Evaluation of allometric functions for the assessment of Norway spruce (Picea abies /L./ Karst.) aboveground biomass in the Orlicke Mountains (Czech Republic).

Abstract Mixed mountain forests of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst), and silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) cover a total area of more than 10 million hectares in Europe. Due to altitudinal zoning, these forests are particularly vulnerable to climate change. However, as little is known about the long-term development of the productivity and the adaptation and mitigation potential of these forest systems in Europe, reliable information on productivity is required for sustainable forest management. Using generalized additive mixed models this study investigated 60 long-term experimental plots and provides information about the productivity of mixed mountain forests across a variety of European mountain areas in a standardized way for the first time. The average periodic annual volume increment (PAI) of these forests amounts to 9.3 m3ha−1y−1. Despite a significant increase in annual mean temperature the PAI has not changed significantly over the last 30 years. However, at the species level, we found significant changes in the growth dynamics. While beech had a PAI of 8.2 m3ha−1y−1 over the entire period (1980–2010), the PAI of spruce dropped significantly from 14.2 to 10.8 m3ha−1y−1, and the PAI of fir rose significantly from 7.2 to 11.3 m3ha−1y−1. Consequently, we observed stable stand volume increments in relation to climate change.

Abies alba

Basal area

10.1093/forestry/cpz035

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Aboveground biomass in norway spruce trees in natural forest stand

Visnyk of the Lviv University Series Geography (2014)

D. Karabchuk

The article promotes to use tree social classes method for the selections of model trees while evaluate biomass in mature natural forest stands because of tree size variability. Average aboveground biomass of Norway spruce model trees calculated to be 542 ± 42 kg, which accumulate every year 6,1 ± 0,4 kg of dry matter and sequester 2,9 ± 0,2 kg of carbon from the atmosphere. We found a significant effect (α = 0,05) of a tree canopy position on a volume of accumulated biomass. Key words: natural stands, mature phase, Cheremosh watershed, Norway spruce, social class, tree size variability, aboveground biomass, mean annual increments, aboveground biomass components, sequestered carbon.

Tree canopy

Tree (set theory)

10.30970/vgg.2014.45.1160

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