Taller and slenderer trees in Swedish forests according to data from the National Forest Inventory

Mensah, Alex Appiah; Petersson, Hans; Dahlgren, Jonas; Elfving, Björn

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120605

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 32 publications

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“…It is also possible that frost damage to needles was related to the growth anomalies induced by cold temperatures (Pederson et al., 2004). Conversely, warm late winters would speed up snow melt and soil thawing, extending the growing season and promoting tree growth (Appiah Mensah et al., 2023; Helama et al., 2013). We also occasionally detect the unusual negative relation between winter temperatures and Scots pine growth described by Mäkinen et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current and future drought vulnerability for three dominant boreal tree species

Aldea,

Dahlgren,

Holmström

et al. 2023

Global Change Biology

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Climate change is projected to increase the frequency and severity of droughts, possibly causing sudden and elevated tree mortality. Better understanding and predictions of boreal forest responses to climate change are needed to efficiently adapt forest management. We used tree‐ring width chronologies from the Swedish National Forest Inventory, sampled between 2010 and 2018, and a random forest machine‐learning algorithm to identify the tree, stand, and site variables that determine drought damage risk, and to predict their future spatial–temporal evolution. The dataset consisted of 16,455 cores of Norway spruce, Scots pine, and birch trees from all over Sweden. The risk of drought damage was calculated as the probability of growth anomaly occurrence caused by past drought events during 1960–2010. We used the block cross‐validation method to compute model predictions for drought damage risk under current climate and climate predicted for 2040–2070 under the RCP.2.6, RCP.4.5, and RCP.8.5 emission scenarios. We found local climatic variables to be the most important predictors, although stand competition also affects drought damage risk. Norway spruce is currently the most susceptible species to drought in southern Sweden. This species currently faces high vulnerability in 28% of the country and future increases in spring temperatures would greatly increase this area to almost half of the total area of Sweden. Warmer annual temperatures will also increase the current forested area where birch suffers from drought, especially in northern and central Sweden. In contrast, for Scots pine, drought damage coincided with cold winter and early‐spring temperatures. Consequently, the current area with high drought damage risk would decrease in a future warmer climate for Scots pine. We suggest active selection of tree species, promoting the right species mixtures and thinning to reduce tree competition as promising strategies for adapting boreal forests to future droughts.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current and future drought vulnerability for three dominant boreal tree species

Aldea,

Dahlgren,

Holmström

et al. 2023

Global Change Biology

Self Cite

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Exploring the interplay between within-stand variation and thinning practices in southern Sweden

Persson,

Bader,

Holmström

2024

Forest Ecology and Management

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The Growing Dynamic of Pure Scots Pine Stands Using Different Thinning Regimes in Lithuania

Linkevičius

Šilinskas

Beniušienė

et al. 2023

Forests

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The aim of this study is to relate initial stand density and thinning intensity to tree diameter, height, and volume increment based on continuous 30-year observations in thinning experimental stands of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). The thinning experiments on Scots pine were established in 1990 and 1992, and the experimental model in each trial comprised five density variants: control and four plots with tree densities up to 3.0–4.4, 2.0–2.4, 1.0–1.2, and 0.5–0.6 thousand trees per hectare after the initial thinning. Since the establishment, only the dead trees were removed in control plots, and other initial density plots were thinned according to predefined thinning treatment plans. Our study shows that the lowest increment in diameter was found in control plots and the highest in the most intensive thinning plots, in which the diameter increment was 1.5 times higher. However, the intensification of thinning and the signs of growth stabilization in the control stands cannot guarantee them the position of highest productivity and cumulative volume in the future.

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Taller and slenderer trees in Swedish forests according to data from the National Forest Inventory

Cited by 4 publications

References 32 publications

Current and future drought vulnerability for three dominant boreal tree species

Current and future drought vulnerability for three dominant boreal tree species

Exploring the interplay between within-stand variation and thinning practices in southern Sweden

The Growing Dynamic of Pure Scots Pine Stands Using Different Thinning Regimes in Lithuania

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