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Tree Species Richness Enhances Stand Productivity While Stand Structure Can Have Opposite Effects, Based On Forest Inventory Data From Germany And The United States Of America, Laura Zeller, Jingjing Liang, Hans Pretzsch
Tree Species Richness Enhances Stand Productivity While Stand Structure Can Have Opposite Effects, Based On Forest Inventory Data From Germany And The United States Of America, Laura Zeller, Jingjing Liang, Hans Pretzsch
Faculty & Staff Scholarship
Background: In recent studies, mixed forests were found to be more productive than monocultures with everything else remaining the same.
Methods: To find out if this productivity is caused by tree species richness, by a more heterogeneous stand structure or both, we analyzed the effects of forest structure and tree species richness on stand productivity, based on inventory data of temperate forests in the United States of America and Germany.
Results: Having accounted for effects such as tree size and stand density, we found that: (I) tree species richness increased stand productivity in both countries while the effect of tree …