Inter-annual and inter-plot variations of wood biomass production as related to biotic and abiotic characteristics at a deciduous forest in complex terrain, Korea

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate inter-annual and inter-plot variation of wood biomass production (WBP) and to investigate the relationships of the WBP variations with several biotic and abiotic characteristics at a deciduous forest in complex terrain, the Gwangneung Experimental Forest, Korea. Based on field survey in the plot-scale study area, WBP during 1991–2004 was estimated by a dendrochronological method. Our field data indicated that the inter-annual variation of WBP was closely related to the seasonal climate of both winter air temperature and spring precipitation. The inter-plot variation of WBP was highly associated with basal area, biomass, and frequency of Quercus spp. in the plots, and correlations of the inter-plot variation with the stand characteristics of the specific species were stronger than those with slope and soil water content. Our results suggest that the annual fluctuation of forest productivity is primarily governed by severe climate in a season of the year, and the spatial distribution of a dominant species largely represent plot variation in the productivity. Our findings contribute to an enhanced understanding of climatic effects on the annual variability of forest productivity and the spatial heterogeneity of the productivity, which are extensively concerned with forested ecosystems of Korea.