Abstract
Penalized regression splines and distributed lag models were used to evaluate the effects of species mixing on productivity and climate-related resistance via tree-ring width measurements from sample cores. Data were collected in Lower Austria from sample plots arranged in a triplet design. Triplets were established for sessile oak [Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.] and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.], and European beech and European larch (Larix decidua Mill.). Mixing shortened the temporal range of time-lagged climate effects for beech, spruce, and larch, but only slightly changed the effects for oak and pine. Beech and spruce as well as beech and larch exhibited contrasting climate responses, which were consequently reversed by mixing. Single-tree productivity was reduced by between − 15% and − 28% in both the mixed oak–pine and beech–spruce stands but only slightly reduced in the mixed beech–larch stands. Measures of climate sensitivity and resistance were derived by model predictions of conditional expectations for simulated climate sequences. The relative climate sensitivity was, respectively, reduced by between − 16 and − 39 percentage points in both the beech–spruce and beech–larch mixed stands. The relative climate sensitivity of pine increased through mixing, but remained unaffected for oak. Mixing increased the resistance in both the beech–larch and the beech–spruce mixed stand. In the mixed oak–pine stand, resistance of pine was decreased and remained unchanged for oak.
Highlights
Altered environmental conditions during the past century, expressed by warmer climates and changed atmospheric depositions, have led to accelerated growth dynamics in forest ecosystems and produced overall increased growth rates (Pretzsch et al 2014)
It is plausible that the curves of the diagnostic criteria showed signs of cyclic trends, which were especially pronounced for beech
The optimal number of lags evaluated via the minimum Akaike information criterion (AIC) varied among the tree species and between the two mixture scenarios associated with each species (Fig. 3)
Summary
Altered environmental conditions during the past century, expressed by warmer climates and changed atmospheric depositions, have led to accelerated growth dynamics in forest ecosystems and produced overall increased growth rates (Pretzsch et al 2014). Recent projections of future climate conditions in the greater. According to predictions from regional climate models, the occurrence of longer and more severe drought periods is likely (Jacob et al 2014). Contrary to productivity gains observed in the past, the intensification of such drought periods is likely to have negative effects on the future productivity of European forests (Lindner et al 2010), especially because drought is the major driver of tree mortality in various forest ecosystems globally (Allen et al 2010; Clark et al 2016)
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