Short-term effects of whole-tree harvesting on nutrition of scots pine on drained peatlands

摘要

Concerns have been raised about the effects of whole-tree harvesting on site productivity. In this study, we investigated the effect of different intensities of forest residue recovery on the nutrition of Scots pine on two mires drained for forestry. The amount of logging residues left on the site after whole tree harvesting was 7-8 t ha~(-1), while after conventional stem-only harvesting it was 12-15 t ha~(-1). After whole-tree harvesting, the amount of nutrient in the logging residues was considerably lower than after stem-only harvesting. Different harvesting intensities had only a minor effect on foliar nutrient concentrations during the first 5-year period after the thinning treatments.