L.) focused on the forested mountainous area in central Slovakia. Forest stands (specifically 27 plots from 9 sites) with ages between 2 and 15 years were included in measurements and sampling. Whole tree biomass of aspen individuals was destructively sampled, separated into tree components (leaves, branches, stem, and roots), and then dried and weighed. Subsamples of fresh leaves from three crown parts (upper, middle, and lower) were scanned, dried, and weighed. Allometric biomass models with stem base diameter as an independent variable were derived for individual tree components. Basic foliage traits, i.e., leaf mass, leaf area, and specific leaf area, were modelled with regard to tree size and leaf position within the crown. Moreover, biomass stock of the woody parts and foliage as well as the leaf area index were modelled using mean stand diameter as an independent variable. Foliage traits changed with both tree size and crown part. Biomass models showed that foliage contribution to total tree biomass decreased with tree size. The total foliage area of a tree increased with tree size, reaching its maximum value of about 12 m2 for a tree with a diameter of 120 mm. Leaf area index increased with mean stand diameter, reaching a maximum value of 13.5 m2 m−2. Since no data for biomass allocation for common aspen had been available at either the tree or stand levels, our findings might serve for both theoretical (e.g., modelling of growth processes) and practical (forestry and agro-forestry stakeholders) purposes.
Highlights
Knowledge on the patterns of biomass partitioning of a variety of species is of high importance for carbon reporting [1], tree physiology, plant ecology, and process-based modelling [2], and has applications for forestry management [3]
Our research focused on the forested mountainous area of central Slovakia belonging to the research focused on thethe forested mountainous of central
Differences in SLA between the crown parts increased with tree size
Summary
Knowledge on the patterns of biomass partitioning of a variety of species is of high importance for carbon reporting [1], tree physiology, plant ecology, and process-based modelling [2], and has applications for forestry management [3]. Considering a range of forest tree species, a lot of works focused on biomass allocation and foliage traits with regard to a number of different factors, e.g., competition in a stand [9,10]. Few authors [11,12,13] used the ratio between foliage dry mass and total dry plant biomass (leaf mass ratio; LMR) or between foliage area and total plant dry biomass (leaf area ratio; LAR) to link them to ecological. Specific leaf area (ratio between leaf area and dry leaf mass; SLA)
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