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Journal of the Forestry (Šumarski list), Vol. 137 No. 7-8, 2013.

Original scientific paper

STAND DYNAMICS OF THE SUBALPINE SPRUCE (Picea abies L. Karst) FOREST – A DISTURBANCE DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT

Miroslav Balanda ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic
Ján Pittner ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic
Milan Saniga ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic
Ján Jaďuď ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic
Lucia Danková ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic
Marián Ďuriš ; Technical university, Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, Zvolen, Slovak Republic

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Abstract

The paper deals with the stand dynamics of subalpine Norway spruce forest in the Low Tatras Mts., Slovakia. The recent state of subalpine spruce forests is unsatisfactory because of the extensive windstorms followed by bark beetle outbreak. The study is focused on the reconstruction of historical disturbances affecting this locality in the past. The research was conducted on the model locality Mt. Veľký Bok in the Low Tatras, central Slovakia. After the harvesting of snags we cored spruce stumps (N=60). Boundary-line criteria (fig.1) were used for evaluation of growth releases. We reconstructed local disturbance chronology and tree recruitment chronology. Three distinctive peaks of growth releases were revealed, in 1860−1880; 1920−1940 and 1980−2000. The identified disturbance periods were confirmed by examination of historical sources. Regarding the tree recruitment patterns, 50 % of analyzed trees met the criterion of gap recruitment. The temporal position of recruitment waves fairly corresponds with occurrence of a major disturbance. According to obtained results, we can state that the large-scale wind disturbances are the natural part of subalpine spruce forest and the overall dynamics of investigated forest is driven by combination of gap and patch dynamics.

Keywords

growth release; Norway spruce; boundary line; Central Europe; natural disturbances

Hrčak ID:

109441

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/109441

Publication date:

31.8.2013.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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