Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
storage in biomass and soil, storage in short- and long-
lived products and substitution of fossil fuels are the
most important aspects (Kohlmaier
•
Intermediate
soil type on deep soils with a good
water supply;
Galium odoratum
is a characteristic
species.
•
Calcareous
soil type on shell-limestone, Keuper
marls, calcareous moraine material, primary calcare-
ous loess and volcanic material of high alkalinity;
this type is usually rather rich in species (e.g.
Cephalanthera
div. spp.,
Carex alba
,
Carex montana
).
•
Mixed mountain
type: beech accompanied by
fir (
Abies alba
) and/or Norway spruce (
Picea abies
).
On sites with very high nutrient and water supply
beech is mixed with maple (
Acer pseudoplatanus
)
and accompanied by tall perennial herbs; very rich
in plant species.
et al.
1998,
Burschel & Weber 2001).
10.3 Main European forest types
Recent climatic and edaphic site conditions in most
parts of Europe - from the coast of the Atlantic
Ocean in France to the Ural Mountains in Russia and
from southern Sweden to the south-facing slopes of
the Alps in Italy - allow summer-green trees to grow
and deciduous forests to establish. Evergreen needle
trees are predominant in the boreal coniferous forests
of Scandinavia and northern Russia. In central Europe
they are restricted to the high mountain areas (e.g.
the Harz from 800 m a.s.l. upwards, the northern
mountain range of the northern Alps from about
1700 m a.s.l. upwards). Evergreen sclerophyllous trees
are characteristic of the Mediterranean parts of Europe.
The common types are described briefly below.
10.3.2 Oak and oak-hornbeam forests
On dry sites beech can be replaced by oak. On such
sites in central Europe
Quercus petraea
is mostly be-
coming dominant (oak forests on dry, acidic soils) and
in south-ern central Europe (south-eastern France,
Switzerland)
Quercus pubescens
(sub-Mediterranean oak
forests) predominates. From western Poland up to the
Urals, as a consequence of frequently occurring late
frosts, beech is replaced mainly by oak (
Quercus
), horn-
beam (
Carpinus
) and lime tree (
Tilia
): continental
oak-hornbeam forests.
10.3.1 Beech forests
Beech (
F. sylvatica
) today is the most important nat-
ural tree species in central Europe (section 10.2.1). Beech
forests represent the zonal vegetation from southern
Sweden to the Alps and from central France to west-
ern Poland and the Carpathians. Beech is a powerful
competitor against other tree species such as oaks
(Leuschner 1998). Beech forests cover the whole site
spectrum from acidic to calcareous soils and from the
sub-mountain to the high-mountain zone. Limita-
tions of optimal beech growth and competition are dry
soils, wet soils (in particular stagnant moisture), late
frosts and short vegetation period.
Several main types of beech forest can be distin-
guished, as follows.
10.3.3 Elder swamp forests
In flat lowland areas with clay in the subsoil swamp
forests developed with
Alnus glutinosa
as the domin-
ating tree species. Most of these sites were converted
into productive arable fields by draining. As a con-
sequence of drainage peat material starts to decom-
pose, and nitrogen-indicating species such as
Urtica
dioica
invade and spread. Therefore, today there are
only few remaining stands of this forest type, and the
floristic composition of most of these stands reflects
disturbed site conditions.
•
Acidic
soil type on geological substrates like gneiss,
granite, Triassic sandstone, quartz sand and loess
loam. Because these substrates are widespread
all over Europe this is the most widespread beech
forest type. It is very poor in plant species;
Luzula
luzuloides
is the most characteristic one in the
south and
Deschampsia flexuosa
in the north.
10.3.4 Riparian forests
Close to rivers,
Salix
species are capable of coping
with frequent and intense flooding. They have the
