J. For. Sci., 2014, 60(6):219-225 | DOI: 10.17221/2/2014-JFS

Quantity and quality of litterfall in young oak standsOriginal Paper

J. Novák, D. Dušek, M. Slodičák
Forestry and Game Management Research Institute, Jíloviště-Strnady, Opočno Research Station, Opočno, Czech Republic

Litterfall, an important component of the nutrient cycle in forest ecosystems, was measured for 9 years in young oak stands on two localities classified as beech-oak climax (Fageto-Quercetum). We estimated that about 4 Mg of dry mass per hectare fell each year. Nutrient content in the litterfall represents annually per hectare approximately 40-55 kg of nitrogen, 2-3 kg of phosphorus, 7-16 kg of potassium, 41-73 kg of calcium and 6-7 kg of magnesium. The amount of litterfall is positively correlated with stand basal area and with the death of suppressed tress with small crowns. We found a positive correlation between annual litterfall and the sum of precipitation and a negative correlation between annual litterfall and temperature in summer.

Keywords: Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.; climatic factors; nutrients

Published: June 30, 2014  Show citation

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Novák J, Dušek D, Slodičák M. Quantity and quality of litterfall in young oak stands. J. For. Sci. 2014;60(6):219-225. doi: 10.17221/2/2014-JFS.
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