Abstract
In this study, the structure and spatial patterns of adjacent beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forest stands, both those having undergone intensive management and those without management intervention over the last 50 years were analyzed. Data was collected from six 1ha permanent research plots. Four plots were established in varying parts of the reserve, comprising entirely of even-aged managed forest stands; two 1-ha permanent plots were located in a non-interventional stand. For each woody stem, basic dendrometrical data and coordinates were measured. The total volume of dead wood (standing and fallen) and its classes of decay were recorded. The structure and species diversity of forest stands were analyzed using skewness and the coefficient of variation of dbh distribution, the Gini index, the Shannon index, the mingling index, the Pielou index of segregation and the Hopkins-Skellam, Pielou-Mountford, Clark-Evans aggregation indices, the diameter differentiation index and Ripley K function. The diameter distribution of the managed stands was generally normal, albeit with a large diameter range and with a typical flat diameter curve. A general lack of giant trees, lower rates of coarse woody debris (from 0.2 to 0.5% of the total living volume) and random tree distribution were also confirmed. Within the investigated area, the diameter differentiation and Gini indices along with the degree of skewness and the coefficient of variation made it possible to monitor the shift from even-aged forest management to spontaneous forest development. In general, spontaneous development was marked mainly by aggregated tree distribution in the middle and lower layer, and a shift from normal to reversed J-shaped dbh distribution. The total volume of deadwood in one of the unmanaged plots amounted to 48.10 m3/ha (9.5% of living wood volume). The use of adequate structural and spatial analysis as indicators of natural forest development are discussed.
Highlights
In Central Europe there are currently no forest ecosystems that have been excluded from human impact
Studies that investigate natural stand dynamics in Central Europe are hampered by the lack of large tracts of old-growth forests, making it difficult to understand spatial and temporal variation in disturbance regimes at the landscape scale (Nagel et al, 2006), and the specification of «authentic» forest structure at the landscape level may be loaded with a high degree of uncertainty
The study results are incompatible with models that anticipate a stage of beech forest development characterized by high biomass accumulation and a more or less homogeneous vertical structure
Summary
In Central Europe there are currently no forest ecosystems that have been excluded from human impact. Studies that investigate natural stand dynamics in Central Europe are hampered by the lack of large tracts of old-growth forests, making it difficult to understand spatial and temporal variation in disturbance regimes at the landscape scale (Nagel et al, 2006), and the specification of «authentic» forest structure at the landscape level may be loaded with a high degree of uncertainty. It is commonly accepted that old-growth temperate forests are largely structured by disturbances, where major disturbances can initiate new forest stands, but that only small-scale disturbances are evident in a nearsteady state The natural beech stands may exhibit a more or less diversified vertical structure and spatial texture depending upon the site- and location-specific disturbance regime. The ecological features of beech alone should not preclude the shaping of a stand of a given structure type
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