Root sprouting in American beech: production, survival, and the effect of parent tree vigor

Abstract

Root sprout age-class distributions around American beech trees were measured to characterize production of sprouts under closed canopies. Annual mortality of root sprouts was estimated by static and cohort life table analyses. Sprouts around parent trees with and without beech bark disease were compared to test for effects of lowered parent vigor on sprout production and vigor. Age-class distributions were highly variable, indicating episodic production of sprouts. Trends in the data suggested that (i) for individual parent beech trees, the number of sprouts per age-class decreased exponentially as sprout age increased; and (ii) parent trees with larger diameters had more sprouts, more sprout age-classes, but greater variability in age-class distribution. Life table analyses indicated uniform per capita mortality rates for clumps of sprouts but decreasing mortality with age for individual sprouts within clumps. Low parent vigor, due in part to beech bark disease, was weakly correlated with reduced sprout production, but diseased trees maintained populations of older sprouts that differed little from sprouts associated with nondiseased trees.