10.5061/DRYAD.R8591
Mina, Marco
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Huber, Markus O.
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Forrester, David I.
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Thürig, Esther
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Rohner, Brigitte
Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Data from: Multiple factors modulate tree growth complementarity in
central European mixed forests
Dryad
dataset
2018
nonlinear mixed-effects models
plant– plant interactions
mixing effects
National Forest Inventory
mixed species forests
2018-08-02T00:00:00Z
2018-08-02T00:00:00Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12846
567051 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Mixed species forests can often be more productive and deliver higher
levels of ecosystem services and functions than monocultures. However,
complementarity effects for any given tree species are difficult to
generalize because they can vary greatly along gradients of climatic
conditions and resource availability. Identifying the conditions where
species diversity can positively influence productivity is crucial. To
date, few studies have examined how growth complementarity across species
and mixture types is modulated by stand and environmental factors, and
fewer have considered more than one or two factors. We investigated how
complementarity effects for several major central European tree species
change with climatic and edaphic conditions, and with stand structural
characteristics, including species composition. We used data from the
Swiss National Forest Inventory, which is based on 3231 plots of pure and
mixed stands (19 mixture types) across a broad environmental gradient, to
test (i) how mixing effects change depending on the identity of the
admixed species and (ii) if complementarity consistently increases when
environmental conditions become harsher. The magnitude, whether positive
or negative, of complementarity increased with increasing stand density
and stand developmental stage, but no general pattern could be identified
across mixture types. Complementarity for many species increased as
drought intensity and temperature increased, but not for all species and
mixture types. While soil conditions, nitrogen and site topography
influenced complementarity for many species, there was no general pattern
(increases and decreases were observed). SYNTHESIS. Our study indicates
that complementarity varies strongly with stand density and stand
development as well as with topographic, climatic and soil conditions.
This emphasizes the need to account for site-dependent conditions when
exploring mixture effects in relation to forest productivity. We found
that under certain conditions (i.e., increasing drought, higher
temperature), mixed forests can promote individual-tree growth in central
European temperate forests. However, careful assessments depending on the
species composing the stands are required under changing resource
availability as well as under different levels of stand density and
development.
Model outputs (R summaries and correlations)The file contains the summary
outputs saved from the software R for all the fitted models, including
matrices reporting the correlation between the variables. Legend of
variables and tree species, as well as a short explanation on how to read
the model outputs, are included in the
file.Mina_etal_JEcol-2017_Model_outputs.txt
Switzerland
Central European temperate forests