Past forests of Europe

The prehistoric and preindustrial deforestation of Europe

Humans have transformed Europe’s landscapes since the establishment of the first agricultural societies in the mid-Holocene. The most important anthropogenic alteration of the natural environment was the clearing of forests to establish cropland and pasture, and the exploitation of forests for fuel wood and construction materials. While the archaeological and paleoecological record documents th...

Long-term effects of climate change on carbon budgets of forests in Europe Long-term effects of climate change on carbon budgets of forests in Europe Long-term effects of climate change on carbon budgets of forests in Europe

Biodiversity differences between managed and unmanaged forests: meta-analysis of species richness in Europe.

Past and present pressures on forest resources have led to a drastic decrease in the surface area of unmanaged forests in Europe. Changes in forest structure, composition, and dynamics inevitably lead to changes in the biodiversity of forest-dwelling species. The possible biodiversity gains and losses due to forest management (i.e., anthropogenic pressures related to direct forest resource use)...

Synthesis Report: Forest Genetic Resources in the EU

Conservation of forest genetic resources has always been an integral part of tree improvement programs. However threats to FGR, such as habitat destruction, fragmentation, pollution, the use of low quality forest reproductive material and climate change have increased in the past decades and with it the need to maintain FGR. During the past two decades several policy instruments and initiatives...

Heterobasidion root rot in forests on former agricultural lands in Poland: Scale of threat and prevention

This paper describes the specifics of forests on former farmlands in Poland and their protection as well as preventive measures taken. The review refers to polish literature on the threat by root rot caused by Heterobasidion annosum (Fr.) Bref. to pine and spruce plantations established on postagricultural lands on an area of more than 1400 000 ha. In Europe, the latter presents an outstanding ...