Relationships between diameter at breast height (dbh) versus stand density, and tree height versus dbh (height curve) were explored with the aim to find if there were functional links between correspondent parameters of the relationships, exponents and intercepts of their power functions. A geometric model of a forest stand using a conic approximation suggested that there should be interrelations between correspondent exponents and intercepts of the relationships. It is equivalent to a type of ‘relationship between relationships’ that might exist in a forest stand undergoing self-thinning, and means that parameters of one relationship may be predicted from parameters of another. The predictions of the model were tested with data on forest stand structure from published databases that involved a number of trees species and site quality levels. It was found that the correspondent exponents and intercepts may be directly recalculated from one another for the simplest case when the total stem surface area was independent of stand density. For cases where total stem surface area changes with the drop of density, it is possible to develop a generalization of the model in which the interrelationships between correspondent parameters (exponents and intercepts) may be still established.

Glyphosate is the herbicide most extensively used for site preparation and conifer release. It is a broad-spectrum herbicide and therefore crop safety is a critical issue. This study assessed the early effects of 14 different treatments, including no weed control, manual weed control, and 12 foliar-applied herbicide treatments at low, intermediate, high, and highest application rates and application timing on glyphosate phytotoxicity of containerized seedlings of Austrian pine (Pinus nigra J.F. Arnold.), Scots pine (P. sylvestris L.) and maritime pine (P. pinaster Aiton), conifer species widely used for afforestation and supplementary plantings in Turkish forestry. In general, Scots pine seedlings were tolerant to glyphosate compared to the other species. Glyphosate phytotoxicity varied significantly according to the time and rate of application. Seedlings were relatively tolerant to glyphosate in April whereas they were intolerant in May. The highest herbicide rate (1.2% v:v) was consistently phytotoxic to all species. Moreover, the effect of herbicide rate on seedling survival and growth varied significantly according to application date (i.e., application rate × date interaction). Seedlings appeared tolerant to glyphosate at low and intermediate rates (0.2, 0.4% v:v) between mid-spring and mid-summer, whereas they demonstrated significant sensitivity to the highest rate across all time periods. Glyphosate at the high rate (0.8% v:v) was particularly more phytotoxic when applied in May. Application of glyphosate at rates up to 0.8% could be recommended for weed control without significant pine damage in mid-spring when the needles presumably have a dense leaf epicuticular wax layer limiting herbicide penetration. Applications of 0.8 and 1.2% v:v are not recommended during May–June.

Allelopathic effects of Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. were confirmed in Petri dish and pot experiments in our previous studies. However, the degree to which such effects under controlled experiments exist in more complex ecological settings remains to be tested. Thus, the present study was carried out by incorporating different proportions of ground litter of E. camaldulensis in soil. The growth of three agricultural crops: falen (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.), chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), and arhor (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.), and two tree species, kala koroi (Albizia procera (Roxb.) Benth.) and ipil ipil (Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit) were tested. There were inhibitory effects of leaf litter on germination, shoot and root growth, leaf number, and collar diameter as well as a reduction of nodulation by legume crops (25–80% reduction). The extent of the effects was dependent on the proportion of leaf litter, the species and the type of traits. In contrast to shoot growth, the effect on root growth was more severe. No effect on germination was found with the agriculture crops while the two tree species showed reduced germination. The effect was greater in the presence of higher proportions of leaf litter mixed in soil while in some cases lower proportions stimulated growth. Not all species were suppressed; A. procera, C. cajan, V. unguiculata showed compatible growth while C. arietinum and L. leucocephala were found incompatible. This study provides evidence that E. camaldulensis has allelopathic potential under field conditions and a careful selection of associated crops in agroforestry systems is highly recommended.

This study investigates the effects of increasing soil penetration resistance (SPR) on seedling morphology and seedling architecture. When seedlings of deciduous Cappadocian maple (Acer cappadocicum Gled.) were grown in a greenhouse in a loamy soil under a wide range of soil compactions, all morphological variables studied changed significantly with increasing SPR. The relationships between increasing SPR and all morphological responses except lateral root length followed a negative quadratic curve. All biomass variables except lateral root biomass showed a bell-shaped response with respect to SPR, with a maximum biomass variable between 0.6 and 1.2 MPa, decreasing at higher soil compaction values. All allocation ratios were significantly affected by soil penetration resistance. Biomass allocation to roots was also affected by soil compaction. There was not a significant relationship between the specific stem length and increasing soil penetration resistance. The specific root length showed two trends to increasing SPR; it first decreased in response to the moderate compaction treatment (up to about 1.2 MPa), then increased significantly. We concluded that increasing soil compaction caused morphological changes to root and shoot sections of A. cappadocicum seedlings.

Understanding genetic variation is important for efficiently selecting excellent clones and utilizing genetic resources during tree breeding. We investigated 16 growth traits of 50 32-year-old Pinus koraiensis clones. Analyses of variance showed that all the test traits differed significantly among clones. Average height, diameter at breast height (DBH), and volume of all clones were 10.41 m, 21.30 cm, and 0.148 m³, respectively. Phenotypic coefficients of variation and repeatabilities of traits ranged from 4.37 to 48.03% and from 0.013 to 0.900, respectively. There exists significant positive correlations among heights, diameter at different heights (1.3, 3.0, 5.0 m), and volumes; genetic correlation was close to phenotype correlation. Using four growth traits (height, DBH, volume, average crown width) as indices for a comprehensive evaluation, five clones (PK 11, PK 19, PK 04, PK 14, and PK 28), whose traits scored in the top 10%, were selected as elite clones. For these clones, genetic gains in height, DBH, volume and crown height were 8.58, 13.02, 32.72 and 3.83%, respectively. These results provide important information for improving P. koraiensis breeding programs.

Eucalyptus is very recalcitrant to in vitro culture. In this research, an efficient shoot organogenesis system was developed using 60-day-old plants of Eucalyptus globulus grown in vitro and non-aerated liquid medium to improve shoot proliferation. Cultures were initiated with hypocotyls and leaf segments from plantlets cultivated on semisolid ½ MS modified medium supplemented with 4.44 µM 6-Benzyladenine (BA) and 16.1 µM 1-Naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Calli were transferred to shoot induction medium, with either 0.5 or 2.7 µM NAA. Shoot multiplication was carried out on 4.44 µM BA + 0.5 µM NAA medium, and semisolid and non-aerated liquid systems were compared for improving shoot proliferation. Rooting of adventitious shoots was evaluated on medium containing NAA or Indole-3-butyric acid -IBA (5 and 16 µM). Callogenesis was obtained from both types of explants, although shoot formation was only obtained from leaf-derived calli. Shoot proliferation on 4.44 µM BA + 0.5 µM NAA resulted in the most shoots/callus. Non-aerated liquid medium was more efficient in promoting shoot multiplication (53.5 shoots/callus) than was semisolid medium (28.5 shoots/callus). Levels of phenolic compounds were significantly reduced in the shoots cultivated in liquid medium. Efficient rooting (76%) was obtained using 16 µM IBA.

The effects of an exogenous nitric oxide donor (sodium nitroprusside, SNP), a NO scavenger 2-phenyl-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxode (PTIO) and carboxy-PTIO potassium salt (cPTIO) on the embryo germination of Sorbus pohuashanensis were studied in a petri dish test. SNP at 0.5–5 mmol L⁻¹ increased germination percentage, mean time to germination, germination index and germination energy compared with the control to different degrees. Treatment with 2 mmol L⁻¹ SNP improved germination most significantly; embryo germination percentage for mother tree 1 (91.11%) and mother tree 2 (64.44%) were much higher than the control. In addition, excessive SNP levels did not enhance embryo germination. Combined treatment with SNP and an NO scavenger delayed embryo germination. Treatment with cPTIO inhibited embryo germination; germination percentage was 42.22% and was lower than that of the control. These results show that low concentrations of exogenous NO can enhance the embryo germination of S. pohuashanensis, providing a simple, effective way for promoting germination of S. pohuashanensis.

To date only one species of the genus Vatica Linn. (Dipterocarpaceae) has been identified, and a subspecies and three varieties have been reported on Hainan Island, China. However, it remained controversial whether the species was Vatica mangachapoi or a new species Vatica hainanensis, and whether the subspecies or varieties are taxonomically valid. We evaluated here morphometric variations of 133 trees collected from nine populations and herbarium specimens of Vatica spp. using 16 traits of leaf and fruit. Among these, leaf traits varied more within and among populations than did fruit traits. Four traits of ratios were more stable than directly-measured traits within and among populations. The ranges of lamina length, lamina width and height of maximum lamina width point were the greatest among the 16 traits, while number of lateral veins varied least among the 12 directly-measured traits. Measurements from all 9 populations overlapped for each morphological trait, and variation of each trait was continuous among both individuals and populations. The range of variation did not distinguish any specimen from V. mangachapoi as described in the flora of Southeast Asia. By cluster analysis, individuals of each population as well as specimens of each variety formed no distinct clusters. The published varieties thus were characterized by no distinguishing variations in comparison with the nine sampled populations. In conclusion, the new species V. hainanensis as well as the subspecies and varieties were not supported by our comparisons, and only V. mangachapoi without any subspecies or varieties occurs on Hainan Island, China.

Elevated atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has been detected in many regions of China, but its effects on soil N transformation in temperate forest ecosystems are not well known. We therefore simulated N deposition with four levels of N addition rate (N0, N30, N60, and N120) for 6 years in an old-growth temperate forest in Xiaoxing’an Mountains in Northeastern China. We measured gross N transformation rates in the laboratory using ¹⁵N tracing technology to explore the effects of N deposition on soil gross N transformations taking advantage of N deposition soils. No significant differences in gross soil N transformation rates were observed after 6 years of N deposition with various levels of N addition rate. For all N deposition soils, the gross NH₄ ⁺ immobilization rates were consistently lower than the gross N mineralization rates, leading to net N mineralization. Nitrate (NO₃ ⁻) was primarily produced via oxidation of NH₄ ⁺ (i.e., autotrophic nitrification), whereas oxidation of organic N (i.e., heterotrophic nitrification) was negligible. Differences between the quantity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and ammonia-oxidizing archaea were not significant for any treatment, which likely explains the lack of a significant effect on gross nitrification rates. Gross nitrification rates were much higher than the total NO₃ ⁻ consumption rates, resulting in a build-up of NO₃ ⁻, which highlights the high risk of N losses via NO₃ ⁻ leaching or gaseous N emissions from soils. This response is opposite that of typical N-limited temperate forests suffering from N deposition, suggesting that the investigated old-growth temperate forest ecosystem is likely to approach N saturation.

Determining the physical and mechanical properties of soil and its behavior for engineering projects is essential for road construction operations. One of the most important principles in forest road construction, which is usually neglected, is to avoid mixing organic matter with road materials during excavation and embankment construction. The current study aimed to assess the influence of organic matter on the physical properties and mechanical behaviors of forest soil and to analyze the relation between the amount of organic matter and the behavior of forest soil as road material. A typical soil sample from the study area was collected beside a newly constructed roadbed. The soil was mixed with different percentages of organic matter (control treatment, 5, 10, and 15% by mass) and different tests including Atterberg limits, standard compaction, and California bearing ratio (CBR) tests were conducted on these different soil mixtures. The results showed that soil plasticity increased linearly with increasing organic matter. Increasing the organic matter from 0% (control) to 15% resulted in an increase of 11.64% of the plastic limit and 15.22% of the liquid limit after drying at 110 °C. Also, increasing the organic matter content reduced the soil maximum dry density and increased the optimum moisture content. Increasing the organic matter from 0 to 15% resulted in an increase of 11.0% of the optimum moisture content and a decrease of 0.29 g/cm³ of the maximum dry density. Organic matter decreased the CBR, which is used as the index of road strength. Adding 15% organic matter to the soil resulted in a decrease of the CBR from 15.72 to 4.75%. There was a significant difference between the two drying temperatures (60 and 110 °C) for the same organic matter mixtures with lower water content values after drying at 60 °C. The results revealed the adverse influence of organic matter on soil engineering properties and showed the importance of organic matter removal before excavation and fill construction.

We conducted a study to find out if arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (Acaulospora scrobiculata, Scutellospora calospora) and phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB, Paenibacillus polymyxa) inoculation either individually or in combinations can improve Acacia auriculiformis seedling growth, uptake of nutrients and quality in a phosphorus deficient tropical Alfisol. The seedlings were assessed for various growth and nutrient uptake parameters after 60 days of treatment. Inoculation with P. polymyxa stimulated mycorrhizal formation. Seedling height, stem girth, taproot length, number of leaves and leaf area, plant dry matter production, nodulation, and nodular dry weight were significantly higher for seedlings that were either dual inoculated or triple inoculated compared to individual inoculation of AM fungi or PSB, and uninoculated seedlings. Dual and triple application of AM fungi and PSB also significantly improved the nutrient contents of shoots and roots and nutrient uptake efficiencies. The calculated seedling quality indexes of the AM fungi and PSB inoculated seedling were 25–208% higher than uninoculated seedlings. These findings show that A. auriculiformis seedlings when dual inoculated or triple inoculated performed better than seedlings inoculated with the microbes individually and compared with uninoculated control seedlings. We conclude that bioinoculation is important for the production of high-quality A. auriculiformis seedlings in tree nurseries for planting in nutrient deficient soils.

Arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF) are vital in the regeneration of vegetation in disturbed ecosystems due to their numerous ecological advantages and therefore are good indicators of soil and ecosystem health at large. This study was aimed at determining how the seasonal, vegetation cover density, edaphic and anthropogenic factors affect AMF root colonization (RC) and spore density (SD) in Desa’a dry Afromontane forest. AMF RC and SD in the rhizosphere of five dominant woody species, Juniperus procera, Olea europaea, Maytenus arbutifolia, Carissa spinarum and Dodonaea angustifolia growing in Desa’a forest were studied during the rainy and the dry seasons in three permanent study vegetation cover density plots (dense, medium, and poor). Each plot (160 × 40 m²) has two management practices (fenced and unfenced plots) of area. A 100 g sample of rhizosphere soil from moisture-free composite soil was used to determine spore density. Spore density ranged from 50 to 4467 spores/100 g soil, and all species were colonized by AMF within a range of 4–95%. Glomus was the dominant genus in the rhizosphere of all species. Vegetation cover density strongly affected SD and RC. The SD was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in the poor vegetation cover density than in the other two and lowest in the dense cover; root colonization showed the reverse trend. Management practices significantly (p < 0.05) influenced AMF SD and RC, with the fenced plots being more favoured. Seasons significantly (p < 0.05) affected RC and SD. More RC and SD were observed in the wet period than the dry period. Correlating AMF SD and RC with soil physical and chemical properties showed no significant difference (p > 0.05) except for total nitrogen. Disturbance, vegetation cover density, season and total nitrogen are significant factors that control the dynamics and management interventions to maintain the forest health of dry Afromontane forests.

Prescribed fire is a common economical and effective forestry practice, and therefore it is important to understand the effects of fire on soil properties for better soil management. We investigated the impacts of low-intensity prescribed fire on the microbial and chemical properties of the top soil in a Hungarian oak (Quercus frainetto Ten.) forest. The research focused on microbial soil parameters (microbial soil respiration (R_SM), soil microbial biomass carbon (Cmic) and metabolic quotient (qCO₂) and chemical topsoil properties (soil acidity (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), C/N ratio and exchangeable cations). Mean annual comparisons show significant differences in four parameters (C/N ratio, soil pH, Cmic and qCO₂) while monthly comparisons do not reveal any significant differences. Soil pH increased slightly in the burned plots and had a significantly positive correlation with exchangeable cations Mg, Ca, Mn and K. The mean annual C/N ratio was significantly higher in the burned plots (28.5:1) than in the control plots (27.0:1). The mean annual Cmic (0.6 mg g⁻¹) was significantly lower although qCO₂ (2.5 µg CO₂–C mg Cmic h⁻¹) was significantly higher, likely resulting from the microbial response to fire-induced environmental stress. Low-intensity prescribed fire caused very short-lived changes. The annual mean values of C/N ratio, pH, Cmic and qCO₂ showed significant differences.

Exclosure is a method of rehabilitating degraded lands by protecting them from the interference of animals and from human encroachment, and is used to regenerate native vegetation as a way to reduce soil erosion, increase rain water infiltration and provide fodder and woody biomass in degraded grazing lands. Therefore, we studied woody plant structure, diversity and regeneration potentials in 5- and 10-year grazing exclosures in comparison with open grazed sites in a semi-arid environment. Data on species diversity, abundance, structure, basal area, frequency, density, and regeneration status were collected from 270 sample plots. Forty-one woody species representing 20 families were identified, with 18, 28 and 38 species found in open grazed areas, and in 5- and 10-year grazing exclosures, respectively. The 10-year grazing exclosures had a higher (P < 0.05) species richness and plant densities compared to the 5-year grazing exclosures and the open grazed areas. The population structure and regeneration status of woody species in both grazing exclosures showed an inverted J-shape, indicating a healthy regeneration status, whereas hampered regeneration was observed in open grazed areas. The establishment of grazing exclosures had positive effects in restoring woody plant diversity and improving vegetation structure and regeneration potentials of degraded grazing lands.

Climate change is a real, pressing and significant global problem. The concept of ‘climate change vulnerability’ helps us to better comprehend the cause/effect relationships behind climate change and its impact on human societies, socioeconomic sectors, and physiographical and ecological systems. In this study, multifactorial spatial modelling evaluated the vulnerability of a Mediterranean forest ecosystem to climate change and variability with regard to land degradation. This produced data and developed tools to support better decision-making and management. As a result, the geographical distribution of Environmental Vulnerability Areas (EVAs) of the forest ecosystem is the estimated Environmental Vulnerability Index (EVI) values. These revealed that, at current levels of environmental degradation, physical, geographical, policy enforcement, and socioeconomic conditions, the area with a “very low” degree of vulnerability covered mainly the town, its surrounding settlements and agricultural lands found principally over the low, flat travertine plateau and the plains to the east and southeast of the district. The spatial magnitude of the EVAs of the forest ecosystem under current environmental degradation was also determined. This revealed that the EVAs classed as “very low” accounted for 21% of the area of the forest ecosystem, those classed as “low” for 36%, those classed as “medium” for 20%, and those classed as “high” for 24%.

Increasing field experiments have been conducted in forests to better understand the response of plant growth and photosynthesis to climatic warming. However, it is still unknown whether there is a general pattern in relation to how and to what extent warming impacts woody plants in forests. In this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the warming effects. When temperatures increased between 0.3 and 10 °C, specific leaf area (SLA) was significantly increased by 5.9%, plant height by 7.8%, biomass by 21.9%, foliar calcium (Ca) and manganese (Mn) concentrations by 20.7% and 39.6% and net photosynthetic rate (Pn) by 9.9%. Enhanced growth and Pn may have a relationship with changing SLA, efficiency of PSII (photosystem II), photosynthetic pigment concentrations and foliar nutrients. The results will be useful to understand the underlying mechanisms of forests responding to global warming.

Biodiversity and ecosystem services play key roles in future economic strategies seeking to promote development and prosperity. This study assesses the status of biodiversity and flow of ecosystem services from selected forest types in the Western Ghats. At the sampling sites, the number of tree species ranged from 16 to 79 per hectare depending on the forest type. The estimates for Shannon–Wiener index for trees in the evergreen, moist deciduous and dry deciduous forest plots were 3.02, 2.9 and 1.54, respectively. The total biomass carbon stocks in evergreen, moist deciduous and dry deciduous forests in the study area was 229, 221 and 189 t C/ha, respectively. Analysis of dependency patterns of local communities on forest resources indicated a high dependency on provisional services such as fuelwood, manure and fodder. The study records the highest dependency rates for fuelwood, ranging between 72 and 100% for the three forest types and indicates that forest ecosystems underpin the well-being of the population dependent directly and indirectly on them.

Since 2000, the Chinese government has implemented emergency water diversion measures to restore the damaged riparian forest ecosystem with dominant tree species Euphrat poplar (Populus euphratica Oliv.) at the lower reaches of the Tarim River. In the present study, comparative analysis of variations in the vitality of P. euphratica trees were made using 2005 and 2010 data to illustrate the revitalization process of riparian forest. Poplar trees within 300 m of the riverbed were positively revitalized, while the vitality of trees farther than 300 m from the river decreased. Population structure was studied to demonstrate the development of poplar community. In the first belt, the class structure for the diameter at breast height (DBH) of P. euphratica fit a logistic model, and the 2nd, 3rd and 4th belt curve fittings were close to a Gaussian model; in other plots they were bimodal. Cluster analysis of the composition of the DBH class of poplar trees demonstrated that those within 16–36 cm DBH were the most abundant (58.49% of total) in study area, under 16 cm of DBH were second (31.36%), and trees >40 cm DBH were the least abundant (10.15%). More than 80% of the trees were young and medium-sized, which means that the poplar forest community in the vicinity of the lower Tarim River is at a stable developmental stage. The abundance of juvenile trees of P. euphratica in the first and second measuring belts was 12.13% in 2005 and increased to 25.52% in 2010, which means that the emergency water transfer had a positive impact on the generation of young P. euphratica trees in the vicinity of the river.

Although afforestation of farmlands has been proposed as an effective method of carbon (C) sequestration, there remain uncertainties that deter us from developing a clear picture of C stocks in plantation ecosystems. This study investigated the dynamics of stand structure and plant diversity, and C and nitrogen (N) pools in trees, herbs, litter, and soil (0–100 cm depth) in black locust plantations aged 9, 17, 30, and 37 years, and in newly abandoned farmlands as pre-afforestation sites, on the Loess Plateau, China. Stand density decreased significantly, while tree diameter at breast height and height increased during stand development. The dominant species of the herb layer differed with age. Afforestation resulted in slight increases in tree C and N storage in plantations from 9 to 30 years of age, and then significantly increased from 30 to 37 years. Compared to pre-afforestation, C and N storage in soil decreased to minimum values in stands aged 17 and 9 years, respectively. The soil re-accumulated C and N during stand development, attaining equilibrium levels similar to those in pre-afforestation when stands reached about 30 years of age. Soil C and N storage in 37-year stands were 29 and 16% higher, respectively, than in pre-afforestation levels. However, C and N concentrations in the subsoil (20–40 cm) were still less than the pre-afforestation levels for stands of all ages (from 9 to 37 years). The relative contribution to the total ecosystem C and N pools increased in trees and decreased in soil during the observed period. Our results indicate that afforestation reduced soil C and N storage during the early stages of stand development. We conclude that the growing phase of an afforested stand over its initial 30 years is important for C and N sequestration by black locust due to the C and N storage that result from recovered soil quality and an increase in tree biomass.

Studies on spatial distribution of congeneric species can supplement our understanding of species ecological processes. We analyzed population structure, spatial distribution, intra- and interspecific associations among six Symplocos tree species on a large (50 ha) plot in a subtropical, evergreen broad-leaf forest in southern China using spatial point pattern analysis methods. Our results suggested that the six Symplocos tree species were all clustered at small scales. The aggregation intensity of S. wikstroemiifolia with low abundance but relatively numerous large-diameter trees was much higher than that of the other five Symplocos species that occurred at high abundance but included few large-diameter trees. Spatial associations among the six congeners showed that 12 of 30 pairs were associated positively at small scales, and 13 of 30 pairs were unrelated. For species among different size classes, 79 of 120 pairs were not correlated, and 17 of 120 pairs were associated positively. These results showed insufficient evidence for interspecific competition and congeneric Symplocos species commonly coexist within subtropical plant communities. The spatial patterns of Symplocos species and their correlations changed with size (DBH) class and were simultaneously affected by spatial scales; the intensity of their aggregation and association decreased with increasing area of the sample plot.

Rapid urbanization and urban greening have caused great changes to urban forests in China. Understanding spatiotemporal patterns of urban forest leaf area index (LAI) under rapid urbanization and urban greening is important for urban forest planning and management. We evaluated the potential for estimating urban forest LAI spatiotemporally by using Landsat TM imagery. We collected three scenes of Landsat TM (thematic mapper) images acquired in 1997, 2004 and 2010 and conducted a field survey to collect urban forest LAI. Finally, spatiotemporal maps of the urban forest LAI were created using a NDVI-based urban forest LAI predictive model. Our results show that normalized differential vegetation index (NDVI) could be used as a predictor for urban forest LAI similar to natural forests. Both rapid urbanization and urban greening contribute to the changing process of urban forest LAI. The urban forest has changed considerably from 1997 to 2010. Urban vegetated pixels decreased gradually from 1997 to 2010 due to intensive urbanization. Leaf area for the study area was 216.4, 145.2 and 173.7 km² in the years 1997, 2004 and 2010, respectively. Urban forest LAI decreased sharply from 1997 to 2004 and increased slightly from 2004 to 2010 because of numerous greening policies. The urban forest LAI class distributions were skewed toward low values in 1997 and 2004. Moreover, the LAI presented a decreasing trend from suburban to downtown areas. We demonstrate the usefulness of TM remote-sensing in understanding spatiotemporal changing patterns of urban forest LAI under rapid urbanization and urban greening.

Being able to accurately estimate and map forest biomass at large scales is important for a better understanding of the terrestrial carbon cycle and for improving the effectiveness of forest management. In this study, forest plot sample data, forest resources inventory (FRI) data, and SPOT Vegetation (SPOT-VGT) normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data were used to estimate total forest biomass and spatial distribution of forest biomass in northeast China (with 1 km resolution). Total forest biomass at both county and provincial scales was estimated using FRI data of 11 different forest types obtained by sampling 1156 forest plots, and newly-created volume to biomass conversion models. The biomass density at the county scale and SPOT-VGT NDVI data were used to estimate the spatial distribution of forest biomass. The results suggest that the total forest biomass was 2.4 Pg (1 Pg = 10¹⁵ g), with an average of 77.2 Mg ha⁻¹, during the study period. Forests having greater biomass density were located in the middle mountain ranges in the study area. Human activities affected forest biomass at different elevations, slopes and aspects. The results suggest that the volume to biomass conversion models that could be developed using more plot samples and more detailed forest type classifications would be better suited for the study area and would provide more accurate biomass estimates. Use of both FRI and remote sensing data allowed the down-scaling of regional forest biomass statistics to forest cover pixels to produce a relatively fine-resolution biomass map.

A difficult problem in forestry is tree inventory. In this study, a GoProHero attached to a small unmanned aerial vehicle was used to capture images of a small area covered by pinus pinea trees. Then, a digital surface model was generated with image matching. The elevation model representing the terrain surface, a ‘digital terrain model’, was extracted from the digital surface model using morphological filtering. Individual trees were extracted by analyzing elevation flow on the digital elevation model because the elevation reached the highest value on the tree peaks compared to the neighborhood elevation pixels. The quality of the results was assessed by comparison with reference data for correctness of the estimated number of trees. The tree heights were calculated and evaluated with ground truth dataset. The results showed 80% correctness and 90% completeness.

Different concentrations of jasmonic acid (JA) and benzothiadiazole (BTH) were sprayed on 2-year-old Rosa rugosa‘Plena’ seedlings. The induced resistance of JA and BTH to Sphaerotheca pannosa (Wallr.) and the changes of their related physiological indices were investigated. Results showed that JA and BTH treatments had inhibitory impacts on S. pannosa infection. The optimal concentration of JA and BTH was 0.5 mmol/L for the disease-resistance induction of the leaves, its inductive effect was up to 66.36% for BTH and 54.49% for JA. Our results confirmed that exogenous JA and BTH significantly improved R. rugose ‘Plena’ resistance to S. pannosa. When treated with JA and BTH, activities of the three defense enzymes (POD, PPO, and PAL) increased significantly. Contents of total phenolics, flavonoids, and lignin also increased significantly. It is inferred from these results that exogenous JA and BTH could improve the resistance of R. rugose ‘Plena’ to S. pannosa through enhancing activities of the defensive enzymes and accumulation of secondary metabolites in the leaves.

The cerambycid genus Miaenia Pascoe (Coleoptera: Cerambycoidea) of South Korea is taxonomically reviewed. Two species, Miaenia fasciata fasciata (Matsushita) and Miaenia maritima Tsherepanov have been recorded. In this paper, M. tonsa (Bates) is added to the Korean cerambycid fauna for the first time. A key to Korean Miaenia species, re-description and diagnostic illustrations, including male genitalia for each species, are provided.

In eastern North America, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) can have profound influences on forest biodiversity and forest successional processes. Moderate to high deer populations in the central Appalachians have resulted in lower forest biodiversity. Legacy effects in some areas persist even following deer population reductions or declines. This has prompted managers to consider deer population management goals in light of policies designed to support conservation of biodiversity and forest regeneration while continuing to support ample recreational hunting opportunities. However, despite known relationships between herbivory intensity and biodiversity impact, little information exists on the predictability of herbivory intensity across the varied and spatially diverse habitat conditions of the central Appalachians. We examined the predictability of browsing rates across central Appalachian landscapes at four environmental scales: vegetative community characteristics, physical environment, habitat configuration, and local human and deer population demographics. In an information-theoretic approach, we found that a model fitting the number of stems browsed relative to local vegetation characteristics received most (62%) of the overall support of all tested models assessing herbivory impact. Our data suggest that deer herbivory responded most predictably to differences in vegetation quantity and type. No other spatial factors or demographic factors consistently affected browsing intensity. Because herbivory, vegetation communities, and productivity vary spatially, we suggest that effective broad-scale herbivory impact assessment should include spatially-balanced vegetation monitoring that accounts for regional differences in deer forage preference. Effective monitoring is necessary to avoid biodiversity impacts and deleterious changes in vegetation community composition that are difficult to reverse and/or may not be detected using traditional deer-density based management goals.

We studied species of plants foraged by red deer in the Muling forest region of northeastern China during January 2014 and 2015. We focused on nutritional composition, energy content, and the digestibility of these plants. Crude protein content varied by plant species. Average crude protein content was 7.5 ± 1.7% of dry matter, ranging from 4.5 to 10.3%. Crude lipid content did not vary by species and averaged 7 ± 1.5% (range 5.4–9.8%). Non-fiber carbohydrate (NFC) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content varied broadly with average values being 20.1 ± 4.8% (range 13.5–28.8%) and 64.7 ± 5.9% (range 53.5–71.8%), respectively. Energy content ranged from 16.7 to 19.7 kJ/g. Average dry matter digestibility (DMD) was 46.1 ± 4.8%, with a range from 38.7 to 54.6%. Only three plants, Saussurea manshurica, Aralia elata and Equisetum hyemale exhibited DMD > 50%. NFC content explained most of the variation in energy content (r = 0.451). In contrast, energy content was inversely related to NDF (r = −0.443). There was no correlation between crude protein, crude lipid, and energy content (r _protein = 0.004, r _lipid = −0.190). S. manshurica, A. elata and E. hyemale had higher NFC and lower NDF content. Thus, these species offered the greatest nutritional value for wintering red deer in the study area. Along with high CP and NFC content, Taxus cuspidate also had high lignin content, and was thus, considered a good forage species for red deer.

This study shows how the air permeability of thermally modified wood contributes to its water-repellent efficiency. For this purpose, freshly cut boards of hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), poplar (Populus nigra), and heartwood of oak (Quercus castanifolia) were modified at a steam temperature of 180 °C for 3 h inside a ThermoWood kiln. The porous structure, permeability, and water uptake of wood were affected differently by thermal modification, depending on the wood species. The creation of micro-cracks in the cell walls, due to collapsing of fiber cells, resulted in a noticeable increase in the permeability of hornbeam. Despite checking in the poplar wood structure, its permeability was negatively affected by thermal modification. In contrast to oak and poplar, a negative water-repellent efficiency was observed for the modified hornbeam, caused by an increase in the permeability.

Two fast-growing Indian species, Melia composita Benth. and Eucalyptus tereticornis Sm., which have different sets of physical properties, were dried together in a vacuum press dryer (VPD) under two drying conditions, i.e., above boiling point (ABP) and below boiling point (BBP). The ABP and BBP conditions were maintained by keeping the temperature constant at 75 °C and maintaining two pressure levels: 300 mm of Hg (ABP) and 450 mm of Hg (BBP). In order to understand pressure conditions at the core during vacuum drying, a cylindrical brass pipe was inserted in both wood cores and attached with pressure gauges placed outside of the VPD. The results indicate that the Melia wood core attained equilibrium pressure immediately with the pressure of VPD, while Eucalyptus attained it very slowly, reaching equilibrium at later stages of drying when cracks and checks advanced to the core. The drying rate was higher for Melia than Eucalyptus under both drying conditions. The drying rate of Melia (ABP) was higher than Melia (BBP), however, the drying rate for Eucalyptus (ABP) was not significantly different from the BBP drying rate.