We compared four types of 30-year-old forest stands growing on spoil of opencast oil shale mines in Estonia. The stand types were: (1) natural stands formed by spontaneous succession, and plantations of (2) Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine), (3) Betula pendula (silver birch), and (4) Alnus glutinosa (European black alder). In all stands we measured properties of the tree layer (species richness, stand density, and volume of growing stock), understory (density and species richness of shrubs and tree saplings), and ground vegetation (aboveground biomass, species richness, and species diversity). The tree layer was most diverse though sparse in the natural stands. Understory species richness per 100-m 2 plot was highest in the natural stand, but total stand richness was equal in the natural and alder stands, which were higher than the birch and pine stands. The understory sapling density was lower than 50 saplings/100 m 2 in the plantations, while it varied between 50 and 180 saplings/100 m 2 in the natural stands. Growing stock volume was the least in natural stands and greatest in birch stands. The aboveground biomass of ground vegetation was highest in alder stands and lowest in the pine stands. We can conclude that spontaneous succession promotes establishment of diverse vegetation. In plantations the establishment of diverse ground vegetation depends on planted tree species.

Latitudinal variation in needle longevity of conifers in response to climatic variability is a well-known phenomenon, but its significance has only rarely been studied. Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stands were investigated in four locations in Lapland (northern Finland and northern Sweden, 67-68 degrees N) and in four locations in Estonia (59 degrees N) to test the hypothesis that plasticity in needle longevity results in similar needle biomass per foliated shoot length across latitudes. The needle-trace method (NTM) revealed the dynamics of needle fascicles attached to stem shoots. Long-term mean needle age was 2 years greater in Lapland than in Estonia. In both regions, mean needle age was strongly and negatively related to yearly needle-fascicle production rate relative to the number of needles on the same shoot axis. Although significantly fewer needle-fascicles were produced annually in trees in Lapland than in Estonia, the overall number of fascicles attached to the stem shoots, needle-fascicle density and individual needle dry mass did not differ between regions. Consequently, needle biomass per foliated shoot length was similar in trees in both regions. Thus, our results support the theory that plasticity in needle longevity helps Scots pine to compensate for reduced needle production so that the same foliar biomass per shoot is retained under a wide range of growth conditions.

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Biomass allocation and growth of Scots pine, Pinus sylvestris L., of various sizes (height 0.03–20 m) and ages (1–151 years) were investigated in two infertile sites (raised bog and sand dunes) to determine relative nitrogen and phosphorus limitations on productivity and their interactions and size-dependent controls. Dry mass weighted average nitrogen (NW) and phosphorus (PW) contents were higher in P. sylvestris in sand dunes than in those in the raised bog, but PW/NW ratios overlapped between the sites. Leaf dry mass ratio (FL) and leaf-area ratio (LAR) increased with NW, and FL increased with PW. The relative growth rate (RG) was more strongly associated with PW than with NW. The net assimilation rate per leaf dry mass (NARM) scaled positively with PW but not with NW, demonstrating that the stronger effect of PW on growth was due to modified biomass allocation and physiology (RG = NARM × FL), while NW affected growth via biomass allocation. Partitioning and growth characteristics were poorly related to the PW/NW ratio. The overall decrease of growth in larger trees resulted from their lower LAR and FL. Increases in size further led to a lower NW but higher PW. We conclude that optimum productivity at a given NW requires a certain minimum PW, not a specific "non-limiting" PW/NW ratio. While nutrients affect growth by changing biomass allocation and physiological activity, size primarily modifies biomass allocation.

Ecosystems that develop on mine spoil can serve as significant sinks for CO2. The aim of this study was to estimate the rate of carbon accumulation and its distribution along forest ecosystem partitions in young Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris L.) plantations in the Narva oil shale opencast, Estonia. The tree layer was measured in 2004 in 13 stands afforested with 2-year-old seedlings during 1968 to 1994. Three stands (afforested in 1990, 1983, and 1968) were selected for detailed analysis of the carbon sequestration. Soil profiles were sampled in these stands in 2005. Radiocarbon analysis combined with a simple model of litter production was used to differentiate between plant-derived recent carbon and carbon stemming from fragments of oil shale. Total carbon accumulated since afforestation in vegetation, forest floor, and A horizon was 7.8 t·ha–1 in the stand established in 1990, 34.5 t·ha–1 in that established in 1983, and 133.4 t·ha–1 in that established in 1968. Most of the sequestered carbon was allocated to tree stems; their portion increasing with age from 28% to 51%. The portion of recent soil organic carbon increased from 5% to 23%, which shows that soils contribute significantly to carbon accumulation during early forest succession on degraded land.