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Radial growth of Fraxinus nigra in a Canadian boreal floodplain in response to climatic and hydrological fluctuations
Author(s) -
Tardif Jacques,
Bergeron Yves
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of vegetation science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1654-1103
pISSN - 1100-9233
DOI - 10.2307/3235611
Subject(s) - precipitation , flooding (psychology) , black spruce , boreal , environmental science , phenology , climate change , floodplain , physical geography , taiga , geography , ecology , hydrology (agriculture) , forestry , geology , biology , psychology , geotechnical engineering , meteorology , psychotherapist
. Stands of Fraxinus nigra (black ash) near Lake Duparquet (Abitibi region, NW Québec) are affected each year by spring or early summer flooding. The relationship between environmental factors and radial growth was studied in 50 100‐m 2 quadrats laid out in five Fraxinus ‐dominated stands. Response function coefficients showed that the weather in the year before growth, i.e. in the time of bud formation, had a strong influence on radial increment. Temperatures in April of the year before (year i ‐1) and May ( i ‐ 1) were positively correlated with growth, while precipitation in April (i ‐1), May ( i ‐1) and June ( i ‐1) were negatively correlated. Climatic factors positively associated with growth during the year of bud expansion were April ( i ) temperature and June ( i ) precipitation. Redundancy analysis showed that radial growth in Fraxinus nigra responded to variation in elevation and geomorphological landform. These differences in stand location and elevation were also related to different responses to climate. The sites most exposed to flooding responded much more to the negative impact of spring precipitation, while the more elevated sites were more responsive to summer precipitation. This study showed that black ash could be used for long term reconstruction of climatic and hydrological fluctuations.