WOOD LITTER INPUT TO THE SOIL SURFACE OF MIDDLE TAIGA PINE FORESTS IN THE EUROPEAN NORTH-EAST OF RUSSIA
A. F. Osipov
Komi Science Centre of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Biology, Syktyvkar, Russian Federation
Keywords: pine forests, litter fall, forest type, middle taiga
Abstract
Plant litter is a connecting flux between plants and soil, and the rate of soil organic matter accumulation depends on its decomposition. Despite the abundance of data on the mass of litterfall in Russian pine forests, generalized assessments of the influence of growing conditions on this process are rare. Approximately constant rate of organic matter flux from tree plants on forest floor surface was detected base on 5 years of observation (during 2017-2022) that can rarely be disturbed due to significant litterfall of branches during winter. The tree litterfall influx in pine forest of Lichen type was 233.4 g/m2 per year, in bilberry type pine forest - 206.1, and in Sphagnosa type pine forest - 109.6 g/m2 per year much of that (66-72 %) formed from May to October. In relatively clear on composition pine forests pine needle produce 48-62 % from total litterfall. Branches (predominantly pine) and pine bark has a significant input that reach to 12-16 % and 12-14 % from tree litterfall, respectively. Growing conditions influence the share of birch ( Betula L.) eaves, pine needle and cones in total mass of litterfall. Obtained data can be used to assess the cycle of matter and carbon in the pine forests of the northern taiga zone.
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