ABSTRACT Sasa kurilensis is a popular wild edible bamboo in Japan. Productivity (density) of edible culms can be enhanced by human harvesting, but we know little about how long the enhanced productivity is sustained after repeated annual harvesting. Here, demography and productivity of this edible bamboo were examined in field experiments conducted following experimental harvesting of edible bamboo

ABSTRACT Over the past few decades, many Japanese forest owners and communities have suffered from the outcomes of anticommons (parcelization) phenomenon. Since the Edo Era (17th through 19th centuries), many Japanese commons forests have been subdivided and placed under private ownership. Individual owners of the subdivided small forests (carved out from former commons forests) have lost interest

ABSTRACT Pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) seeds are very vulnerable with longevity amounting to only 2–3 years of storage. The study presents three mechanical treatment methods for acorns, a crucial process in seed storage. Four acorn samples were examined: untreated acorns, acorns scarified by cutting off part of the seed on the cup side using pruning shears, crushed acorns, and acorns with a hole

ABSTRACT Fine root is a significant component in carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) dynamics in temperate forests. Winter processes affect plant growth and nutrient concentration, however, the effect of reduced snowpack on fine root remains unclear. Here, we conducted snow removal manipulation and investigated the fine root biomass and necromass, dynamics (production, mortality and disappearance) and the

In intensively managed plantations, it is important to select the ideal planting density and clone to optimize on productivity. In a 9-year Populus tomentosa plantation in North China Plain, we examined the growth and wood volume (stem and stand) of four superior P. tomentosa clones (1316, BT17, S86, and B331) at seven different planting densities to establish if there are an optimal planting density

Bark stripping damages of conifer trees by Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) are confirmed in most areas inhibited by them in Japan. In this study, we conducted a field survey in Shirakawa Village, Gifu Prefecture, Japan, from 2008 to 2016 to investigate the seasonal and annual variation of bark-stripping of Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) by Asiatic black bears in relation to mast production

Belowground ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal communities are affected by the dominant tree species of aboveground vegetation. We investigated ECM-fungal communities in the boundary between secondary broad-leaved forests dominated by ECM trees and cypress plantations consisting of arbuscular trees. ECM root tips were collected from soil cores and seedlings at a small scale within 20 m of the boundary. We

Regional forest planning does not often progress as desired because it involves multiple decision-makers who tend to manage their own forest stands individually. This study aimed to propose a licnear programming model to maximize the integrated net present value (NPV) of forest ecosystem services at a regional scale with multiple decision-makers. The model uses a matrix comprising forest state transition

Some prey species use hiding tactics and thus select areas that provide greater visual obstruction for predator avoidance, and vegetative characteristics that provide greater obstruction should be selected. To investigate vegetative characteristics selected by adult male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), we compared vegetation between heavily used and unused areas within home ranges of 22

(2020). Recent topics of our publication in 2020. Journal of Forest Research: Vol. 25, No. 4, pp. 203-203.

Using the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) curve number (CN) procedure for estimating runoff volume on an ungauged forest watershed remains controversial because little guidance has been provided for defining appropriate CN values. In this study, alternative methods for assigning CN values (CNs) were assessed to determine whether these methods provide acceptable estimates of runoff on forested watersheds

Exotic species plantations are increasing for timber production and other economic benefits. However, evaluation of species adaptation to local climates requires long-term research and the information is still limited. This study was conducted to understand the growth response of three exotic tree species, Abies firma, Cryptomeria japonica, and Chamaecyparis obtusa, to regional moisture conditions

Insects in the tropics usually have continuous generations throughout the year. We reanalyzed published data of wood-boring beetles, belonging to three taxonomic groups (Bostrichidae; Curculionidae: Scolytinae, Platypodinae), that were captured by ethanol-baited traps continuously set for three years and collected every two weeks in the lowland montane forest in northern Thailand. Because trap captures

Quantifying individual tree growth of economically high-value timber species is important for the simulation and development of forest management options. Long-term permanent plot data provides crucial information of forest stand dynamics that can be used to predict individual tree growth. In this study, we developed individual tree basal area growth models of three high-value timber species: monarch

In this study, we evaluate the relationships between the standing stock, field-measured LAI, and NDVI from remotely sensed images and in situ measurements at plantation forests in the subtropics–tropics region of southern Taiwan. The purpose is to facilitate assessing the biomass of reforestation sites in large areas applying the possible stock-LAI-NDVI relationships analyzed in this study. 15–16 years

The permanent forest estate (PFE) is a tool for maintaining forest areas in perpetuity. The PFE can have several different land-use zones based on different purposes. Here, we evaluated the effectiveness of the PFE in reducing deforestation using country-scale datasets of forest cover change between 2006 and 2017 in Myanmar. We also evaluated the effectiveness of PFE land-use zones such as protected

ABSTRACT Investigating the level of inbreeding depression is essential to understanding population viability and extinction risk. Albino or chlorophyll-deficient mutants are one of the strongest manifestations of inbreeding depression in plant species, although it is rare to encounter them in a tropical forest. However, during January 2014, we observed a high frequency of albino seedlings in a natural

(2020). Special feature Long-term monitoring and research in Asian university forests: towards further understanding of environmental changes and ecosystem responses. Journal of Forest Research: Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 134-135.

From 1994 to 2003, bark and ambrosia beetles were captured from April to November at 12 sites in the University of Tokyo Chichibu Forest, central Japan, using flight-barrier traps with alpha-pinene and ethanol as a lure. Additional trapping was conducted between July 2013 and November 2014 at the same sites using Lindgren’s funnel traps with ethanol. Factors influencing trap captures were investigated

Soil microbes’ response to sudden environmental changes is very complicated and has been lively debated. There are a handful of questions yet to answer: are there any succession rules for different soil microbial species to fit in the suddenly changed environment? And what is the correlation between the community succession and the habitat recovery? These questions remain unanswered yet. Nematode-trapping

Plantations in southern China are important components of forest ecosystems. However, the distribution of the native tree species is fragmented. Accurate tree species classification can provide scientific support for forest management and measurement. In this study, Gaofeng forest farm in Guangxi Province was selected as the research area, and hyperspectral image combining with LiDAR was used for tree

Abstract: An inclusive and transparent participatory process in the Balkan region can facilitate information’s exchange between decision-makers and local community, and increase social acceptance of forest management outcomes. The study – developed in the “FOR Balkans” project – has two main objectives: stakeholders’ engagement in forest management scenarios’ development and implementation of a Spatial

Microsatellite markers were newly isolated for Sarcandra glabra (Chloranthaceae), an ecologically important species in the evergreen broad-leaved forests of East Asia. On the Korean Peninsula, S. glabra is endangered, being extremely restricted to a few habitats on Jeju Island, which is the northern edge of their distribution range with evolutionary potential. Recently, populations have been rapidly

An understanding of epiphyte richness and the factors controlling it is fundamental for conserving the diversity of natural mesic forests. Host tree size is a determinant of epiphyte occurrence; however, previous studies have produced opposing results regarding the spatial distribution (patchy or random) of diversity. This study assessed the relationship between host tree size preference and the distribution

Climate change can alter and disrupt the phenology and phenological interaction between organisms from various trophic levels in forest ecosystems. In temperate forests, the breeding phenology of birds is correlated to local microclimate, especially spring temperature to match the timing of food availability. Recent studies revealed that the temperature warming is more pronounced in high-elevation

Monoterpenes emitted from trees play important roles in atmospheric chemistry through the formation of secondary organic aerosols and photochemical oxidants. Because monoterpene emissions from broad-leaved trees have rarely been studied in Japan, we measured the monoterpene emission rates of 20 Acer and 14 Fagaceae species. If a good correlation is found between the monoterpene precursor (geranyl diphosphate

We explore Japanese forest landowners’ characteristics that affect the awareness of the boundaries of their forest lands. Such information can serve as foundational forest management information that will be used in decision making by future generations. We focus on the owners’ awareness of the forest boundaries and examine its relationship with the owners’ characteristics. This is one of the first

Diverse demands for contemporary forest management require greater consideration to cultural ecosystem services. Given the circumstances, understanding how forest elements are perceived can provide valuable information for park managers. Perceptions of visitors have been explored in current studies but research linking these elements with values remains limited. This study revisited perceptions of

Success of clonal tree plantations depends on genotype as well as phenotypic plasticity, which determines acclimation potential of individual trees to different environmental conditions. Short-term acclimation of genotypes to local growing conditions can be tested using clonal trials, but stand productivity and yield depends on the ability of the genotype to acclimate to long-term environmental variation

Although different flower-visiting frequencies and behaviors are known to cause differences in fruit set rates, the effects of different pollinators on the fruit set position are unclear. The climbing vine Mucuna macrocarpa (Fabaceae) needs mammalian pollinators for fruit set. This species is widely distributed in Asia and is pollinated by different mammals in different regions. This study assessed

The phylogenetic origin of endangered species extinct in the wild is not always well understood, as a consequence of limited historical records of the original populations. Magnolia pseudokobus (Magnoliaceae) is one of only a few such woody plants in Japan. This triploid species was described in 1954 on Shikoku Island, but since then, no other individuals have been found in other locations. Currently

Shifting cultivation is a kind of traditional practice which is characterized by a cultivation phase, involving slash and burn of primary or secondary forest, and crop cultivation for one year, followed by a fallow phase. In Myanmar, forest dependent communities, particularly Karen and Chin ethnic groups, have practiced shifting cultivation for a long time and it was observed that their cultivation

Reliable species discrimination remains essential for the management of commercial forests. Therefore, this study sought to evaluate the utility of Partial Least Squares Linear Discriminant Analysis (PLS-LDA) and Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) multivariate techniques for delineating forest species using Landsat 8 OLI. PLS-LDA produced a higher (88.9%) overall accuracy compared

ABSTRACT Coppice management has a long and ancient tradition in Europe, but still comprises over 14% of the forest area despite showing catastrophic declines in the past century. Contemporary trends in forestry towards continuous cover management have major implications for cosmopolitan and early-successional groups of species which rely on short rotations and regular disturbance, such as heliophilous

In the growing degree days (GDD) model for plants, 0°C or 5°C have been empirically used as base temperature (BT) for the GDD model, without experimental determination. In this study, developmental periods for bud break and leaf opening of mizunara oak, Quercus crispula were determined by using samples from locations separated by 900 km, cut branches from central Japan and potted saplings from northern

Many environmental and climatic disturbances can significantly change the magnitude and pattern of litterfall. This study investigated the effects of typhoon disturbances on the seasonal and interannual patterns of litterfall on coniferous and broadleaf plantation stands in Xitou, central Taiwan. Throughout the study period from 2012 to 2018, typhoon disturbances were recorded in 4 of these 7 years

Species diversity and the distribution of forests are closely related to climate, and climate classifications have been used to characterize vegetation distribution for over a century at the global scale. In contrast, climate type and dominant forest species may not be accurately classified at the forestry stand scale due to limited observational data and the influence of terrain. The collaboration

Red deer (Cervus elaphus) and sika deer (C. nippon) are sympatric in certain regions in northeast China, and may have different strategies for obtaining food resources. We studied winter forage selection of sympatric red and sika deer based on their bite diameter and browse intensity in northeast China. The principal winter food items of red and sika deer were Euonymus spp. and Acer spp., and both

Understory vegetation, dominated by dwarf bamboo (Sasa spp.) in Japan, has been damaged by an overabundance of deer. Declining Sasa density may induce a decrease in litter decomposition due to the changes in soil environments. The effect of the environmental changes may also differ among litter from differenttree species. The objective of this study was to examine effects of declining Sasa density

Shiitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes) is one of the most commonly consumed mushrooms and an important forest product in Japan. In outdoor log cultivation of shiitake, colonization of logs by wild fungi is an important factor affecting mushroom yield. In this study, we investigated the fungal communities in logs used for shiitake cultivation in three management conditions (two artificial laying yards

It is important to predict the growth of Sugi forest plantations in old age. When predictions about the growth of Sugi forest plantations are made and there is a lack of growth data from older trees, it is possible that the accuracy of these predictions becomes worse. For example, it is known that the growth of Sugi does not get slower at older ages as expected from past growth predictions based on

Bud-burst timing is one of the key factors to determine tree growth. Smaller trees are known to show earlier bud bursts, owing to the ontogeny in temperate forests. Snowpack is one of the factors affecting burst timing, especially that of small trees. Because small individuals were buried under snowpack until late spring, we hypothesized although the smaller individuals require less degree-day accumulation

Extracts obtained from Cryptomeria japonica leaves were tested for growth inhibition activity against Robinia pseudoacacia seeds, which is known as a representative invasive plant in temperate forests. Inhibitory activities against radicle and hypocotyl growth were found in hexane and ethyl acetate extracts but showed no or weak activity on seed germination. The extracts also showed inhibitory activity

The endangered Dipterocarpus dyeri is distributed in forests of southeast Vietnam, which is expected to have low genetic diversity and high genetic population structure due to habitat loss and over-exploitation. To provide valuable information for conservation measures, nine polymorphic microsatellites were used to analyze 151 adult trees from six populations, representing the natural range of D. dyeri

Stand basal area (BA) is an important parameter, yet significantly influenced by initial planting density, in describing the developments of plantation forests. The effects of initial density on the growth of sugi (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don), an important plantation tree species in Taiwan, have seldom been studied. The goals of this study are to (1) model sugi stand BA growth under different initial

We studied the relationship between the Korean crevice salamander (Karsenia koreana) and several environmental factors, thereby contributing to the basic ecological knowledge required for the future conservation of salamander populations. The aims of this study were to derive a habitat suitability model for K. koreana using presence-absence data for the species and habitat factor information, and to

Allometric equations for predicting the aboveground biomass of square bamboo, Chimonobambusa quadrangularis (Franceschi) Makino, were developed. To this end, 20 samples of C. quadrangularis were harvested, and the aboveground biomass of the culm and that of the branches and leaves were measured. The whole aboveground biomass of C. quadrangularis ranged from 128 g to 2,075 g, with the average of 910 g

Recently, forest dieback around the coastal lake Sugari-oike, National Natural Monument of Japan, has rapidly increased. To clarify the factors affecting the forest dieback, we examined species composition, stand structure, and mortality at the lake-edge and landward areas for 3 years. We also examined water quality, and measured how much the water level varied within a year. Forest dieback did not

The present study attempts to provide implications on how transitions from forest administration-led joint forest management to more smallholder-based community forestry would be possible drawing on the recent situations on the island of Java in Indonesia. The P.39 2017 scheme is a community forestry approach under the jurisdiction of the State Forestry Corporation (SFC) in Java, with greater smallholder

Dwarf bamboos (Sasa spp.) are clonal plants and are known to inhibit tree regeneration. In natural conditions, however, culm dynamics in response to local light conditions is not fully understood. In this study, we examined the relationship between local light conditions and culm survival or recruitment of Sasa kurilensis in an old-growth beech forest in Japan. We identified 1466 S. kurilensis culms

We studied the effect of preweeding size of undesirable plants competing against planted hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa) trees on their resprouting ability subsequent to weeding in a warm-temperate region. Further, we investigated the period of heterotrophic-dominative growth by estimating the contribution toward growth in height of the preweeding tree size in terms of total basal area (TBA) and stem

To improve the productivity of rooted cuttings in pine wilt disease-resistant Pinus thunbergii, the effect of cutting size on rooting ability and first year growth was studied. Sprouts collected as cuttings from four genetically different clones were assigned to various size combinations (five or six classes by diameter and four by length). One year after insertion, rooting percentages and height of

The salience of mangroves as carbon sinks are being increasingly recognized in terms of “blue carbon.” Their significance at provincial level is critical in the era of decentralization after the reformation period. This study applied a content analysis to 27 Provincial Spatial Plans in Indonesia. The results were categorized into nine clusters. The findings indicated that the cluster prohibited activity

A sudden, increased mortality of Ulmus davidiana var. japonica (Japanese elm) trees occurred during 2014–2016 in Sapporo City, Hokkaido, Japan. The dead and dying trees were concentrated within a narrow area (maximum distance of approximately 300 m). The estimated affected tree age was 36–186 years. A previous large-scale outbreak of elm dieback in Hokkaido had been reported in the 1950s. At that time

Microsatellite primers were developed in Haloxylon ammodendron (Amaranthaceae). This species is an ecologically important component of the desert ecosystem and is one of the main tree species used for restoration. These markers will facilitate population genetic studies within Haloxylon ammodendron. Fifteen polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed from Ion torrent data.The four to twenty-six

The browsing habits of sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Japan have caused serious damage to forest vegetation. In Southern Kanto areas such as Tokyo, Saitama, Yamanashi, and Kanagawa Prefectures, sika deer disturb reforestation in logged areas by feeding on planted trees. To appropriately manage sika deer populations in these regions, a genetic marker is required to understand their movement. We previously

We studied the impacts of selective logging on the spatial structure of tree species composition in the tropical rain forest of Sabah, Malaysia. We established 50 20-m radius plots (0.12 ha in area) across primary to highly degraded forests in each of two logging concessions with distances in between any two plots ranging from 0.2 to 40 km. In addition, we established one 100 × 200-m plot in each of

The momi fir (Abies firma) has been targeted as a species for genetic resource conservation because of the recent decline in its natural populations. Additional molecular marker resources are needed to examine gene flow to understand the genetic dynamics of each population. We developed 15 genomic microsatellite (SSR) markers for A. firma and applied them to separate biparentage assignments of dispersed

Monochamus alternatus endai Makihara is the primary vector of pine wilt disease in Japan and South Korea. Larvae of this cerambycid beetle exhibit induced diapause in the final instar. To determine the effects of seasonal environments that female adults had experienced on the diapause, growth, and development of offspring, parents of two Japanese strains were allowed to oviposit on Pinus densiflora

We investigated the quantitative composition and distribution of nutritional substances (soluble sugars, starch, and protein), secondary metabolites (terpenoids and phenolic compounds), and the length, area, and density of internal secretory structures (resin ducts and cavities) in the rhytidome (outer bark) and secondary phloem (inner bark) of Kuril larch (Larix gmelinii var. japonica), Japanese larch