On the Management of Large-Diameter Trees in China’s Forests

Wu, Chuping; Jiang, Bo; WeiGao, Yuan; Shen, Aihua; Yang, Sen; Yao, Shenhao; Liu, Jiajia

doi:10.3390/f11010111

Cited by 17 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 67 publications

(121 reference statements)

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“…As large trees, they, per se, are part of floristic composition in a city, playing an important role in urban forests. Simultaneously, they can provide food, shelter, and living space or create distinct habitats for other plants and animals, especially for some birds and insects [4][5][6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Species Diversity and Distribution Pattern of Heritage Trees in the Rapidly-Urbanizing Province of Jiangsu, China

Zhang

2021

Forests

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Heritage trees have important ecological, historical, and landscape values in cities. Rapid urbanization may cause dramatic change of ecosystem functions of cities, thereby inevitably affecting the growth performance of ancient trees. However, few studies have explored their species diversity and spatial differentiation on the medium scale in the scenario of urbanization in China. Here, we took Jiangsu Province in China, with developed economy in recent decades, as a typical case. Based on the provincial forest inventory data, we addressed the abundance, species richness, tree density, and species diversity of ancient trees in 13 cities, and their tree habitat, growth status, and tree age, as well. Then, we compared the spatial differentiation of tree attributes by 13 districts and nine tree habitats. We also applied detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and redundancy analysis (RDA) to determine the leading factor influencing their distribution pattern. The 7678 heritage trees in Jiangsu belonged to 215 species. More than half of the trees were native with domination by Ginkgo biloba. Villages and farmlands accommodated the most heritage trees while parks and gardens harbored the most species. This indicates that sparsely-populated rural community and scenic areas with open space are conducive to accommodating more urban heritage trees. The tier 3 heritage trees (100–299 years) accounted for about 80% of the total. Overall, most ancient trees in Jiangsu grew well. The species diversity index (H) of 13 cities was between 1.98 and 3.39. The H value among the 13 cities was largely affected by elevation range shift, while the tree density by GDP per capita. DCA showed that the ratio of unique species was >40%, and that dominant species presented little habitat preference. Therefore, species diversity among different cities are affected by climate and topography, as well as human factors. With the accelerating urbanization process, tree habitat, cultural tradition, and urban history should be taken into consideration for management and conservation of heritage trees in the future.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Species Diversity and Distribution Pattern of Heritage Trees in the Rapidly-Urbanizing Province of Jiangsu, China

Zhang

2021

Forests

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“…However, if the goal is to obtain larger timber stocks in the future (e.g., S1 and 2), lower "q" values are recommended (e.g., 1.1), favoring the permanence of trees in larger d classes (Figure 1). Wu et al [48] makes important considerations regarding the generation of large-diameter trees in the context of China's forests, and discusses the application of forest density management with appropriate thinning to meet the increasing demand for this type of tree.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulating Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze Timber Stocks With Liocourt’s Law in a Natural Forest in Southern Brazil

Costa

Liesenberg

Hess

et al. 2020

Forests

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This paper presents a simulation of the regulation of Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze timber stocks using Liocourt’s law. Although this species is currently protected by law, recent government initiatives are being considered to propose sustainable forest management practices by selecting small rural properties in Southern Brazil. Here, we simulate the applicability of Liocourt’s law in a typical rural property, the size of which is approximately 85 ha. Forest inventory measurements were conducted by estimating the diameter at the breast height (d), total height (h), and annual diameter increments of 308 trees that fit the criteria of d ≥ 10 cm, distributed on 35 permanent plots of 400 m2 each. As a result, a reverse J-shaped d distribution was found. On average, 303 trees can be found per hectare (ha). Local allometric equations showed their basal area (G) to be 21.9 m2∙ha−1, and their commercial volume (V) to be 172 m3∙ha−1, whereas Liocourt’s quotient (q) was 1.31. Based on these attributes, nine different forest management scenarios were proposed by simulating a remaining basal area (Grem) of 10.0, 14.0, and 18.0 m2∙ha−1, and Liocourt’s quotient was changed to 1.1, 1.3, and 1.5. All scenarios consider a d of 62.5 cm. In the less intensive scenario (i.e., q value = 1.5 and larger basal area of 18.0 m2·ha−1) there is greater optimization of space, and higher economic return is ensured to rural producers due to the definition of shorter cutting cycles. This also allows a faster growth rate in both d and h for smaller trees, due to the higher incidence of light onto the lower canopy layer, increasing the natural regeneration implementation of other native species. Forest management should thus be considered a goal in addition to consumer market characteristics for defining the ideal timber stock scenario.

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“…Trunk cavities in large old trees represent keystone vegetation structures for biodiversity (Remm & Lõhmus 2011) and for forest management, with the risk of their economic depreciation increasing due to the emergence of wood imperfections. The traditional forestry practices of cutting large-diameter trees, with or without cavities, for timber and regularly replacing them with younger trees (Percel et al 2018;Wu et al 2020), do not take into account their high maximum growth and carbon sequestration potentials, resulting in forests without or with few large trees, and thus also missing their distinctive and ecologically important old-growth structures.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The rapid and increasing loss of large-diameter trees is a global phenomenon (Wu et al 2020;Lindenmayer, Laurance, et al 2012b), often accompanied by our lack of knowledge about their old-growth attributes (Scipioni, Salomão, et al 2019b). In several areas not yet intensively explored by scientists, such as some forests of the Amazon (Gorgens et al 2019) and Borneo (Shenkin et al 2019), recent discoveries of surprisingly tall trees over 60 m in height have been made.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Old‐growth structural attributes associated with the last giant subtropical conifers in South America

2022

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Giant Araucaria trees in Brazilian Atlantic forests today are rare but remain critically important for structuring these ecosystems, providing unique and rare habitat elements that can serve as points of reference for their management. Old-growth Araucaria trees, with their complex crowns and big trunk cavities, supply more important ecological services than smaller trees with simple crowns. Forest ecology managers lack information on the old-growth structures of Brazilian Araucaria forest, their ecological importance and their potential societal values and uses. In this study, we investigated old-growth attributes of Araucaria angustifolia and relate their wide structural variability to ecological management goals. In this study, we used currently available data on the last large old Araucaria trees, as well as our own new records, from large trees of 1.6-3.2 m diameter in the Araucaria forests in southern Brazil. In order to quantify the structural attributes of these remnant trees, their main trunks, any reiterated canopy trunks and trunk cavities were measured for diameters, heights and volumes. These old-growth trees had an average height of 38.4 m, and total tree volumes ranged from 21.5 to 106.6 m 3 . The biggest reiterated trunk was 1.1 m in diameter and 17 m long, which is larger than most adult Araucaria trees. Number of cavities and number of reiterated trunks were all significantly related to the diameters of these large remnant Araucaria trees; both features are absent in Araucaria <50 cm in diameter. The maximum diameter and average length of reiterated trunks were correlated with the number and size of trunk cavities. Commercial wood values and uses are limited for all trees with main trunk diameters exceeding 1.5 m due to large internal cavities -however, these rare, relictual old-growth structures are of high ecological value for the local fauna and flora.

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On the Management of Large-Diameter Trees in China’s Forests

Cited by 17 publications

References 67 publications

Species Diversity and Distribution Pattern of Heritage Trees in the Rapidly-Urbanizing Province of Jiangsu, China

Species Diversity and Distribution Pattern of Heritage Trees in the Rapidly-Urbanizing Province of Jiangsu, China

Simulating Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze Timber Stocks With Liocourt’s Law in a Natural Forest in Southern Brazil

Old‐growth structural attributes associated with the last giant subtropical conifers in South America

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