Temperate deciduous forests research network: adaptation of the beech family (Fagaceae) to a changing environment
Réseau de recherche sur les forêts tempérées décidues : adaptation de la famille du hêtre (Fagaceae) à un environnement changeant
Résumé
Within the IUFRO beech unit (1.01.07 Ecology and silviculture of beech) we have considered proposing a global beech project. A Fagaceae project including oaks and chestnuts, too, will increase its relevance and applicability across continents. Many embers of the beech family are principal forest tree species of the temperate deciduous forests. The environmental gradients on mountain slopes provide excellent opportunities to study particularly the regeneration physiology, methods and strategies to reveal an important part of the adaptation potential of various species and provenances under various climatic conditions. We will review both findings by researchers and practitioners and emphasize linking the knowledge and valuable cases of forest landscape restoration to goal-oriented adaptation strategies with specified future forest function serving as the red line to guide the selection of desired forest development types and the silviculture needed to achieve them. We seek to identify knowledge gaps and to design research protocols that we find particularly valuable to share in an international forest research network on forest adaptation including the adaptation potential of refugial populations (see also Session A12).