J. Bauhus et N. Bartsch, MECHANISMS FOR CARBON AND NUTRIENT RELEASE AND RETENTION IN BEECH FOREST GAPS .1. MICROCLIMATE, WATER-BALANCE AND SEEPAGE WATER CHEMISTRY, Plant and soil, 169, 1995, pp. 579-584
Nutrient cycling and water balance in forest gaps has received little
attention until now, although gap regeneration is important to natural
dynamics of temperate forests. Gaps of 30 m diameter, cut in a mature
beech forest, exhibited a distinct change in microclimatic conditions
in comparison with the surrounding stand. Soil moisture in gaps remai
ned very high throughout the observation period. Disruption of the N c
ycle in gaps led to substantial nitrate losses; seepage water nitrate
concentrations were 10-18 mg NO3-N L(-1). Excess nitrification was a s
ignificant cause of soil acidification and aluminium release. The pH i
n subsoil seepage water decreased by 0.25. Liming in gaps promoted the
establishment of a herbaceous vegetation, which functioned as an impo
rtant nutrient sink, and thus is recommended for tree regeneration in
highly acidified forest ecosystems as it increases the resilience of t
he ecosystem to nutrient losses.