Abstract This chapter overviews long-standing foundations, methods, and concepts of dendrochronology, yet also pays attention to a few related paradigm shifts driven by isotope measurements in tree-rings. The basics annual ring formation are first reviewed, followed structural descriptions tree-rings at the macroscopic-to-microscopic scale including earlywoodandlatewoodin conifers (gymnosperms)...

The growing public awareness of the increasing number of large wildfires across forested landscapes, coupled with needs of resource base management has accelerated research into forest reference conditions and the historical role of fire in coniferous ecosystems. This work investigates historical fire regimes of mixed-conifer forests in the San Jacinto Mountains of southern California using fir...

D endrochronology's rich tradition has foundations rooted in the works of da Vinci and MalpighF. Although the main stem of principles was developed by A.E. Douglass (see Ref. 1), one branch of dendrochronology actually pre-dates his work. The association between narrow tree rings and damage by insects, hail and frost was recognized by Hartig in Europe at the end of the last century!. The impact...

In the present study, the high-resolution stable carbon ( 13 C/ 12 C) and oxygen ( 18 O/ 16 O) isotope ratio profiles in the wood of the mangrove Rhizophora mucronata Lam., a tropical tree species lacking distinct growth rings, were investigated. Variations of both isotope ratios revealed a remarkable annual cyclicity with lowest values occurring at the latewood/earlywood boundary (April–May) a...