Dynamics of canopy development of Cunninghamia lanceolata mid-age plantation in relation to foliar nitrogen and soil quality influenced by stand density

Taimoor Hassan Farooq; Wende Yan; Xiaoyong Chen; Awais Shakoor; Muhammad Haroon U. Rashid; Matoor Mohsin Gilani; Zongming He; Pengfei Wu

Global Ecology and Conservation (Dec 2020)

Dynamics of canopy development of Cunninghamia lanceolata mid-age plantation in relation to foliar nitrogen and soil quality influenced by stand density

Taimoor Hassan Farooq,
Wende Yan,
Xiaoyong Chen,
Awais Shakoor,
Muhammad Haroon U. Rashid,
Matoor Mohsin Gilani,
Zongming He,
Pengfei Wu

Affiliations

Taimoor Hassan Farooq: Forestry College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Fuzhou, 350002, Fujian Province, PR China; College of Life Science and Technology, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China; National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology in Forestry and Ecology in South China, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China
Wende Yan: College of Life Science and Technology, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China; National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology in Forestry and Ecology in South China, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China
Xiaoyong Chen: National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology in Forestry and Ecology in South China, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China; College of Arts and Sciences, Governors State University, University Park, IL, 60484, USA
Awais Shakoor: Department of Environment and Soil Sciences, University of Lleida, Avinguda Alcalde Rovira Roure 191, 25198, Lleida, Spain
Muhammad Haroon U. Rashid: Forestry College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Fuzhou, 350002, Fujian Province, PR China
Matoor Mohsin Gilani: Forestry College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Fuzhou, 350002, Fujian Province, PR China; College of Life Science and Technology, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China; National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology in Forestry and Ecology in South China, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, Hunan Province, PR China
Zongming He: Forestry College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Fuzhou, 350002, Fujian Province, PR China
Pengfei Wu: Forestry College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Fuzhou, 350002, Fujian Province, PR China; Corresponding author.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 24
p. e01209

Abstract

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It has been generally accepted that different silvicultural practices affect the forest canopy morphology and structure. During forest establishment, many natural sites were converted to coniferous plantations in southern China. Retention of the canopy during stand conversion may be desirable to promote ecological function and meet conservation objectives. We tested the impact of planting density, foliar nitrogen and soil chemical properties on the canopy development of Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) mid-age monoculture stands. Low density (1450 trees hm−2 with planting spacing of 2.36 × 2.36 m), intermediate-density (2460 trees hm−2 with planting spacing of 1.83 × 1.83 m) and high density (3950 trees hm−2 with planting spacing of 1.44 × 1.44 m) stands were selected in Xinkou forest plantations in Sanming City, China. Canopy characteristics such as leaf area index (LAI), mean tilt angle of the leaf (MTA) and average canopy openness index (DIFN) were measured. Measurements were taken using LAI-2200 PCA. The results illustrated that stand density was the primal factor responsible in canopy structuring while soil chemical properties seem to play a secondary role for canopy dynamics. LAI increased from 3.974 m2 m-2 to 5.072 m2 m-2 and MTA increases from 34.8° to 48.7° as the stand density increased while the DIFN decreased from 0.1542 to 0.0902 with the increasing stand density but it was no significantly different in intermediate and high-density stands. Additionally, LAI and MTA were positively correlated to foliar nitrogen while the DIFN was negatively correlated. In general, soil available nitrogen, available phosphorus and soil pH were not significant to canopy parameters. The results presented provide guiding principles about the canopy dynamics distribution in varying stand densities from LICOR measurements in mid-age Chinese fir monoculture. Furthermore, this provides a base to study canopy dynamics at mature stage forests because of more senescence activities.

Published in Global Ecology and Conservation

ISSN: 2351-9894 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Science: Biology (General): Ecology
Website: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/global-ecology-and-conservation/

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