Current issue: 58(4)

Scopus CiteScore 2023: 3.5
Scopus ranking of open access forestry journals: 17th
PlanS compliant
Select issue
Silva Fennica 1926-1997
1990-1997
1980-1989
1970-1979
1960-1969
Acta Forestalia Fennica
1953-1968
1933-1952
1913-1932

Articles containing the keyword 'initial growth'

Category : Research article

article id 903, category Research article
Mikko Hyppönen, Ville Hallikainen, Juhani Niemelä, Pasi Rautio. (2013). The contradictory role of understory vegetation on the success of Scots pine regeneration. Silva Fennica vol. 47 no. 1 article id 903. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.903
Keywords: site preparation; seedling establishment; seedling mortality; field- and ground-layer vegetation; modelling approach; initial growth; prescribed burning
Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info
In North-East Finland, severe problems have been encountered in the natural regeneration of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) on sites where regeneration through site preparation usually is quite successful. We hypothesized that in that area understory vegetation, especially heather (Calluna vulgaris), crowberry (Empetrum hermaphroditum), mosses and lichens, could play a key role in this pattern. We found that in general, ground- and field-layer vegetation tends to be in a negative relationship with the establishment, growth and survival of pine seedlings. Some positive relationships were also observed. Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idea) tended to improve seedling height growth. Heather, instead, seemed to have a contradictory role. It was positively related to seedling establishment but negatively to seedling growth. This dual role raises further questions about the primary reasons for the regeneration problems in North-East Finland. All in all, our results suggest that conventional methods of forest regeneration in these kinds of areas are not always effective enough and additional measures are needed. These might include severe prescribed burning along with site preparation in order to decrease the impact of the dominant ground- and field-layer vegetation on the success of Scots pine regeneration.
  • Hyppönen, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Rovaniemi Unit, P.O. Box 16, FI-96301 Rovaniemi, Finland E-mail: mikko.hypponen@metla.fi (email)
  • Hallikainen, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Rovaniemi Unit, P.O. Box 16, FI-96301 Rovaniemi, Finland E-mail: ville.hallikainen@metla.fi
  • Niemelä, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Rovaniemi Unit, P.O. Box 16, FI-96301 Rovaniemi, Finland E-mail: jn@nn.fi
  • Rautio, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Rovaniemi Unit, P.O. Box 16, FI-96301 Rovaniemi, Finland E-mail: pasi.rautio@metla.fi

Register
Click this link to register to Silva Fennica.
Log in
If you are a registered user, log in to save your selected articles for later access.
Contents alert
Sign up to receive alerts of new content
Your selected articles