Ecophysiological variation of European Hornbeams along the foliation period in semi-rural recreational forest landscape

Ecophysiological variation of European hornbeams along the foliation period in semi-rural recreational forest landscape Abstract: Determination of the ecophysiological characteristics of deciduous trees in the recreational areas allows construction of planning objectives particularly for the urban forests. Analysis of a multipurpose vegetation parameter; LAI (Leaf Area Index) together with some meteorological variables supplies to an extent the comprehension of those ecophysiological characteristics. Around this scope, the LAI dynamics of Carpinus betulus L. trees in a recreational area were monitored and analyzed along the foliation period of approximately three months. The mean LAI which was only 0.80 during the budburst stage gradually escalated reaching 1.49 after the flushing stage. The increment of the leaves in size and numbers led to the mean LAI achieve its climax with 3.41 in early May. Then, the mean LAI experienced a stable period until the end of May. The change in the mean LAI were subjected to correlation test especially with the air and soil temperatures. The correlations between the mean LAI and, in particular the soil temperature (r≥0.95) and air temperature were high and significant (P<0.01). There were no definite correlation between the mean LAI and mean sunlight duration, air humidity and total precipitation. Impact of air temperature on the LAI of Carpinus betulus L. trees indicates the vulnerability of the recreational area to possible urban heat oriented climate warming. On the other hand, the influence of soil temperature on the mean LAI warns the susceptibility of the recreational area to possible anthropogenic pressure resulting in soil compaction and regeneration difficulties. Consequently, sustainable management of this recreational area necessitates the anticipation and mitigation of these possible destructions. Keywords: Carpinus betulus L., recreational area, canopy architecture, Leaf Area Index (LAI), hemispherical photographs. Yari-kirsal rekreasyonel orman peyzajinda yapraklanma donemi boyunca Avrupa gurgeninin ekofizyolojik degisimi Ozet: Rekreasyon alanlarinda bulunan yaprak doken agaclarinn ekofizyolojik ozelliklerinin tespit edilmesi, bilhassa kent ormanlari icin planlama hedeflerinin tesis edilmesine imkân sunar. Cok amacli bir bitki ortusu gostergesi olan YAI’nin (Yaprak Alan Indisi) bazi meteorolojik degiskenlerle birlikte analiz edilmesi bu ekofizyolojik ozelliklerin bir nebze anlasilmasina yardim eder. Bu cercevede, bir rekreasyon alaninda bulunan Carpinus betulus L. agaclarinin YAI dinamikleri, yaklasik uc ay suren yapraklanma donemi boyunca izlenmis ve analiz edilmistir. Tomurcuklanma doneminde sadece 0.80 olan ortalama YAI, kademeli olarak artarak yaprak verme doneminden sonra 1.49’a ulasmistir. Yapraklarin boyut ve sayilarindaki artis, ortalama YAI’nin 3.41 ile Mayis basinda zirvesine ulasmasina neden olmustur. Daha sonra ortalama YAI, Mayis sonuna kadar sabit bir donem gecirmistir. YAI’deki degisim, ozellikle hava ve toprak sicakliklari ile korelasyon testine tabi tutulmustur. Ortalama YAI ile hususen toprak sicakligi olmak uzere (r≥0.95) ve hava sicakligi (r≥0.84) arasinda yuksek ve onemli (P<0.01) korelasyonlar mevcuttur. YAI ile ortalama guneslenme suresi, hava nemi ve toplam yagis arasinda belirgin bir korelasyon soz konusu degildir. Hava sicakliginin Carpinus betulus L. agaclarinin YAI’si uzerindeki etkisi, rekreasyon alaninin, sehrin isisina bagli muhtemel bir sicaklik artisindan zarar gorme ihtimalini ortaya koymaktadir. Ote yandan, toprak sicakliginin ortalama YAI uzerindeki etkisi, rekreasyon alaninin, toprak sikismasi ve genclesme guclugune yol acan muhtemel insan baskisina hassasiyetini vurgulamaktadir. Dolayisiyla, bu rekreasyon alaninin surdurulebilir yonetimi, olasi tahribatlarin ongorulmesini ve hafifletilmesini gerektirir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Carpinus betulus L., rekreasyon alani, tepe catisi mimarisi, Yaprak Alan Indisi (YAI), yarikure fotograflar Received (Gelis):  09.01.2016 -  Revised (Duzeltme):  22.01.2016 -  Accepted (Kabul):  01.02.2016 Cite (Atif):  Ozturk, M., Gokyer, E., Dogan, I.A., 2016. Ecophysiological variation of European hornbeams along the foliation period in semi-rural recreational forest landscape. Journal of the Faculty of Forestry Istanbul University 66(2): xxx-xxx. DOI: 10.17099/jffiu.xxxxx