WOUND HEALING RATE IN ORIENTAL BEECH TREES FOLLOWING LOGGING DAMAGE

Originally published in DREWNO: 

Tavankar F, Picchio R, Lo Monaco A, Nikooy M, Venanzi R, Bonyad AE (2019) Wound healing rate in oriental beech trees following logging damages. Drewno 2019, 62(203):5-22 (open access)

Corresponding author: Angela LO MONACO (lomonaco@unitus.it)

This article can be dowloaded at: http://drewno-wood.pl/pobierz-332

DOI: 10.12841/wood.1644-3985.294.07

Abstract

Beech is the most important commercial species in the Caspian forests of Iran.
Selective cutting and harvesting methods may adversely impact the quality of the
residual trees, as the injuries make the trees prone to future disease, insect
infestations or timber defects. Although attempts to better understand how wounds
affect the residual trees have been made in many different contexts, there are still
few investigations on uneven-aged forests. In this study the key objectives were to
determine and model the healing rate for different wound parameters (width,
length, and area of wound); to analyse the relationship between wound healing
rate (WHR), tree diameter growth and tree height growth; to analyse the WHR in
relation to wound position on the stem; and to analyse the relationship between
WHR, width and area of wound in DBH classes and social classes, with the aim of
enabling the prognosis of logging wounds.
Wounded beech trees were examined immediately after selective logging and
after a 5-year period. The WHR was 31.2 ±7.7 cm2 year-1. The wound width
healing rate (18.4 ±3.4 mm·year-1) was significantly higher than the wound length
healing rate (4.5 ±1.6 mm·year-1). Only 12% of wounds were completely closed
after a 5-year period, and 15 years are necessary for the complete closure of 80%
of total wounds. The ratio of wound area to stem area at wound height (RWS)
showed a more pronounced effect on diameter than on height. Regression analysis
showed that WHR was correlated negatively with wound area and width and
positively with tree diameter growth, but no significant relationship was found
between height growth and WHR parameters. The WHR was significantly higher
at an upper position than at a lower one, and statistical tests showed that the tree
vertical layering classes had a significant effect on WHR. Finally, it was shown
that WHRs in upper-storey trees are significantly higher than in the middle and
lower storeys.