Journal
FORESTS
Volume 12, Issue 9, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/f12091203
Keywords
ecology; silviculture; phytosociology; habitat preferences
Categories
Funding
- Wrocaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, The Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Geodesy, Institute of Landscape Architecture, Wrocaw, Poland
- Institute of Dendrology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Kornik, Poland
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Silver fir, one of Europe's longest living and tallest trees, has seen a drastic reduction in numbers due to intensive forest management and industrial air pollution. Research indicates that firs can grow in various habitats, with a preference for fertile beech woods and richer variants of oak-hornbeam forests.
Silver fir is one of the longest living and tallest trees in Europe, it has major commercial importance and may be found in various communities predominantly connected with lower mountainous locations in Central Europe. One of the northernmost ranges in the region is the Sudetes. Currently, the once numerous fir is greatly dispersed, with just several specimens to be found together at one site on average. This drastic reduction in the number of specimens is mainly attributable to intensive forest management, based on the artificial cultivation of fir, conducted in the 19th and 20th centuries, and high industrial air pollution (mainly in the 20th c.). Because practically no firs have been cultivated for the last 200 years, the remaining sites of the species that are remnants of its bigger populations should be regarded as natural. This paper compares fir locations with areas of potential natural vegetation. The obtained results indicate that firs may grow in various types of habitats, with the preferred one being fertile beech woods and richer variants of oak-hornbeam forests. In our opinion, the presented findings are of great importance for the knowledge of the ecology of the species in question and for providing appropriate forest management.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available