Response of Nothofagus betuloides (Mirb.) Oersted to different thinning intensities in Tierra del Fuego (Argentine)

G MARTÍNEZ PASTUR; JM CELLINI; MV LENCINAS; R VUKASOVIC; P PERI; S DONOSO

INTERCIENCIA

Año: 2002 p. 679 - 685

0378-1844

<!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:1; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:none; mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:ES; mso-fareast-language:ES;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:10.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> Forestry in Argentine and Chile was mainly developed based on the culture of exotic species, while native species occupied a second place in the national forest policies of research and development. Nothofagus forests are the main wood resource for the sawmill industry in Tierra del Fuego. Many antecedents of intermediate treatment schedules and thinning trials were reported, but few of them are in N. betuloides. The aims were to determine the growth and forest dynamic of a young stand, and evaluate the growth responses to three thinning levels, comparing it with an unthinned stand along six years. The unthinned stand of 46 years old had a DBH increment of 0.1 to 0.2 cm/year, a volumetric increment of 6.3 m³/ha.year and a natural self-thinning of 350 trees/year. This stand responded positively to different thinning levels. The DBH increment reached to 0.52 cm/year in the high thinning intensity treatment (2000 stems/ha), diminishing in proportion when the thinning intensity decreased (0.37 cm/year and 0.31 cm/year for treatments of 3500 stems/ha and 5000 stems/ha). Lesser intensive thinning treatment showed the highest volume growth (13.6 m³/ha.year) compared with the higher intensity (9.5 m³/ha.year). Nothofagus betuloides is a species of high potentiality in order to be incorporated within a forest intensive management, due to the obtained growths and the behavior of the species to intensive silvicultural treatments.