The impact of climate elements on the diameter increment of Austrian pine (Pinus nigra Arn.) in Serbia

The aims of this paper were the analysis of climate elements and Thornthwaite’s climate index, the study of the development of diameter and current diameter increment of the Austrian pine trees from several artificial stands in the Belgrade area, as well as an analysis of the influences of the pluviometric regime and climate index on the current diameter increment of the Austrian pine over the period 1985-2010. By comparative analysis and statistical data procession, the correlation between the diameter increment and climate characteristics was determined. In spite of the wide-held view that the Austrian pine is a species that cannot make use of the capacity of the best sites where it grows, is to a great extent able to react to increased humidity, one of the most important site factors upon which the growth of basic quantitative tree parameters directly depends. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR 31070: The development of technological procedures in forestry with a view to an optimum forest cover realization