In ectomycorrhizae, the relative abilities of mycobiont and host plant to take up and store inorganic nutrients are not easily determined due to the intimate physical relationship of the two components forming the association. Since compartmental analysis of solute elution can estimate cellular compartment pool sizes and unidirectional fluxes across membranes, we have used this method to study ...

Forest harvest alters natural nutrient cycles, which is reflected in stream water run-off from harvested catchments. Nitrate is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but increased concentrations in rivers, lakes, and oceans have contributed to eutrophication and anoxic conditions. Based on a literature review, we assessed the impact of three different harvest methods—clearcut, patchcut, and s...

We analyzed relations between the content of total organic carbon (TOC) and the content of soil organic matter (SOM) in 47 soil profiles dug out in dry coniferous forests, fresh coniferous forests, and mixed deciduous-coniferous forests. Soils in the analyzed sites are derived from sands. In each soil horizon, bulk density (BD), pH, soil texture, and TOC and SOM were determined. Correlation bet...

The objective of this study is to test the feasibility of nation-wide medium footprint airborne laser scanning (ALS) data for derivation of forest parameters. The comparison of canopy closure as one important parameter for many forest functions derived from ALS data and aerial photo interpretation was conducted. The present study was carried out in the framework of the Swiss National Forest Inv...

[1] In this paper, we use growing season Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) as an indicator of plant growth to quantify the relationships between vegetation production and intra-annual precipitation patterns for three major temperate biomes in China: grassland, deciduous broadleaf forest, and deciduous coniferous forest. With increased precipitation, NDVI of grassland and deciduous b...

An accurate estimation of the leaf area index (LAI) by satellite remote sensing is essential for studying the spatial variation of ecosystem structure. The goal of this study was to estimate the spatial variation of LAI over a forested catchment in a mountainous landscape (ca. 60 km2) in central Japan. We used a simple model to estimate LAI using spectral reflectance by adapting the Monsi-Saeki...

The effects of long-term reforestation on soil microbial communities and biomass are poorly understood. This study was conducted on two coniferous plantations: Cunninghamia konishii Hayata, planted 40 years ago (CONIF-40), and Calocedrus formosana (Florin) Florin, planted 80 years ago (CONIF-80). An adjacent natural broadleaf forest (BROAD-Nat) was used as a control. We determined microbial bio...