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Applying ecological insights to increase productivity in tropical plantations

Formally Refereed

Abstract

In the 19th and 20th Centuries, forest productivity was examined largely as a retrospective exercise: growth of forests was tracked over time, and these historical trends were projected empirically into the future (Puettmann et al., 2008). Silviculturists explained growth of trees and stands in terms of unquantifiable "growing space," explaining changes in productivity of trees and stands in response to increases and decreases in non-finite growing spaces (Oliver and Larson, 1990). Mechanistic understanding of the ecophysiology of tree growth developed in the late 20th Century to the point where growth could be examined in relation to acquisition and use of resources, and models could use a mechanistic foundation for estimating growth over time and across landscapes (Landsberg, 2003).

Keywords

tropical plantations, productivity, growing space

Citation

Binkley, Dan; Laclau, Jean-Paul; Stape, Jose Luiz; Ryan, Michael G. 2010. Applying ecological insights to increase productivity in tropical plantations. Forest Ecology and Management. 259: 1681-1683.
Citations
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/34793