Effect of grouping of foliage on the within-stand and within-crown light regime: Comparison of random and grouping canopy models

✍ Scribed by Pauline Oker-blom; Seppo Kellomäki

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1983
• Weight: 793 KB
• Volume: 28
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0002-1571
• DOI: 10.1016/0002-1571(83)90004-3

✦ Synopsis

Oker-Blom, P. and Kellom~/ki, S., 1983. Effect of grouping of foliage on the within-stand and within-crown light regime: comparison of random and grouping canopy models. Agric. Meteorol., 28: 143--155.

The effect of grouping of foliage of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) was studied theoretically and the following results were obtained:

(1) grouping of needles and shoots at any level of the canopy compared with the canopy representing horizontal homogeneity decreased the light absorption in the canopy substantially, but;

(2) the average light conditions for the lowest part of the canopy were improved by the grouping effect since it enabled more light to pass through the upper layers down to a lower canopy, and;

(3) the within-plant shading was in most cases considerably greater than the betweenplant shading and, consequently, the light conditions affecting an individual tree were to a high degree determined by the structure of the tree itself, which seemed to be true especially in sparse and/or young tree stands.

The silvicultural interpretation of the results regarding the spacing of tree stands is also discussed.