250-Year reconstruction of pollarding events reveals sharp management changes in Iberian ash woodlands

IF 2.1 3区农林科学 Q2 FORESTRY

Trees Pub Date : 2022-09-23 DOI:10.1007/s00468-022-02343-8

David Candel-Pérez, Héctor Hernández-Alonso, Federico Castro, Gabriel Sangüesa-Barreda, Sven Mutke, Miguel García-Hidalgo, Vicente Rozas, José Miguel Olano

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引用次数: 2

Key message

Tree-ring growth of pollarded narrow-leaved ash trees in Central Spain reveals traditional management cessation in 1970 and property-specific management patterns.

Abstract

Tree pollarding was a dominant management strategy of European forests for centuries creating open agroforestry landscapes with important cultural and environmental values. This traditional practice has been widely abandoned in last decades with a subsequent impact in terms of biodiversity and cultural loss. Central Spain hosts the largest and best-preserved area of pollarded narrow-leaved ash (Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl.) woodlands in Europe. The main aim of this research is to obtain rigorous historical records of pollarding frequency to get adequate information for traditional ash management. We used dendrochronological techniques to evaluate temporal changes of pollarding frequency and rotation length. We analysed the stand level synchrony and the effect of land property on pollarding activity from 322 trees growing in eight pollard stands in Central Spain. Pollarding events were unequivocally identified at tree level by a characteristic change in growth pattern. We identified 2426 tree-level pruning events with the first event dated in 1777. Historical pruning recurrence ranged between 5 and 10 years with higher pollarding frequency on private lands. Pruning events within each site were synchronous, suggesting the existence of a rotational schema within each stand. Pruning frequency decreased drastically in the 1970s matching with the depopulation of rural areas and the general abandonment of traditional practices. Pollarding practices have recovered in recent decades although with lower intensity and lacking the synchronic historical patterns. Providing technical and economic support to make this traditional activity profitably would have strong environmental revenue due the multiple ecosystem services provided by pollarded ashes.

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250年来对投票事件的重建揭示了伊比利亚灰林地管理的急剧变化

西班牙中部窄叶白蜡树的年轮生长揭示了1970年传统管理的停止和财产特定的管理模式。摘要:数个世纪以来，树木授粉一直是欧洲森林的主要管理策略，创造了具有重要文化和环境价值的开放式农林业景观。在过去的几十年里，这种传统做法已被广泛放弃，随之而来的影响是生物多样性和文化的丧失。西班牙中部拥有欧洲最大、保存最完好的窄叶白蜡林地(Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl.)。本研究的主要目的是获得严格的历史记录，为传统的灰管理提供充分的信息。我们使用树木年代学技术来评估授粉频率和旋转长度的时间变化。以西班牙中部8个采蜜林分322棵乔木为研究对象，分析了林分水平同步性和土地性质对采蜜活动的影响。在树水平上，通过生长模式的特征性变化可以明确地确定花粉事件。我们确定了2426个树级修剪事件，其中第一个事件发生在1777年。历史修剪复发率在5 ~ 10年之间，在私人土地上取粉频率较高。每个站点内的修剪事件是同步的，表明每个站点内存在旋转模式。20世纪70年代，随着农村地区人口减少和传统做法的普遍放弃，修剪频率急剧下降。近几十年来，尽管民意调查的强度较低，而且缺乏同步的历史模式，但民意调查已经恢复。通过提供技术和经济支持，使这一传统活动有利可图，将会产生可观的环境收入，因为经过精砂处理的灰烬提供了多种生态系统服务。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Trees 农林科学-林学

CiteScore

4.50

自引率

4.30%

发文量

113

审稿时长

3.8 months

期刊介绍： Trees - Structure and Function publishes original articles on the physiology, biochemistry, functional anatomy, structure and ecology of trees and other woody plants. Also presented are articles concerned with pathology and technological problems, when they contribute to the basic understanding of structure and function of trees. In addition to original articles and short communications, the journal publishes reviews on selected topics concerning the structure and function of trees.