Dynamics of size structure in seedling stands to Fraxinus Mandsshurica in Northeast China英文文献.pdfVIP

Annals of Botany 66, 255-263, 1990 255 Dynamics of Size Structures in Seedling Stands of Fraxinus mandshurica in Northeast China TERRY D. PETERSEN*f, ZHU NINGf and MICHAEL NEWTON* * Department of Forest Science, College of Forestry, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA, and I Department of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, Peoples Republic of China Accepted : 16 January 1990 ABSTRAC T Dynamics of size structures in seedling stands of Fraxinus mandshurica were examined by observing growth rates of individual seedlings. Experimental stands with varying densities were established from seed on an abandoned field in northeast China . In most stands, inequality and slcewness in frequency distributions of mass increased with density and age. Vertical distributions of leaf area, light-attenuation curves, and specific leaf areas indicated that competition between large and small seedlings was asymmetric, particularly at high densities. Differences in size structure among density classes were attributed to variation in the growth rate of individuals with the same mass, rather than to a positive correlation between relative growth rate and mass. A stochastic model describing asymmetric competition in heterogeneous neighbourhoods would be appropriate for the size structure of these stands . Key words : As