A dendrochronological analysis of the spruce's radial increment at eight different plots was conducted throughout Slovenia. The plots selected were diverse: five of them were natural spruce stands; in others, the spruce was introduced anthropogenically in the past for economic reasons, or its natural share in stands was increased. We took samples of at least 20 trees per plot and examined them in the dendrochronological laboratory using Advanced Tree-Ring Image Capturing System (ATRICS) and specialized dendrochronological software. We compared the growth in natural spruce stands with the secondary (anthropogenic) ones and found no statistical differences in growth patterns between these two groups. However, we found some evidence for climate change effect on radial increment at locations Sorško polje, Ravnik and Mašun, which indicates that air temperature and precipitation now have stronger effect on spruce growth than in the past. Analysis of pointer years suggests that extreme events (exceptionally warm and dry years) are more common and widespread in the last 30 years.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5300902
A comparative study of young European beech, silver fir and Norway spruce in the Slovenian mixed forest stands was made at four locations, exposed to the rapid canopy disintegration after the severe ice storm in 2014. Nitrogen amount (Ntot), Leaf mass per area (LMA), maximal Assimilation response to light (Amax) and Quantum yield (%) were measured in three categories of different light intensities under closed canopy with Indirect Site Factor (ISF) ( 15%, at the forest edge (15% ( ISF ( 25%) and in the open (ISF ) 25%). Tree responses were compared between damaged plots % rapidly exposed to light and undamaged sites, where young trees gradually adapted to the light environment during two subsequent years after the disturbance event. Nitrogen content of all three species was within optimal range values, highest in the open and lowest under canopy conditions on every plot. Rapid exposure to increased light levels affected most directly fir in the category of forest edge and under open canopies. Contrary to fir, beech responded in a favourable way, while no differences in response were evident in spruce.
COBISS.SI-ID: 4797094