SREL Reprint #2231

Temporal variation in the woody understory of an old-growth Fagus-Acer forest and implications for overstory recruitment

Stephanie A. Foré1,2, John L. Vankat2, and Robert L. Schaefer3

1Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA
2Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
3Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056, USA

Abstract. Changes in woody vegetation were examined over eight years, using a 1.05-ha permanent plot in which the location of every shrub and tree ≥ 1 m height was mapped. There was little change in the overstory vegetation, as expected for an old-growth forest. Much greater change occurred in the understory, primarily related to a 40% increase in density. Differences occurred among species in the understory, as Acer saccharum and Prunus serotina increased and Fraxinus americana and Fagus grandifolia decreased. Canopy gap dynamics are implicated in differences among species in the establishment and growth of individuals in the understory and their recruitment into the overstory. It is concluded that because understory is temporally variable, overstory recruitment from the understory may take different courses at different times in the same forest.

Keywords: Acer saccharum; Fagus grandifolia; Gap dynamics; Permanent plot

SREL Reprint #2231

Foré, S.A., J.L. Vankat, and R.L. Schaefer. 1997. Temporal variation in the woody understory of an old-growth Fagus-Acer forest and implications for overstory recruitment. Journal of Vegetation Science 8:607-614.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).