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A SPATIAL ANALYSIS OF FINE-ROOT BIOMASS FROM STAND DATA IN OREGON AND WASHINGTON
Citation:
Lee, E H., D T. Tingey, P A. Beedlow, M G. Johnson, AND R B. McKane. A SPATIAL ANALYSIS OF FINE-ROOT BIOMASS FROM STAND DATA IN OREGON AND WASHINGTON. Presented at 4th North American Forest Ecology Workshop, Corvallis, OR, June 16-20, 2003.
Description:
Because of the high spatial variability of fine roots in natural forest stands, accurate estimates of stand-level fine root biomass are difficult and expensive to obtain by standard coring methods. This study compares two different approaches that employ aboveground tree metrics and spatial relationships to improve core-based estimates of stand-level fine root biomass. The first approach is based on the Ribbens model that assumes that the total fine-root biomass at a given point is the additive contribution of the nearest dominant trees. Fine-root biomass for a single tree depends upon the distance to the trunk and its size. The second approach assumes that the fine-root biomass at a given point depends upon geographic location and the intensity of nearby trees within a specified radius. The key difference between the two approaches is in the handling of potential interference between neighboring plants and understory. A Markov technique is used to estimate the average fine-root biomass across the stand. We illustrate the regional applicability of these approaches by applying them to root-core data from several stands in Oregon and Washington. Stand-level fine root biomass was better estimated using the additive Ribbens model for several mixed stands. The spatial statistics approach was preferred when the root coring data were contaminated by understory and other plants or were insufficient to fit the Ribbens model.