Estimating root system biomass from breast-height diameters

Summary Estimates of tree root system biomass are important to understanding the dynamics of forest systems and tree growth. The difficult and time-consuming extraction of woody roots is often a limiting factor when estimating the below-stump biomass. Regression equations of root system biomass on diameter at breast height derived from other studies might be useful for applications in forestry and as a simple input variable for growth models. Data for developing regression equations and, where possible, equations were taken from the recent literature for Picea abies, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Pinus sylvestris, Pinus radiata, Pinus taeda, Fagus sylvatica, Quercus ilex and Quercus douglasii. The equation for Quercus petraea was developed using data from European research projects.

[1]  H. H. Bartelink,et al.  A model of dry matter partitioning in trees. , 1998, Tree physiology.

[2]  J. Canadell,et al.  Root biomass of Quercusilex in a montane Mediterranean forest , 1991 .

[3]  D. V. Lear,et al.  A technique for estimating below-stump biomass of mature loblolly pine plantations , 1995 .

[4]  Comparison of radial increment and volume growth in stems and roots of Quercus petraea , 2000 .

[5]  A. Watson,et al.  Structural root morphology and biomass of three age-classes of Pinus radiata. , 1990 .

[6]  C. C. N. Nielsen,et al.  The development of symmetry, rigidity and anchorage in the structural root system of conifers , 2000 .

[7]  R. K. Hermann,et al.  Root biomass studies in forest ecosystems , 1977, Pedobiologia.

[8]  Werner A. Kurz,et al.  Estimation of root biomass and dynamics for the carbon budget model of the Canadian forest sector , 1996 .

[9]  P. Cunningham,et al.  Estimating large-root biomass from stump and breast-height diameters for Douglas-fir in western Oregon , 1996 .

[10]  Victor J. Lieffers,et al.  Release in radial growth in the trunk and structural roots of white spruce as measured by dendrochronology , 1994 .

[11]  J. Ottorini,et al.  Root biomass and biomass increment in a beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) stand in North-East France , 2001 .

[12]  L. C. Kuiper,et al.  Spatial disposition and extension of the structural root system of Douglas-fir. , 1992 .

[13]  H. Bartelink.  A growth model for mixed forest stands , 2000 .

[14]  Francis Colin,et al.  Development of structural root architecture and allometry of Quercus petraea , 1999 .

[15]  L. E. Eddleman,et al.  Root system morphology and development of seedling and juvenile Juniperus occidentalis , 1996 .

[16]  J. Neter,et al.  Applied linear statistical models : regression, analysis of variance, and experimental designs , 1974 .

[17]  J. Wehrmann,et al.  Köstler, J. N., Brückner, E. und Bibelriether, H.: Die Wurzeln der Waldbäume. Verlag Paul Parey, Hamburg und Berlin 1968. 284 Seiten, 135 Abbildungen und 20 Tabellen. Kunstdruckpapier, Ganzleinen, DM 64,— , 1968 .

[18]  C. Bledsoe,et al.  Woody Root Biomass of 40- to 90- Year-Old Blue Oaks (Quercus douglasii) in Western Sierra Nevada Foothills 1 , 1997 .

[19]  R. F. Sutton,et al.  Root and Root System Terminology , 1983 .

[20]  A. Granier,et al.  Carbon balance and tree growth in a Fagus sylvatica stand , 2000 .

[21]  G. Baskerville.  Use of Logarithmic Regression in the Estimation of Plant Biomass , 1972 .

[22]  R. K. Dixon,et al.  Process modeling of forest growth responses to environmental stress , 1991 .

[23]  Franz Gruber,et al.  Above- and Below-stump Relationships for Picea Abies: Estimating Root System Biomass from Breast-height Diameters , 1999 .

[24]  André Lacointe,et al.  Carbon allocation among tree organs: A review of basic processes and representation in functional-structural tree models , 2000 .

[25]  Raija Laiho,et al.  Changes in root biomass after water‐level drawdown on pine mires in southern Finland , 1996 .