A density management diagram for Norway spruce in the temperate European montane region
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ORIGINAL PAPER
A density management diagram for Norway spruce in the temperate European montane region Giorgio Vacchiano • R. Justin Derose John D. Shaw • Miroslav Svoboda • Renzo Motta
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Received: 10 August 2012 / Revised: 4 February 2013 / Accepted: 26 February 2013 / Published online: 11 March 2013 Ó Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013
Abstract Norway spruce is one of the most important conifer tree species in Europe, paramount for timber provision, habitat, recreation, and protection of mountain roads and settlements from natural hazards. Although natural Norway spruce forests exhibit diverse structures, even-aged stands can arise after disturbance or as the result of common silvicultural practice, including off-site afforestation. Many even-aged Norway spruce forests face issues such as senescence, insufficient regeneration, mechanical stability, sensitivity to biotic disturbances, and restoration. We propose the use of Density Management Diagrams (DMD), stand-scale graphical models designed to project growth and yield of even-aged forests, as a heuristic tool for assessing the structure and development of even-aged Norway spruce stands. DMDs are predicated on basic tree allometry and the assumption that self-thinning occurs predictably in forest stands. We designed a DMD for Norway spruce in temperate Europe based on wide-ranging forest inventory data. Quantitative relationships between tree- and stand-level variables that describe resistance to
Communicated by A. Weiskittel. G. Vacchiano (&) R. Motta Department of Agricultural, Forest, and Food Sciences, Universita` di Torino, Via L. da Vinci 44, 10095 Grugliasco, TO, Italy e-mail: [email protected] R. J. Derose J. D. Shaw Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forest Inventory and Analysis, 507 25th Street, Ogden, UT 84401, USA M. Svoboda Department of Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamycka 129, Praha 6 Suchdol 16521, Czech Republic
selected natural disturbances were superimposed on the DMD. These susceptibility zones were used to demonstrate assessment and possible management actions related to, for example, windfirmness and effectiveness of the protective function against rockfall or avalanches. The Norway spruce DMD provides forest managers and silviculturists a simple, easy-to-use, tool for evaluating stand dynamics and scheduling needed density management actions. Keywords Decision support systems Natural hazards Picea abies (L.) Karst. Protective function Self-thinning Silviculture
Introduction Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) is one of the most important tree species in the mountain ranges of central and southern Europe. Norway spruce stands are important for timber production and provide relevant ecosystem services (Pretzsch et al. 2008). In mountain regions, these forests can provide protection from natural hazards such as avalanches, rockfall, or landslides (Bebi et al. 2001; Mayer and Ott 1991). Norway spruce forests also provide habitat for game, and may har
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