Dendroclimatic potential of millennium-long ring-width chronology of Pinus gerardiana from Himachal Pradesh, India

摘要

We have developed a 1087-yr (AD 919-2005; so far the longest) chronology of Pinus gerardiana (chilgoza pine) from Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh using 15,083 annual ring-width measurements from 35 increment cores. The tree growth-climate. relationship using response-function analyses indicated that precipitation, except for the months of January, February and October, has a direct relationship with growth. However, this relationship was significant for previous year's October and current year's February, March, May and June. Mean monthly temperature showed largely negative relationship with growth, except for June and August-October. The longevity and climate sensitivity of this species shows its potential in developing millennium-long climatic reconstructions needed for understanding the long-term climate variability in the Himalayan region.