The afforestation of widely distributed boreal open woodlands such as lichen woodlands (LWs) could provide both a restoration of the closed-crown forest structure in the boreal forest and a mitigation measure against global warming. By comparing natural, mature stands of LW with their dense counterparts — black-spruce–feathermoss stands as a plantation surrogate — this study aims to validate the long-term LW growth support capacity for a high tree density and their carbon sequestration potential after afforestation. Our results reveal that the site potential of LWs can be either lower or equivalent to that of dense stands. This finding contradicts the paradigm of systematic lower tree growth in LWs. The site potential of LWs can be assessed by dominant tree volume at 50 years. This study also shows that the CBM-CFS3 model can simulate the conservative net carbon balance of afforested LW, and, as such, can help reduce uncertainties regarding the long-term net carbon drawdown of afforested LWs.
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