Damages in forests in the Czech Republic

Jan Svetlik contact: svetlikj@seznam.cz

Long-standing As a student Member of the project practice

Czech forests:forest land: 2,7 millions haforest coverage: 34%conifers: 75% broadleaves: 25%annual felling: 15,5 milions m3

red deer fallow deer

mouflon roe deer wild boar hare0

50000

100000

150000

200000

23,120

14,742 9,378

108,616

185,381

56,310 Hunting of main game species (2012)

Game management can be more profitable than forest management

Forest ownerhip in the Czech Republic

State forests 60.0%

Forests owned by

individuals 19.3%

Municipal and town forests 16.6%

Other forests 2.8%Forest cooperatives

and associations 1.2%

Forests of church and religious entities

0.1%

Actual tree species composition

Norway spruce 51.7%

pine 16.7%

larch 3.9%

fir 1.0%

other conifers

0.3%

oak 7.0%

beech 7.5%

birch 2.7% other broadlea-ves

8.1%

age 1-20 21-40 41-60 61-80 81-100 101-120 121-140

100 m

planned felling 9.7

sal-vage

felling 6.5

Very severe forest damage situation!!!Mean annual felling (in millions m3) in last 10 years

• Windthrow = 50%• Barkbeetles on spruce = 20%• Armillaria = 5%• Game on new plantings (fir,

larch) and unbarking middle-agged forests

Czech forest health condition is poorStrong pressure of combination of stressful factors

• Extreme weather• Improper tree species composition• Biotic agents (bark beetles, honey fungus…)• Extremly high populations of deer

2009Heavy rains in summerVery hot summer

Bad situation with barkbeetles (mostly spruce)

2012Hot temperature records in August The largest forest fire in last 15

years (180 ha)

Next 3 slides: Important bad years in period 2003-2012

2008Spring heavy storm (EMMA)Heavy storm in June (IVAN)

Very bad year 66% (=10,8 millions m3)

2007April-only 6 mm (precipitation)The warmest year in Czech. Rep.Very strong strom (KIRILL)

Very bad year more than 80% (=14,9 millions m3)

Abnormal warm weather in the period Sept. 2006-Sept. 2007 Barkbeetles occurrence

2006Extremes in temperatures and precipitation

Damages by wet snow

2003Heavy drought (only ¾ of normal precipitation)Abnormally warmer

8,2 millions m3(= more than 50% of all felling)

Abiotic damages in 2003

Sequence of dominant problemsReplacing beech by spruce with geneticaly uncertain origin in current

forest generation, changed environment

Predisposition to windthrow, drought, snow and other extreme events

Attack of barkbeetles and/or honey fungus (Armilaria)

Journalist: What is forest health status in your region?Director: We had extreme windthrow calamities in 1991, 1995, 2003 (that was 99%

salvage fellings), 2007 and 2008….Journalist: How do you plan fellings?Director: We cannot plan fellings…..Journalist: What about changing of tree

species composition?Director: Nature shows us the dirrection….

Damages in mature spruce forests Highlands (an example):

• To spruce and beech regeneration were additionaly used lime, maple, oak.• Transplanting in pairs 1 spruce (on south) and 1 beech (+/- 10cm from spruce

seedling). 1 x 2m; pairs are in every second line.

Comments to previous interview:

Sequence of damages in new plantationsImmediate response after transplanting1) Effect of poorly made human labor during transplanting small trees (artificially est. forest) 2) Bad quality of seedlingsResponse in 1-3 years after transplanting3) Drought4) High herbs and bushes (Urtica, Sambucus…)Response in 4-(10) years after transplanting5) Armillaria ostoye (5-15%)

Production of drought tolerant seedlings

• The most important for transplanting success is ratio of volume belowground / aboveground biomass. Aboveground volume should not be larger than 3x belowground volume (in case of 5x larger aboveground volume, we should expect at least 50% mortality)

• In nursery You can order specific (not from greenhouses) ,,strong,, seedlings = PRICE

• Development is highly corelated with climatic extremes previous year (drought, wind)

• Mostly on spruces in non-native occupancy area• Mostly on rich soils,• Can affect any tree species in any age

Some comments to honey fungus in Czech Republic

Acute attack, still green crown with no visual symptoms

Climate change as a designer of Czech forests in future

Climate change in Czech Republic: • Annual air temperature getting 0,2°C warmer

every decade• Reduction of total precipitation• More often and longer drought periods• Longer vegetation season

What will happen (what we think that will happen):Lowlands and highlands: • decreasing trend of growth• more intensive drought stress for treesMountains • same or better growing conditions• movement of the upper forest limit into

higher altitudes

Vegetation zonesmovement

Pests and pathogens:• changes their area of occupancy, population dynamics, virulence, host tree species,

number of barkbeetle generations per year• Ips typographus: 1961-1990 = 1 generation/year in 2% in mountine

forests= 2 gen./y in 70% forests

= 3 gen./y in 28% forests2021-2050 = 2 gen./y in 46% forests

= 3 gen./y in 54% forests2071-2100 = 3 gen./y in 80% forests

= almost 4 gen./y in 20% forests

What will happen (what we think that will happen):

very hard to predict forest development in future

• Increase of tree biodiversity• Evaluate changes of forest types distribution• Subsidy program for silviculture methods

adaptation Support of fast growing trees on argiculture land

• Support of coppice forests• Reduction of invasive plants and tree species

Czech National Forestry Program, Key Action 6 (Reduction of climate change impacts on forests)

To spread the risk of damages in the future

Invasive Reynoutria

Suitable provenances

• Repeating, methodology development and sharing data from National Forest Inventory

• Monitoring of forests with spontaneous development (non-interference zones)• Continuing and methodology extension of forest health monitoring

Czech National Forestry Program, Key Action 7 (Continuing and development of forest monitoring)

• Reduction of clearcuts• Support of natural regeneration• Support reccomended tree species composition and heterogenous spatial forest structure• Development of methodology how to evaluate costs of damages• Review and re-evaluation of forest categories and forest main functions in local scale• Key action 9 - Balance between forest health and game management

Czech National Forestry Program, Key Action 8 (Forest health and forest protection improvement)

Who wants broadleaves?

Recommended tree species composition (for the future)Compromis between economical and natural tree composition (accepted by Forest Management Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of the Environment…)Expected effect:• Higher forest stability than nowadays• Still wood productivity and satisfaction of wood

industry demands• But these changes still regiure changes in wood

industry in the future

Norway spruce 51.7%

pine 16.7%

larch 3.9%

fir 1.0%

other conifers

0.3%

oak 7.0%

beech 7.5% birch

2.7%other broadlea-ves

8.1%

Norway spruce 11.2%

pine 3.4%

fir 19.8%

other conifers

0.3%oak 19.4%

beech 40.2%

birch 0.8%

other broadlea-ves 4.9%

Norway spruce 36.5%

pine 16.8%

larch 4.5%fir 4.4%

other conifers

2.2%

oak 9.0%

beech 18.0%

birch 0.8%

other broadlea-ves 7.8%

Actual

Recommended

Natural

Vegetation zones in Czech Republic (natural distribution before climate change)

Current forest: spruce 80%, pine 15%, birch 5%Natural forest: oak 70%, beech 30%, pineWanted:

pine 60%, oak 20%, beech 10%, larch 10%

Forest management: • using clearcuts (suits to both pine and oak)• seedlings not from greenhouses• using very young seedlings (9000/ha)• beech (lime) in shelterwood groups• larch needs individual protection

Well drained soils

Heavy soils (high clay contend) Current forest: spruce 100% (rotten roundwood, low stability)Natural forest: spruce 50%, fir 40%, beech (alder) 10%

Wanted: spruce 60%, fir 40%, beech 10%, (alder), Forest management: • avoid large (1ha = 50x 200m) clearcuts!!!• fir in shelterwood groups 20 years ahead (beech closer), • natural regeneration – agresive plants (weed), • damages by game• negative selection of subdominant and suppressed trees

age 1-20 21-40 41-60 61-80 81-100 101-120 121-140

100 m

Market calls for spruceNowadays:• Developed wood industry for coniferous, but not for broadleaves (generally about

half price of spruce, using mostly as a firewood, some export)• As a forest owner you have no problem to sell spruce wood, almost imposible for

broadleavesNear future: • Less wood amount of spruce and pine• Incerase of beech, oak and other broadleaves wood

Looking for a compromisSpruce broadleaves

And thanks to Spruce Dieback Project and to the European Social Fund and the state budget of the Czech Republic, Project Indicators of trees vitality Reg. No. CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0265.

Thanks for Your attention