Natural regeneration following wind disturbance increases the diversity of managed lowland forests in NE Poland

Abstract

Questions Are there significant differences in the density and composition of natural regeneration among habitat types? Is the abundance of regeneration higher in patches more seriously damaged by a windstorm than in patches not affected by the wind? Is the species diversity of regeneration greater than the diversity of mature trees prior to disturbance? Location Szast Protected Forest, NE Poland. Methods Throughout the Szast P.F., 111 sample plots were distributed in a regular grid 13 years after a windstorm. In plots located in disturbed forests, we measured all the canopy trees and the 30 young individuals of each size class (seedlings, short saplings and tall saplings) closest to the plot centre. In non‐disturbed patches, we measured all trees within a plot of predefined radius. For statistical analyses of differences in the diversity between mature stands and young generation, we used the Kruskal–Wallis test followed by Dunn's multiple comparison test. The relationship between the canopy layer and the young generation of trees was analysed using Spearman's rank correlation and a classic negative binomial regression. Results Natural regeneration was more abundant in the coniferous and mixed coniferous habitat types than in the mixed deciduous type. The density of young trees was negatively correlated with the basal area of the trees that survived the windstorm and was positively correlated with canopy tree mortality. After the windstorm, Pinus sylvestris lost more trees than the other species; Picea abies and Betula pendula slightly increased their share; and the species that benefited most from the disturbance was Quercus robur. In the coniferous habitat type, the species diversity of the young generation of trees was higher than the diversity of the canopy trees prior to the windstorm. Conclusions Leaving wind‐disturbed areas to natural regeneration could be a viable option for converting coniferous plantations into more diverse and species‐rich stands.

Role of environmental filtering and seed source availability in natural regeneration processes following large-scale disturbances in mountain forests

“…The process of natural regeneration following large-scale disturbances leads to a more diverse species composition among young trees compared to the composition of mature stands. In that respect, the results are in agreement with the findings of earlier studies (Harmer and Morgan 2009;Bolte et al 2014;Szwagrzyk et al 2018). A large role in this process is played by S. aucuparia; the importance of that species for regeneration following disturbances was documented in several studies (Jonášová et al 2010;Żywiec et al 2013).…”

“…The spontaneous regeneration of forest stands is a good example of a situation where all these mechanisms (environmental filtering, seed source availability and historical factors) play important roles (Wild et al 2014;Szwagrzyk et al 2018). The relative importance of these mechanisms depends on the ecological context and can be difficult to separate (Brown et al 2015).…”

Short-Term Dynamics of Vegetation Diversity and Aboveground Biomass of Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. Forests after Heavy Windstorm Disturbance

“…This tree species composition was also found in other studies and regions with post-disturbance vegetation of mountain spruce forests e.g., [42,43]. Rather high tree diversity is primarily the result of natural regeneration [44,45], since except for Picea abies (L.) H. Karst, most frequent trees were deciduous pioneer species that were not planted. The number of tree species increased only slightly, likely due to the tree growth as the shoot approach was applied during sampling.…”

Regeneration Characteristics and Spatial Pattern of <i>Platycladus orientalis</i> in Mount Tai, China

“…Natural regeneration can not only reduce the cost of regeneration, but also contribute to the sustainability of development benefits and the protection of community stability [4]. The influencing factors for seed germination and survival growth of seedlings not only include factors such as soil moisture and altitude, but the influence of other plants in the growth environment on Platycladus orientalis (PO) seedlings.…”