Modelling branch characteristics of Norway spruce from wide spacings in Germany

Hein, Sebastian; Mäkinen, Harri; Yue, Chaofang; Kohnle, Ulrich

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2007.01.014

Cited by 52 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…If the base of the living crown is above the first logs, then the models will not provide information about past branch diameter and knot size in the most valuable part of the tree. Previous studies have shown that the largest branches are found above the crown base (Mäkinen et al 2003, Garber and Maguire 2005, Hein et al 2007), suggesting that estimates of current maximum branch diameter provide an approximate upper limit to past maximum branch diameters. Observations of knot diameters along the stem of Scots pine (Moberg 1999) are broadly consistent with this supposition; knot sizes remained more or less constant between the base of the crown and the butt region.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Branch diameter increases with distance below the tree apex, although for all but trees in young stands, the greatest diameter typically occurs above the crown base (Mäkinen et al 2003, Garber and Maguire 2005, Weiskittel et al 2010. Whorl level models also indicate that maximum branch diameter increases with tree characteristics representative of tree size and growing space, such as diameter at breast height (DBH) crown width, tree height, and tree spacing (Garber and Maguire 2005, Hein et al 2007, Benjamin et al 2009, Weiskittel et al 2010.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicting maximum branch diameter from crown dimensions, stand characteristics and tree species

GrootArthur¹,

SchneiderRobert

2011

The Forestry Chronicle

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Forest resource inventories must include wood quality information to support the optimum use of wood fibre. The objective of this study was to develop models relating maximum live branch diameter (MBD), which affects lumber value, to tree and stand characteristics that can be measured through current and emerging remote sensing technologies. Using non-linear mixed effects models for six Canadian conifer species, as well as for three broad-leaved species, MBD was related to crown radius, tree height, crown length, stand basal area, and basal area of trees larger than the subject tree. Models that included only individual tree characteristics (crown radius, tree height, and crown length) did not perform as well as models that additionally included stand characteristics (stand basal area and basal area of larger trees). Models that took into account tree species performed better than models that did not; in particular, broadleaved species had much thicker branches than conifers. The best model did not show bias with respect to independent variables and had root mean square error of 0.32 cm. For the best model, prediction error was not related to silvicultural treatment. These model characteristics strongly support the potential to successfully predict MBD from remotely sensed data. Key words: branch diameter, model, forest inventory RÉSUMÉLes inventaires des ressources forestières doivent inclure des informations sur la qualité de la matière ligneuse afin de pouvoir utiliser de façon optimale cette dernière. L' objectif de cette étude visait à élaborer des modèles reliant le diamètre maximal des branches vivantes (DMB), qui a une influence sur la valeur du bois de sciage, aux caractéristiques des arbres et du peuplement qui peuvent être mesurées au moyen des technologies actuelles et émergentes de télédétection. En utilisant des modèles non linéaires à effets variables pour six espèces de conifères du Canada, ainsi que pour trois espèces de feuillus, le DMB a été relié au diamètre de la cime, à la hauteur de l'arbre, à la longueur de la cime, à la surface terrière du peuplement et à la surface terrière des arbres plus gros que l'arbre étudié. Les modèles qui comprenaient seulement les caractéristiques individuelles des arbres (diamètre de la cime, hauteur de l'arbre et longueur de la cime) n' ont pas performé aussi bien que les modèles qui comprenaient, en plus, les caractéristiques du peuplement (surface terrière du peuplement et surface terrière des arbres plus gros). Les modèles qui ont tenu compte des espèces d'arbres ont mieux performé que les modèles qui n' en tenaient pas compte; notamment, les espèces feuillues avaient des branches beaucoup plus grosses en diamètre que les conifères. Le meilleur modèle n'a pas démontré de biais en fonction des variables indépendantes et affichait une erreur quadratique moyenne de 0,32 cm. Dans le cas du meilleur modèle, l' erreur de prédiction n' était pas reliée au traitement sylvicole. Ces caractéristiques des modèles démontrent la possibilité de prédire avec succ...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predicting maximum branch diameter from crown dimensions, stand characteristics and tree species

GrootArthur¹,

SchneiderRobert

2011

The Forestry Chronicle

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“…Kuuluvainen 1988, Kantola and Mäkelä 2004, Hein et al 2007). However, in our comparison, spherical trees and conical trees were growing side by side under the same management regime and the same soil conditions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sub-montane Norway spruce as alternative seed source for a changing climate? A genetic and growth analysis at the fringe of its natural range in Austria

Schiessl¹,

Grabner²,

Golesch³

et al. 2010

Silva Fenn.

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, S. 2010. Sub-montane Norway spruce as alternative seed source for a changing climate? A genetic and growth analysis at the fringe of its natural range in Austria. Silva Fennica 44(4): 615-627.Insights into the intraspecific variation in climate response of forest trees and the utilization of suitable seed sources are required to maintain forest ecoystems under expected climate change. Individuals of Norway spruce with an anomalous spherical-shaped crown were characterized by genetic (using a mtDNA marker) and dendroclimatic analysis. Such trees occur frequently at the fringe of the spruce distribution in east/south-east Austria. We employed pair-wise comparisons between trees with spherical and "regular" conical crowns on 47 sites. No evidence was found for a different phylogeographic history of spherical and conical spruces, but the high allelic diversity at the nad1 locus highlighted the importance of east/south-east Austria as refugium and migration corridor for Norway spruce. Analysis of mean annual increment revealed a larger amount of earlywood within the sapwood area and fewer negative pointer years for spherical spruces than for conical ones, pointing at a higher vitality and smaller interactions between climate and growth for spherical spruces. Although the results cannot explain the anomalous crown form, they suggest spherical trees to have a higher ability to cope the warm and dry climate of the region than "regular" conical spruces. We discuss the origin of spherical crowns in terms of population history and phenotypic plasticity and speculate on possible effects of crown architecture on canopy-atmosphere exchange.

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“…The main measures regulating branch development, such as artificial pruning [8,18] and stand density control [16,17,[19][20][21], have been used in practice for a long time. Planting density may have no effect on early bud formation, but it does influence subsequent growth and persistence of branches, which then affects branch occlusion [21][22][23]. Hence, proper planting density is important for the improvement of timber quality.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Branch Development of Five-Year-Old Betula alnoides Plantations in Response to Planting Density

Chun-sheng

Cheng

Hein

et al. 2018

Forests

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Branch development in the lower part of stem is critical to both early stem growth and wood quality of the most valuable section of tree, and its regulation through planting density has always been greatly concerned. Here the effect of planting density on branch development was examined in a five-year-old plantation of Betula alnoides with six planting densities (625, 833, 1111, 1250, 1667, and 2500 stems per hectare (sph)) in Guangdong Province, South China. Branch quantity (number, proportion, and density), morphology (diameter, length, and angle), position (height and orientation), and branch status (dead or alive) were investigated for 54 dominant or co-dominant trees under six treatments of planting density after the growth of each tree was measured. Factors influencing branch development were also explored by mixed modelling. The results showed that the mean tree heights of 1250 and 1667 sph treatments were higher than those of other planting density treatments. The quantity of live branches decreased with increasing planting density. However, planting density had no significant effect on the number of all branches, and there existed no remarkable difference in branch number and proportion among four orientations. As for branch morphology, only the largest branch diameter had a significantly negative correlation with planting density. In addition, high planting density significantly increased the height of the largest branch within the crown. Mixed effects models indicated that branch diameter, length, and angle were closely correlated with each other, and they were all in positively significant correlation to the branch height at the stem section below six meters. It was concluded that properly increasing planting density will promote natural pruning, improve early branch control, and be beneficial for wood production from the most valuable section of the stem.

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Modelling branch characteristics of Norway spruce from wide spacings in Germany

Cited by 52 publications

References 23 publications

Predicting maximum branch diameter from crown dimensions, stand characteristics and tree species

Predicting maximum branch diameter from crown dimensions, stand characteristics and tree species

Sub-montane Norway spruce as alternative seed source for a changing climate? A genetic and growth analysis at the fringe of its natural range in Austria

Branch Development of Five-Year-Old Betula alnoides Plantations in Response to Planting Density

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