Forest management: a key tool for helping forests adapt to drought

by El Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC)
September 12, 2024

A study published in Ecological Applications shows that forest management practices, such as thinning followed by controlled burning of the understory, not only reduce fire risk but also improve forest growth and increase drought resistance. The research, carried out by a team of scientists from the Joint Research Unit CTFC – AGROTECNIO and the Soil Research Institute of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, Austria, reveals how forest management can increase the resilience of Mediterranean forests to drought episodes.

The main objective of the study was to determine how forest management practices, designed to reduce the risk of fires, influence the resistance and resilience of black pines (Pinus nigra) to drought. The researchers examined three black pine forests in Solsonès, where they applied different intensities of thinning with and without controlled burning of the understory.

Keep reading (in Catalan): https://blog.ctfc.cat/ca/la-gestio-forestal-una-eina-clau-per-a-ladaptacio-dels-boscos-a-la-sequera/

Read the Ecological Applications paper: https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/eap.3030