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ŠUMARSKI LIST 5-6/2018 str. 9     <-- 9 -->        PDF

MICROCLIMATE AND NATURAL REGENERATION OF FOREST GAPS AS A CONSEQUENCE OF SILVER FIR (Abies alba Mill.) DIEBACK
MIKROKLIMA I PRIRODNO POMLAĐIVANJE ŠUMSKIH PROGALA NASTALIH ODUMIRANJEM STABALA OBIČNE JELE (Abies alba Mill.)
Damir UGARKOVIĆ, Ivica TIKVIĆ, Krešimir POPIĆ , Josip MALNAR , Igor STANKIĆ
SUMMARY
Salvage cutting is a frequent operation to remedy the dieback of silver fir trees (Abies alba Mill.), which results in reduced stand canopy density and formation of forest gaps. This study was conducted in the beech-fir forest range of mountainous Croatia. The aim of the study was to determine microclimate conditions and natural regeneration in large and small forest gaps. Microclimate elements were measured and the density of plants from natural regeneration determined within forest gaps, in forest gap edge areas, and in control plots. Soil temperatures were significantly affected by changes in forest gap sizes with respect to the values of air temperatures, and were highest within the gaps as compared to gap edge areas and control forest stands. Microclimate had a significant affect on the number of small seedlings of silver fir and common beech in the large forest gaps, while this was not the case for the small forest gaps.
Key words: dieback, salvage cutting, silver fir, forest gap, microclimate, natural regeneration
INTRODUCTION
UVOD
Decline and dieback of trees is a major ecological issue in forestry and causes significant management issues, such as reduction of the growing stock, lack of natural regeneration, weed cover of habitats, etc. The occurrence of silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) dieback was first observed and recorded in its natural habitat regions (Larsen 1986, Thomas et al. 2002, Oliva and Colinas 2007, Tikvić et al. 2008, Ficko et al. 2011). Silver fir dieback is significant from a silvicultural standpoint, as it is the key symptom of the lack of natural regeneration (Matić et al. 1996). Silver fir (Abies alba Mill.)