Original scientific paper
MODELING OF THE STAND BASAL AREA WITH STANDARD GROWTH EQUATIONS?
Vladimir Novotny
; Croatian forest research institute
Stjepan Dekanić
; IRES – Institut za istraživanje i razvoj održivih ekosustava
Anamarija Durbešić
; Hrvatske šume d.o.o.
Abstract
Stand basal area is one of the fundamental stand structural elements. In this contribution we present growth models of the stand basal area in mixed pedunculate oak and common hornbeam forests developed with four standard growth functions. These functions prevail in practiacal use in forestry, and they describe development of basal are with only one independent variable: stand age. Research was conducted through two work stages:
• Development of the stand basal area models based on data from managed forest
stands.
• Comparison of the stand basal area development with values tabulated in growth and
yield tables.
For the first phase of the research, we utilized the sample of 5,060 stands, or subcompartments of managed oak-hornbeam forests in Republic of Croatia, with total area of 75,948.76 ha. In the second phase we compare development trends of the stand basal area
as achieved in the first research phase, with the development of the stand basal area tabulated in the growth and yield tables of domestic authors. Results of the research clearly show high variability of the stand basal area development with stand age, from the beginning to the end of the stand rotation in the mixed oak and hornbeam forests. Four models of the stand basal area development over age obtained in this research are very similar, both in the curve shape as well as in the model values over stand age. It is quite obvious, based on the results of this research, that modeling of the stand basal area development with univariate growth equations oversimplifies the multitude of the basal area growth trajectories that can occur in various forest stands, i.e. this type of models are to static to properly account for the stand basal area variability over stand age.
Keywords
basal area; growth function; pedunculate oak and common hornbeam forest stands; growth and yield tables
Hrčak ID:
129273
URI
Publication date:
1.3.2014.
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