Abstract
Holm oak (Quercus ilex L.) has adaptive traits to survive or easily regenerate after disturbances. Its high resprouting capacity (Chap. 5) can explain the structure of most holm oak forests with a very high tree density, which determines a strong competition for the resources and a very low growth rate (Chap. 3). Although self-thinning is the natural mechanism of reduction in tree density as the size of trees increase, the low growth rate leads these forests to an almost permanent state of stagnation in which most of the gross primary production (GPP) is invested in respiration (Chap. 12) leading to a very low net primary production (NPP). This low NPP and the high tree density produce a very slow diameter growth, which often is much less than 1 mm year-1 (Gracia et al. 1996; Chap. 3).
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© 1999 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Gracia, C.A., Sabaté, S., MartÃnez, J.M., Albeza, E. (1999). Functional Responses to Thinning. In: Rodà , F., Retana, J., Gracia, C.A., Bellot, J. (eds) Ecology of Mediterranean Evergreen Oak Forests. Ecological Studies, vol 137. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-58618-7_23
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-58618-7_23
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