Tree and stand growth differ among soil classes in semi-natural forests in central Europe

Diameter Growth of Silver Fir (Abies alba Mill.), Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), and Black Pine (Pinus nigra Arnold) in Central European Forests: Findings from Slovenia

“…Cambisols and Leptosols predominate. The soil units are described by the predominant pedocartographic units with their typical horizons, textures, and parent materials [4]. The criterion for including a soil unit in the analyses was at least 20 plots in the soil unit (Table A1); thus, 8, 13, and 6 soil units were included in the analyses for fir, Scots pine, and black pine, respectively.…”

“…Most studies on tree growth have focused on the effects of tree variables, such as tree diameter or tree age, and stand variables, such as stand density, mixture, and heterogeneity. Among environmental factors, site productivity (e.g., site index), topographic factors (e.g., slope, aspect, and elevation), and especially climatic factors have often been studied (e.g., [2]), while soil variables have received less attention in tree growth modeling [3,4].…”

“…Different approaches are used to study the influence of trees, stand, and environmental factors on tree growth. These generally fall into two categories [4]. The first approach involves precise field measurements of tree growth and the independent variables observed at the research site, such as crown size, distance to neighboring trees, and microsite variables related to climatic and soil conditions.…”

“…Soil variables have occasionally been considered in growth modeling (e.g., [6][7][8]). In the growth studies of the second approach, soil units, representing a typical complex of soil properties according to morphological, genetic, chemical, physical, and biological properties [9], can be used as dummy variables (e.g., [3,4]). Soil units characterize differences in soil conditions between sites at a larger spatial scale.…”

Impact of Wood Ash and Sewage Sludge on Elemental Content in Hybrid Alder Clone

“…When designing experiments to evaluate the effect of fertilization or other silvicultural practices on plant nutrient uptake, including unfertilized control plots is essential, particularly in the absence of pre-treatment measurements [20]. However, it is important to acknowledge that natural variability and heterogeneity in soil properties and moisture conditions may complicate the interpretation of results, even within a single forest stand [21]. In studies using δ 15 N values to estimate N-fertilizer uptake efficiency, control plots become even more critical [22].…”