Belowground Competition Directs Spatial Patterns of Seedling Growth in Boreal Pine Forests in Fennoscandia

Axelsson, E. Petter; Lundmark, Tomas; Högberg, Peter; Nordin, Annika

doi:10.3390/f5092106

Cited by 30 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Noguchi and Yoshida 2004;Donoso and Nyland 2005;Nilsson and Wardle 2005;Bose et al 2014;Dodson et al 2014). In these forests, regeneration of desirable tree species (especially, but not limited to shade-intolerant species) may be poor or delayed for years or even decades (Hibbs and Bower 2001;Axelsson et al 2014).…”

Section: Ecological Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silvicultural alternatives to conventional even-aged forest management - what limits global adoption?

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: The development of forestry as a scientific and management discipline over the last two centuries has mainly emphasized intensive management operations focused on increased commodity production, mostly wood. This "conventional" forest management approach has typically favored production of even-aged, single-species stands. While alternative management regimes have generally received less attention, this has been changing over the last three decades, especially in countries with developed economies. Reasons for this change include a combination of new information and concerns about the ecological consequences of intensive forestry practices and a willingness on the part of many forest owners and society to embrace a wider set of management objectives. Alternative silvicultural approaches are characterized by a set of fundamental principles, including avoidance of clearcutting, an emphasis on structural diversity and small-scale variability, deployment of mixed species with natural regeneration, and avoidance of intensive site-preparation methods. Methods: Our compilation of the authors' experiences and perspectives from various parts of the world aims to initiate a larger discussion concerning the constraints to and the potential of adopting alternative silvicultural practices. Results: The results suggest that a wider adoption of alternative silvicultural practices is currently hindered by a suite of ecological, economic, logistical, informational, cultural, and historical constraints. Individual contexts display their own unique combinations and relative significance of these constraints, and accordingly, targeted efforts, such as regulations and incentives, may help to overcome specific challenges. Conclusions: In a broader context, we propose that less emphases on strict applications of principles and on stand structures might provide additional flexibility and facilitate the adoption of alternative silvicultural regimes in a broader set of circumstances. At the same time, the acceptance of alternative silvicultural systems as the "preferred or default mode of management" will necessitate and benefit from the continued development of the scientific basis and valuation of a variety of ecosystem goods and services. This publication is aimed to further the discussion in this context.

show abstract

Section: Ecological Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silvicultural alternatives to conventional even-aged forest management - what limits global adoption?

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Because the effect of browsing was minor, the reasons are likely related to the competitive environment in the gaps. Due to the shadeintolerance of pine and birch, it is apparent that their niche requirements are not met in small canopy gaps, particularly in nutrient-poor soils in which the competition for belowground resources also plays an important role (Björkman and Lundeberg 1971;Axelsson et al 2014).…”

Section: Main Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological effects of disturbance-based restoration in boreal forests

Pasanen¹

2017

Diss. For.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The degradation and disappearance of natural ecosystems and habitats -including forestsis one of the most important factors behind the current global decline in biological diversity. Since most of terrestrial biodiversity is found in forests, restoration of these ecosystems or their natural characteristics has been proposed as one of the main strategies to counteract global species loss.In this thesis, I examined the ecological effects of forest restoration in disturbancedriven boreal conditions. The applied restoration methods (prescribed burning; creation of canopy gaps; dead wood restoration) used natural forest disturbances as the reference point. Specifically, I focused on the effects that restoration has on tree species composition, ageclass structure, and the amount and diversity of dead wood in forest ecosystems. In addition to examining the changes in these structural attributes, I investigated dead-wood-associated fungal communities in the restored substrates, and assessed whether dead wood restoration could be used to conserve rare and threatened fungal species.Of the examined restoration treatments, the combination of prescribed burning and the creation of canopy gaps was found to be the most promising measure for the restoration of age-class structure and tree species composition in pine-dominated forests. Dead wood restoration -by artificially creating standing and fallen large-diameter dead trees -clearly enhanced the amount of dead wood in both pine and spruce dominated forests. Although dead wood restoration increased the abundance of fungal species in the examined forests, all aspects of the qualitative variation in dead wood was found to be difficult to restore in the short-term, since the restored dead wood was mainly in the initial stage of decomposition. The use of various restoration treatments (e.g. the creation of both standing and fallen dead wood) can compensate for some of the missing variation in fungal communities in the restored substrates.Based on my results, disturbance-based restoration produces promising results by the rapid re-introduction of some of the most important structural attributes that have been lost from forests previously managed for timber production. Although the findings in this thesis show the clear positive effects that restoration has on the re-creation of naturally occurring forest characteristics, it appears difficult to restore all the inherent variability of natural forests. A particular challenge originates from the extended time scale of the natural processes, which have created and maintained the full array of ecological structures in forests, including the generally slow processes of stand succession and wood decomposition. To build a more comprehensive understanding of the potential of forest restoration for the conservation of endangered forest-associated species, a substantially longer monitoring period of restored forests would be useful in future studies.

show abstract

“…Consequently, gap size was found to be crucial in initiating forest regeneration. Earlier work in boreal Scots pine forests in northern Sweden found that competition for nutrients is crucial [16,48], while studies in temperate Norway spruce stands highlighted the importance of light for successful regeneration [49]. In boreal Norway spruce single-tree selection forests of central Sweden, no relationship between seedling occurrence and canopy gaps was found [50].…”

Section: Regeneration Establishmentmentioning

confidence: 98%

Natural Regeneration in a Multi-Layered Pinus sylvestris-Picea abies Forest after Target Diameter Harvest and Soil Scarification

Drößler

Fahlvik

Wysocka

et al. 2017

Forests

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Forest management in Sweden can be characterized by even-aged silviculture heavily relying on three established harvest regimes: clearcutting, the seed-tree method, and the shelterwood system. Less intense, small-scale retention harvest systems such as single tree and group selection harvest are rarely used. In addition, natural regeneration dynamics without enrichment planting have barely been studied. Consequently, this study examined natural regeneration establishment in a multi-layered Pinus sylvestris-Picea abies forest stand in southwest Sweden after target diameter harvesting and soil scarification. The creation of forest canopy gaps had a positive effect on total seedling density five years after harvest, mainly due to a significantly higher number of Betula pendula individuals. Seedling density of more desirable tree species suitable for continuous cover forestry such as Fagus sylvatica, Quercus petraea and Picea abies also increased substantially in gaps when compared to pre-harvest conditions or the unharvested plots. In contrast, soil scarification did not increase the number of seedlings of desired tree species due to a significant decrease in Picea abies abundance. Soil moisture and gap size significantly improved Betula pendula seedling establishment while a larger number of Quercus petraea seedlings were observed in Vaccinium myrtillus patches. We conclude that canopy gaps are beneficial under the encountered stand conditions to initiate forest regeneration, and that soil scarification without the timely occurrence of a mast year of desired tree species is not effective in the type of forest studied.

show abstract

Belowground Competition Directs Spatial Patterns of Seedling Growth in Boreal Pine Forests in Fennoscandia

Cited by 30 publications

References 35 publications

Silvicultural alternatives to conventional even-aged forest management - what limits global adoption?

Silvicultural alternatives to conventional even-aged forest management - what limits global adoption?

Ecological effects of disturbance-based restoration in boreal forests

Natural Regeneration in a Multi-Layered Pinus sylvestris-Picea abies Forest after Target Diameter Harvest and Soil Scarification

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About