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From the oldest times, the forest has been the main food, shelter and energy source, playing an essential role in the development of human societies. Old stands are characterized by their long life, large heights and diameters and by their help in conserving biodiversity. The surfaces occupied by old stands have decreased lately because of their wood mass high value which leads to exploitation. This is furthermore coupled with climate changes, urbanization and human influences. These stands occupy a surface of 128.500 ha in the forests from Dobrogea’s Plateau, where broad-leaved species are preponderant (Quercus sp., Fraxinus ornus, Tilia tomentosa, Acer sp.). As such, the present paper intends to characterize the oldest stands from Dobrogea’s Plateau with the help of forest management plans realized during 1993-2007. The main characteristics analyzed in this study for stands older than 120 years were: location, surface, height, diameter, structure, forest type, soil type, altitude, exposition, slope and consistency. Stand older than 100 years occupy only 4% of the total surface and are composed of linden, brown oak and pedunculate oak which grow and develop on common luvisols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spent mushroom substrate (SMS), often disregarded as waste despite its abundance in organic matter and mineral micronutrients, has emerged as a valuable resource for diverse applications. While Europe and Asia have witnessed extensive research in this field over the past decade, Ukraine's exploration remains limited. This study conducts a thorough investigation into SMS recycling and reutilization over a 4-year period. Employing experimental and comparative methods, this research unveils compelling insights into the potential of SMS for reintroduction into the primary production cycle and secondary activities. The main conclusions reveal the success of SMS valorization in the production of additives, fertilizers, and alternative fuels. Furthermore, the application of SMS in agroecosystems significantly enhances the soil biological activity. The integration of these methods into production chains not only yields economic benefits for companies but also fosters environmental stewardship, aligning with waste-free practices and the principles of bioeconomy and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of smart forest is rather recent, being adapted from the climate smart agriculture concept, which has appeared in 2010. The forest situated in this category should fulfill the following criteria: increased income and productivity, improved resilience and reduces greenhouse gases. In addition, climate-smart forestry in mountain regions tries to situate forests from the mountain area based on their adaptation towards climatic changes, carbon stocks, biodiversity or other synthetic indices. The present article tries for the first time the framing of alder forests from the Southern Carpathian Mountains based on 16 indices regarding their site and stand characteristics. Alder stands from this area are generally located on plain fields, at low altitudes and on average or superior bonity stations. However, only 3.6% of them can be situated in the smart forest category. These stands are indicated on humid and rich soils, while their exploitation should be realized when they reach an age of 60-70 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

These research articles are highly varied and can be classified into eight sub-domains that are representative of the chosen domain: natural and human disturbances, genetics, site conditions, tropical forest, peri-urban forest, forest soils, forest reserves, and mountain ecosystems (Figure 2). The sustainable and regular supply of ecosystem services by forests requires excellent knowledge of the functional and biological diversity in these complex ecosystems [[7], [9]]. In this study, natural forests were the most positively rated type of forest, while the managed ones were the least positively rated, revealing an important trend among the participants, and human intervention was not the foremost landscape-related factor affecting this perception. Forest ecosystems contribute to human wellbeing and the economy through the complex ecosystem services they provide [[1], [3], [5]]. [Extracted from the article]

Copyright of Ephata is the property of Ephata and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Thanks to the efforts of our reviewers in 2022, the median time to first decision was 17 days and the median time to publication was 43 days. High-quality academic publishing is built on rigorous peer review. Regardless of whether the articles they examined were ultimately published, the editors would like to express their appreciation and thank the e of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). [Extracted from the article]

Regardless of whether the articles they examined were ultimately published, the editors would like to express their appreciation and thank the following reviewers for the time and dedication that they have shown I Agronomy i : ose of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). Thanks to the efforts of our reviewers in 2022, the median time to first decision was 18 days and the median time to publication was 37 days. I Agronomy i was able to uphold its high standards for published papers due to the outstanding efforts of our reviewers. [Extracted from the article]

The forest-based sector plays a significant role in supporting Europe on its pathway towards a more integrated and bio-based circular economy. Beyond the supply of timber, forest ecosystems offer a wide range of products and services beneficial to human wellbeing. Non-wood forest products (NWFPs) play an integral role in provisioning forest ecosystem services and constitute a huge portfolio of species from various taxonomic kingdoms. As diverse as the resources themselves is the list of end-products that may be derived from raw non-wood materials. Multiple value-chains of NWFPs provide benefits to actors across all stages of the supply chain. Forest management has not yet directed full attention towards NWFPs, since timber production remains the main management objective, although multi-purpose management is recognised as a key principle of the sector's sustainability paradigm. Lack of knowledge of the socio-economic relevance of NWFPs for European societies and diverse property rights frameworks increase the complexity in forest-based decision making additionally. In this study, the future potential of 38 NWFPs for diversifying the forest bioeconomy is investigated by means of multi-criteria analysis, including stakeholder interaction and expert involvement. The results for six case studies in different biogeographical zones in Europe indicate the latent opportunities NWFPs provide to forest owners who are willing to focus their management on the joint production of wood and non-wood resources as well as their value networks. This study intends to unravel perspectives for forest owners in particular, as they often represent principal decision makers in forest ecosystem management, act as main suppliers of NWFP raw materials, and thus can be understood as key stakeholders in a forest bioeconomy. Even though regional perspectives differ, due to varying socio-economic and ecological environments, there is huge potential to strengthen the economic viability of rural areas. Furthermore, sustainable co-production may foster the ecological integrity of forest ecosystems across Europe. Results show that wild mushrooms constitute the most widespread opportunity to increase additional income from forest management, but the most promising NWFPs can be found in the tree product, understorey plant and animal origin categories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Larch in the Apuseni mountains can be found in compositions with predominately common beech and sparce with resinous species, mainly in mixtures on average and upper slope, peaking at approximately 1200m but concentrated on the average altitude of 650m, situated on corrugated lands and occupying only 1497.5ha out of 310538ha total forested area managed by the state in Apuseni mountains. The main objectives of the paper were to analyze the distribution and stand characteristics of Larch (Larix decidua Mill.) in the Apuseni mountains. Regarded as a fast-growing tree with high quality wood, it is mainly used for producing superior timber quality, its ecological value being overseen, only 20% of area occupied by larch used for protection purposes. Predominantly in mixtures, provides shelter, acting as a support tree for other species, improving biodiversity. Larches genetic diversity provides big challenges for forest managers, a proper growth model is required to satisfy all ecosystem services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) is one of the most valuable and productive tree species across European mountains, that accomplish multiple economic, protective and ecologic functions. Alongside spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst) and beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), silver fir is a characteristic species for the Romanian Carpathians. Although silver fir tree is recommended for the diversification of forests in order to increase the resistance to climate change, it is very sensitive to climatic excesses, especially those that proceed rapidly. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate both the environmental conditions and stand characteristics of fir from five mountain ranges of the Romanian Carpathians. The study is based on data recorded over a period of 10 years (1990–2000). As such, a total of 77,251 stands that occupy 211,954 hectares have been investigated in regard to silver fir behaviour. MATLAB scripts were used for analysing consistent data volumes as well as the impact of eight factors on the silver fir productivity (altitude, field aspect, field slope, soil type, participation percentage, road distance, structure and consistency). Our analysis has revealed that higher silver fir productivity is found at altitudes of up to 1200 m, on mid and upper slopes, on NW field aspects, on eutric cambisols and dystric cambisols, with a 10–20% participation in stand composition and in relatively-even aged stands with a full consistency. This study offers valuable insights for forest managers that require comprehensive information in adopting effective strategies to enhance forest resilience under climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyses the influence of a planting scheme on physical properties of Norway spruce wood. The research material consisted of 326 Norway spruce trees (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst) selected from an experimental plot with four planting variants (2500, 3330, 5000, and 7510 trees·ha−1). The research aspects were: (1) wood density (measured by volumetric method and using microdrilling resistance as proxy), (2) microdrilling resistance, and (3) sound speed. There was a decrease in wood density values (from 0.3376 to 0.3367 g·cm−3) and in microdrilling resistance values (from 15.136% to 14.292%) as the number of trees·ha−1 used for plantation increased from 2500 to 5000. The planting variant with 7510 trees·ha−1 had the largest value (0.3445 g·cm−3 for wood density and 15.531% for microdrilling resistance). Sound speed decreased from 1032.8 to 989.8 m·s−1 as the number of trees·ha−1 increased from 2500 to 7510. These results show a relationship between DBH values and studied physical properties. This relationship is more evident for variants with low planting density (e.g., 2500, 3330 trees·ha−1) than that of dense planting variants (e.g., 7510 trees·ha−1). The explanation may be that the growth of trees in dense plantings is slower; in less dense planting variants, the increase in wood is greater, and as a result, wood volumetric density dependence on the DBH value is greater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Forest Research is the property of Canadian Science Publishing and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Forest Research is the property of Canadian Science Publishing and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Recent studies show that several tree species are spreading to higher latitudes and elevations due to climate change. European beech, presently dominating from the colline to the subalpine vegetation belt, is already present in upper montane subalpine forests and has a high potential to further advance to higher elevations in European mountain forests, where the temperature is predicted to further increase in the near future. Although essential for adaptive silviculture, it remains unknown whether the upward shift of beech could be assisted when it is mixed with Norway spruce or silver fir compared with mono-specific stands, as the species interactions under such conditions are hardly known. In this study, we posed the general hypotheses that the growth depending on age of European beech in mountain forests was similar in mono-specific and mixed-species stands and remained stable over time and space in the last two centuries. The scrutiny of these hypotheses was based on increment coring of 1240 dominant beech trees in 45 plots in mono-specific stands of beech and in 46 mixed mountain forests. We found that (i) on average, mean tree diameter increased linearly with age. The age trend was linear in both forest types, but the slope of the age–growth relationship was higher in mono-specific than in mixed mountain forests. (ii) Beech growth in mono-specific stands was stronger reduced with increasing elevation than that in mixed-species stands. (iii) Beech growth in mono-specific stands was on average higher than beech growth in mixed stands. However, at elevations > 1200 m, growth of beech in mixed stands was higher than that in mono-specific stands. Differences in the growth patterns among elevation zones are less pronounced now than in the past, in both mono-specific and mixed stands. As the higher and longer persisting growth rates extend the flexibility of suitable ages or size for tree harvest and removal, the longer-lasting growth may be of special relevance for multi-aged silviculture concepts. On top of their function for structure and habitat improvement, the remaining old trees may grow more in mass and value than assumed so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of the urban common (i.e. shared space and resources) in sustainable provisioning of goods and services to city dwellers is discussed in this paper. Focusing on tree-based green infrastructure, the study scope includes three categories of provisioning (woody biomass, food/fibre, and non-timber forest products, i.e. NTFPs), alongside three categories of supporting services (fresh water replenishment, soil nutrient restoration, building preservation). As a first step, prospects of utilizing the urban common as facilitator of nature-based solution to the earmarked provisioning services are evaluated through dedicated literature survey and expert elicitation on perceived impact of environmental change triggers and management interventions (planning and/or governance). This is followed by a structured review of the state of affairs in four European cities (London, Amsterdam, Sofia, Ljubljana), representing different macro-geographical regions with distinct socio-economic drivers in managing these provisioning services. The pan-European expert elicitation exercise noted active management of the urban common as positively impacting on the performance of the majority of provisioning services, while environmental change impacts were found to be overriding and adversely influencing the provisioning of material resources (mainly NTFPs and woody biomass). The four-city case study highlighted some regional peculiarities in connecting the city dwellers to the urban common and identified the need to overcome socio-cultural barriers for enhancing pan-European best practice sharing in the management of goods and services provisioning. This is deemed essential to pave way for an emerging perspective on sustainable utilization of the urban common as an enabler for nature-based solution, making it fit for purpose in meeting the astronomical demands of future urban living. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study focuses on the old oak forests within the territory of Krumovgrad State Forestry Unit (SFU), located in the central part of the Eastern Rhodopes Mountains. Field measurements were performed in both abandoned and ongoing pens, covered by Quercus petraea and Quercus frainetto dominated forests with ages ranging between 120-130 years. The aim of the study was to identify the consequences of long-term practiced grazing in old oak forests (forest pastures) after their abandonment as well as the perspectives in terms of their preservation, restoration, regeneration and future maintenance. The study confirmed the negative effect of intensive grazing over old oak forests within the territory of SFU Krumovgrad, related with soil exhaustion and erosion, suppression of seeds production/successful regeneration and severe forest degradation. However, it also revealed the preserved valuable genotypes, forest structures and regeneration potential of these forests. Furthermore, it was proved that during the last 20-30 years, since grazing had been abandoned or not intensively practiced, forests’ health condition have improved, canopy closure has increased and old stands were able to successfully regenerate on their own. In addition, significant similarities between the characteristics of studied old oak forests and those of old-growth forests were observed. This could reasonably justify some old oak forests’ areas within the SFU Krumovgrad managed territory to be protected from commercial logging by declaring them old-growth forests that are part of Natura 2000 network or covering them by the upcoming Forest Stewardship Certification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thanks to the contribution of our reviewers, in 2021, the median time to first decision was 19 days and the median time to publication was 38 days. Thanks to the great efforts of our reviewers, I Agronomy i was able to maintain its standards for the high quality of its published papers. Rigorous peer-reviews are the basis of high-quality academic publishing. [Extracted from the article]

Air pollution, bulk precipitation, throughfall, soil condition, foliar nutrients, as well as forest health and growth were studied in 2006-2009 in a long-term ecological research (LTER) network in the Bucegi Mountains, Romania. Ozone (O) was high indicating a potential for phytotoxicity. Ammonia (NH) concentrations rose to levels that could contribute to deposition of nutritional nitrogen (N) and could affect biodiversity changes. Higher that 50% contribution of acidic rain (pH < 5.5) contributed to increased acidity of forest soils. Foliar N concentrations for Norway spruce ( Picea abies), Silver fir ( Abies alba), Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris), and European beech ( Fagus sylvatica) were normal, phosphorus (P) was high, while those of potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), and especially of manganese (Mn) were significantly below the typical European or Carpathian region levels. The observed nutritional imbalance could have negative effects on forest trees. Health of forests was moderately affected, with damaged trees (crown defoliation >25%) higher than 30%. The observed crown damage was accompanied by the annual volume losses for the entire research forest area up to 25.4%. High diversity and evenness specific to the stand type's structures and local climate conditions were observed within the herbaceous layer, indicating that biodiversity of the vascular plant communities was not compromised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study, which contains historical data recorded over a period of 40 years, was to identify the main factors that influence and control the level of wood mass production. The main reason was to optimize the management of forest areas and was driven by the necessity to identify factors that can influence most of the volume produced by coniferous forests located in southeast Europe. The data was collected between1980 and 2005 at the National Institute for Research and Development in Forestry, for forests located in the Southern Carpathians, Romania. The studied data refer to the parameters that model forest structure for spruce, fir, pine, and larch. These are the main resinous species found in the Southern Carpathians. The total area covered by these forests is 143,431 ha. At the forest species level, the analysis consists of 16,162 records (corresponding to the elements of the trees), covering an area of 45,008 ha for fir, 4711 ha for larch, 81,995 ha for spruce, and 11,717 ha for pine. The aim of this research has been to investigate and to assess the impact and magnitude of abiotic factors such as altitude and field aspect on forest structures from the main resinous stands located in the Southern Carpathians. Taking into account the size of the database as well as the duration for collecting data, a complete statistical and systematic approach was considered optimum. This resulted from our wish to emphasize and evaluate the influence of each analysed factor on the wood mass production level. The relationship between abiotic factors and forest structure has been analysed by using a systematic statistical approach in order to provide a useful theoretical reference for the improvement of forest management practices in the context of multiple climatic, environmental, and socio-economic challenges. These common characteristics have been found by applying ANOVA and multivariate statistical methods such as PCA and FA methods. A series of parameters were considered in this investigation, namely altitude (ALT), forest site type (TS), forest type (TP), consistency (CONS) etc. In order to obtain a complete image, we have also applied multivariate analysis methods that emphasize the effect size for each database parameter. At such a level of recorded data, the statistical approach ensures a factor level of p <0.001 while the accuracy in evaluating effect size is increased. As such, they influence the spreading and structure of the studied resinous stands to a higher degree, regardless of species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]