A process-oriented tree and stand growth model is extended to be applicable to the analysis of timber quality, and how it is influenced by silvicultural treatments. The tree-level model is based on the carbon balance and it incorporates the dynamics of five biomass variables as well as tree height, crown base, and breast height diameter. Allocation of carbon is based on the conservation of structural relationships, in particular, the pipe model. The pipe-model relationships are extended to the whorl level, but in order to avoid a 3-dimensional model of entire crown structure, the branch module is largely stochastic and aggregated. In model construction, a top-down hierarchy is used where at each step down, the upper level sets constraints for the lower level. Some advantages of this approach are model consistency and efficiency of calculations, but probably at the cost of reduced flexibility. The detailed structure related with the branching module is preliminary and will be improved when more data becomes available. Model parameters are identified for Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in Southern Finland, and example simulations are carried out to compare the development of quality characteristics in different stocking densities.
The structure of 20 Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees was analysed as a water transport system. There is a tight linear regression between the cross-sectional area of the stem at the height of its lowest living branch and the cross-sectional area of its coarse roots, between the cross-sectional area of the stem at the height of its lowest living branch and the total cross-sectional area of its branches, and between the cross-sectional area of the base of a branch and the total cross-sectional area of subsidiary branches of that branch. The capacity of successive organs, measured as cross-sectional areas, to transport water was thus found to be regular within a tree.
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The proportions of needle and wood in current-year shoots in crown systems of young Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees was studied. The proportion of needles out of the total shoot biomass increased according to the increasing number of the whorl counted from the apex. In the lower part of the crown system the needle biomass of newly-formed shoots was 50–60 fold compared to that of wood and bark biomass. In the upper part of the crown system the same ratio was 1–2. The variation in ratio between needle and wood biomass was whorl-specific and independent of tree class. The magnitude of the ratio was not related to the position of the tree in the stand nor to the prevailing light conditions within the state.
The PDF includes a summary in Finnish.
The report concludes a series of studies on the early development of young Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stands. The basis assumption made in the study series was that the within-stand light regime is the main driving force for total tree growth and its allocation of photosynthates for crown, stem and root growth. An individual tree growing in a stand under a varying light regime which is controlled by the stand structure, is the basic unit used in the study. The photosynthesis of an individual tree is determined by the light regime. The stand is formed from individual trees.
The model is applied in simulation of the growth and development of tree stands. Several computer runs representing various densities, height distributions and tree species mixtures were carried out. Potential application areas, properties of the model and future needs of investigations are discussed.
The PDF includes a summary in English.