18 Jan 2024

Factors determining fine-scale spatial genetic structure within coexisting populations of common beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.), and sessile oak (Q. petraea (Matt.) Liebl.)

Key message Naturally regenerating populations of common beech, pedunculate and sessile oaks develop strong spatial genetic structures at adult and seedling stages. Significant genetic relationship occurs between individuals growing up to 60 m apart. This indicates the
16 Jan 2024

Forest management and former land use have no effect on soil fungal diversity in uneven-aged mountain high forests

Key message Metabarcoding analysis of soil fungal communities in French mountain forests revealed that harvesting intensity, time since last harvest and former land use had no effect on fungal community composition compared to key abiotic factors. Low-intensity
4 Jan 2024

First report of Cryptosporiopsis tarraconensis causing leaf lesion of Corylus avellana in Central Europe (Poland)

Key message As a result of our research, we determined that Cryptosporiopsis tarraconensis—as a new species for Central Europe—is the causative agent of leaf lesions in natural populations of hazel (Corylus avellana). Until now, this species had
18 Dec 2023

Models to predict the radial variation of stiffness, strength, and density in planted noble fir, Norway spruce, western hemlock, and western red cedar in Great Britain

Key message This study compares the measured radial variation in wood stiffness, strength, and density of noble fir, Norway spruce, western hemlock, and western red cedar by developing mixed-effects models for each property using age as the
6 Dec 2023

Post-fire forest recovery at high latitudes: tree regeneration dominated by fire-adapted, early-seral species increases with latitude

Key message Above 40° N/S, increasing latitude is linked to greater post-fire tree regeneration. However, species dominance shifts from conifers to short-lived deciduous trees, which may negatively impact flora, fauna, and ecosystem services dependent on coniferous forests.
1 Dec 2023

Participatory ground data are complementary to satellite bark beetle detection

Key message During pest outbreaks, mapping tools play an important role. Participatory projects can provide useful ground data, which have a high accuracy in detecting early-stage infestations and small spots of the European spruce bark beetle Ips
30 Nov 2023

Three systems of molecular markers reveal genetic differences between varieties sabina and balkanensis in the Juniperus sabina L. range

Key message Juniperus sabina var. balkanensis, that is of hybrid origin, and its maternal progenitor J. sabina var. sabina are genetically distinct with respect to cpDNA, SNP, and SilicoDArT loci. Mostly non-overlapping distributions of the sabina and
22 Nov 2023

Estimation of aboveground biomass and carbon stocks of Quercus ilex L. saplings using UAV-derived RGB imagery

Key message Crown area, sapling height, and biovolume extracted from UAV-acquired RGB images provided accurate estimates of aboveground biomass and carbon stocks in a 5-year-old holm oak (Quercus ilex L.) plantation. Our models regressing UAV-derived sapling variables
8 Nov 2023

Climate-smart forest management caught between a rock and a hard place

Key message The UNFCCC COP 27 in Sharm El-Sheikh confirmed that climate policies too heavily rely on climate mitigation by forests rather than on de-fossilizing the energy system, to keep global warming within the safe 1.5 °C.
27 Oct 2023

Genetic variation of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in Eurasia: impact of postglacial recolonization and human-mediated gene transfer

Key message The range-wide level of genetic variation of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is geographically structured. High admixture and low genetic structure of populations in Central Europe and Fennoscandia suggest past recolonization from multiple sources and