Needle litterfall in stands of pinus sylvestris L. in sweden, in relation to site quality, stand age and latitude

Abstract

Current annual needle litterfall was analysed in 16 Scots pine stands of different ages, site qualities and latitudes. As a mean, the current needle litterfall was 1605 kg (dw) per ha and year, corresponding to a current annual volume increase of 7.9 m3. It was shown that the needle litterfall 1) increased with increasing site quality, 2) decreased with increasing stand age, and 3) decreased with increasing latitude. An increase in the number of living age classes of needles in the tree crowns with increasing latitude was observed. This should be considered if total needle biomass in the crowns is to be estimated from litterfall. A method is proposed for calculating current annual needle litterfall in Pinus sylvestris stands of any age, site quality or latitude in Sweden.