Global change—particularly climate change, forest management, and atmospheric deposition—has significantly altered forest growing conditions in Europe. The influences of these changes on beech growth (Fagus sylvatica L.) were investigated for the past 80 years in Belgium, using non-linear mixed effects models on ring-width chronologies of 149 mature and dominant beech trees (87–186 years old). ...

We assessed the irradiance-related plasticity of hydraulic architecture in saplings of Betula pendula Roth., a pioneer species; Acer pseudoplatanus L., Fraxinus excelsior L. and Quercus robur L., which are post-pioneer light-requiring species; and Quercus petraea Matt. Liebl. and Fagus sylvatica L. Plants were grown in pots in 36%, 16% and 4% of full sunlight. Hydraulic conductance was measured...

Many bacteria belonging to the phylum of Actinobacteria are known as antagonists against phytpathogenic microbes. This study aimed to analyze the effect of ozone on the actinobacterial community of the rhizosphere of four years old European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) trees during different time points of the vegetation period. Effects of ozone on the total community structure of Actinobacteria ...

The cloud forests of Mexico have been degraded and severely fragmented, and urgently require restoration. However, progress with restoration has been constrained by a lack of information concerning the seedling ecology of native tree species. An experiment was therefore conducted to assess the influence of different environmental factors on the seedling survival and growth of four native tree s...

The beech species Fagus hayatae is an important relict tree species in subtropical China, whose biogeographical patterns may reflect floral responses to climate change in this region during the Quaternary. Previous studies have revealed phylogeography for three of the four Fagus species in China, but study on F. hayatae, the most sparsely distributed of these species, is still lacking. Here, mo...

22 In terrestrial environments, soil organic matter (SOM) is the largest organic carbon 23 (C) pool. The quantity and quality of organic carbon in soils can be affected by 24 vegetation through influencing the inputs and outputs of SOM. We examined how 25 storage and quality of C in SOM were affected by vegetation under grass cover or 26 single and a polyculture plot of Betula pendula, Alnus gl...

The water permeability of the leaves of three deciduous plants (Acer campestre, Fagus sylvatica, Quercus petraea) and two evergreen plants (Hedera helix, Ilex aquifolium) was analysed in order to assess its role as a mechanism of drought resistance. Cuticular permeances were determined by measurement of the water loss through adaxial, astomatous leaf surfaces. Minimum conductances after complet...

1. The effect of extreme climate events on ecosystems is an important driver of the bioticresponse to climate change. For forests, extreme drought has been linked to negativeeffects such as large scale mortality and reduced primary production. However, theresponse of plant communities to extreme drought events remains poorly understood. 2. We used mortality data from a long term mon...

Drought entails important effects on tree physiology, which may result in short- to long-term radial growth decreases. While the majority of studies have focused on annual drought-related variability of growth, relatively little is known about sustained growth decreases following drought years. We apply a statistical framework to identify climatic factors that induce abrupt growth decreases and...

The presence and concentration of mineral nutrients and organic acids were analyzed in root xylem sap of mature beech trees (Fagus sylvatica L.). An interdependence between malate concentration, pH, and calcium and magnesium concentrations was observed. Significant correlations were found between low pH values and high calcium and magnesium concentrations, low pH values and high malate concentr...