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Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest...
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Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest Soils

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Soil".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (11 December 2023) | Viewed by 5607

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Miriam Fernanda Rodrigues

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
ProfÁgua, Federal University of Technology-Paraná, Campo Mourão, Estrada para Boa Esperança, km 4, Zona Rural, Dois Vizinhos 85660-000, Paraná, Brazil
Interests: soil physics; soil conservation practices; soil erosion; hydrological processes; sedimentological processes; soil and water management
Prof. Dr. Luis Eduardo Akiyoshi Sanches Suzuki

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Technological Development Center, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Pelotas 96010-610, RS, Brazil
Interests: agronomy; soil science forestry; forestry soils soil science; soil physics soil science; soil management and conservation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Gabriel Oladele Awe

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, Nigeria
Interests: crop; soil and environmental sciences

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Forest operations can adversely affect forest soils and the subsequent growth of trees and crops. Forest productivity and sustainability can be reduced by soil degradation caused by compaction and erosion, especially during soil tillage, management, and harvesting. Soil compaction leads to a reduction in infiltration and the redistribution of soil water, which increases runoff and erosion. These consequences can persist and negatively impact subsequent forest and crop growth and productivity in both the short and long term. Despite the knowledge gained in recent years, there are uncertainties about the effects of forest operations on the quality of different soil types to achieve and maintain the sustainability of forest systems. The goal of this Special Issue is to provide an input on advances in soil tillage, management and forest harvest operations throughout the forest cycle to achieve and maintain productivity and sustainability.

Potential topics related to forest systems, growth, and productivity include, but are not limited to:

  • Soil tillage and the management of soil’s physical, chemical and biological qualities;
  • Soil organic carbon, aggregate stability, and nutrient cycling;
  • The effects of soil tillage and harvesting operations on soil physical–hydric properties;
  • The effects of land use, management, and land use changes on soil quality;
  • Components of the hydrologic cycle and erosion processes at the slope and watershed scales.

Dr. Miriam Fernanda Rodrigues
Guest Editor

Prof. Dr. Luis Eduardo Akiyoshi Sanches Suzuki
Dr. Gabriel Oladele Awe
Co-Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soil tillage
  • soil compaction
  • soil physical–hydric properties
  • land use and change
  • soil erosion
  • sediment yield
  • water balance
  • landscape and watershed scales

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 2276 KiB  
Article
Mechanical Resistance to Penetration for Improved Diagnosis of Soil Compaction at Grazing and Forest Sites
by Luis Eduardo Akiyoshi Sanches Suzuki, Dalvan José Reinert, Clenio Nailto Pillon and José Miguel Reichert
Forests 2024, 15(8), 1369; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15081369 - 6 Aug 2024
Viewed by 854
Abstract
Penetrometers and penetrographers are widely used to measure soil resistance to penetration, but the results are associated with other soil properties (such as bulk density, water content, and particle size distribution). Thus, for an adequate interpretation of results, site-specific studies are necessary to [...] Read more.
Penetrometers and penetrographers are widely used to measure soil resistance to penetration, but the results are associated with other soil properties (such as bulk density, water content, and particle size distribution). Thus, for an adequate interpretation of results, site-specific studies are necessary to identify which properties are more related to soil resistance. We aimed to measure the resistance to penetration of a Typic Paleudalf under distinct soil uses and to identify soil properties that influence soil resistance. The soil uses in this study included anthropized forest (composed of tree and shrub species), pasture (5-year-old pasture), Eucalyptus 20 (a 20-year-old Eucalyptus saligna stand), and Eucalyptus 4.5 (a 4.5-year-old Eucalyptus saligna under the second rotation). Soil resistance to penetration was measured with an impact penetrometer, and the data were correlated with other physical and mechanical properties of soil, such as the particle size, soil moisture, air permeability, saturated hydraulic conductivity, porosity, bulk density, precompression stress, and compressibility index. We observed that a resistance of 1.3 MPa matches with other soil property values corresponding to soil compaction, and values greater than 1.3 MPa were verified at depths of 0–8 cm for pasture and 8–30 cm for Eucalyptus 4.5. Analyzing all soil uses together, the correlation was significant (p < 0.05) with gravel (r = 0.34), silt (r = −0.32), clay (r = 0.26), gravimetric moisture (r = −0.27), macroporosity (r = 0.24), and soil bulk density at the end of the compressibility test (r = 0.27). The penetrometer is useful for evaluating the physical conditions of soil, but we highlight that soil resistance is influenced by factors such as particle size and soil moisture, as examples. We recommend using a set of soil properties for a better interpretation of penetration resistance data and to support decision-making regarding soil management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest Soils)
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17 pages, 2661 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Soil Quality in Five Ages of Chinese Fir Plantations in Subtropical China Based on a Structural Equation Model
by Xiaoyu Cao, Yongjun Mo, Wende Yan, Zelian Zhang and Yuanying Peng
Forests 2023, 14(6), 1217; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14061217 - 12 Jun 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1448
Abstract
Soil quality evaluation provides necessary and fundamental data and information for understanding the current situation of the soils and for promoting the sustainable use of land resources. In this study, soil quality was assessed by developing a structural equation model (SEM) in five [...] Read more.
Soil quality evaluation provides necessary and fundamental data and information for understanding the current situation of the soils and for promoting the sustainable use of land resources. In this study, soil quality was assessed by developing a structural equation model (SEM) in five aged Chinese fir plantations, located in the same soil type, with similar site conditions, in Subtropical China. A total of 150 soil samples were taken from the five aged stands of Chinese fir forests: 8-year-old young forests (stand I), 14-year-old middle-aged forests (stand II), 20-year-old near-mature forests (stand III), 26-year-old mature forests (stand VI), and 33-year-old over-mature forests (stand V). Fifteen soil indicators, including soil bulk density (BD), capillary porosity (CP), total capillary porosity (TCP), water holding capacity (WHC), soil organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), available nitrogen (AN), available phosphorus (AP), available potassium (AK), soil pH, soil acid phosphatase (ACP), invertase (INV), urease (URE), and catalase (CAT), were measured. The SEM was used to determine the weight of each soil indicator, and the soil quality index (SQI) was estimated for the Chinese fir plantations. Results showed that soil physical indicators, such as BD, CP, TCP, WHC, and chemical indicators, including SOM, TN, and AN, significantly degraded in stand II groups compared with the stand I groups, but were significantly recovered in the stand III groups. However, the enzyme activity of soil biological indicators had different patterns with changes in soil physical and chemical properties. The calculated SQI in the studied Chinese fir forests ranged from 0.4084 to 0.7298, which was significantly higher in the stand V and lower in the stand II (middle-aged stand) than in the other four aged stands (p < 0.05). The SEM weight analysis showed that the BD, SOM, and ACP were the most important indicators affecting the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the soils in Chinese fir forests in the study area. This study provided an innovative scientific approach for estimating the weight of SQI in forests and a theoretical basis and practical application for sustainable management of Chinese fir forest ecosystems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest Soils)
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13 pages, 797 KiB  
Article
Soil and Residual Stand Disturbances after Harvesting in Close-to-Nature Managed Forests
by Michal Allman, Zuzana Dudáková, Martin Jankovský, Vladimír Juško and Ján Merganič
Forests 2023, 14(5), 910; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14050910 - 28 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1220
Abstract
Close-to-nature forestry is a viable option to manage forests that are resilient to the challenges presented by climate change. The new silvicultural schemes necessitate adapting the operational side, posing challenges to productivity and the environmental effects of harvesting machinery and technologies. This study [...] Read more.
Close-to-nature forestry is a viable option to manage forests that are resilient to the challenges presented by climate change. The new silvicultural schemes necessitate adapting the operational side, posing challenges to productivity and the environmental effects of harvesting machinery and technologies. This study focused on analysing the disturbance of residual stands and forest soils in stands that were being restructured into multistorey, close-to-nature managed ones using low-impact forest harvesting technologies. Measurements were performed in four stands after logging, divided into 30 sample plots with dimensions of 20 × 20 m. Within the plots, the disturbance of the residual stands and changes to the soil parameters, such as the soil bulk density (g·cm−3) and soil penetration resistance (MPa), were measured. The results showed that the intensity of the residual stand disturbance reached between 13% and 23% and was not significantly (p > 0.05) affected by the intensity of the performed harvesting operations. The mean size of the wounds was between 38.99 and 233.05 cm2, and wounds were most frequently in the size category of 11–50 cm2. Regarding soil disturbance, Spearman’s correlation showed a significant relationship (p ˂ 0.05) between the longitudinal slope and soil bulk density in the rut of the trail. The relative increase in BD showed that the largest increase occurred between the stand (undisturbed) and rut locations (12.5% to 24.77%). Penetration resistance measurements were affected by low moisture content and high coarse fragment content. Subsequently, Spearman’s correlation did not show (p > 0.05) a relationship between the soil bulk density and penetration resistance. Therefore, we can conclude that, from an environmental perspective, the proposed technologies are viable options for foresters who manage close-to-nature forests, and there was less disturbance of residual stands and forest soil caused by harvesting machinery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest Soils)
13 pages, 4825 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Variability among Humus Forms and Soil Properties in Relation to Tree Species and Forest Operations in the Kheyrud Forest, Nowshahr
by Hadi Sohrabi, Meghdad Jourgholami, Rachele Venanzi and Rodolfo Picchio
Forests 2022, 13(12), 2156; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122156 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1345
Abstract
Tree species and litter play a key role in the functioning of forest ecosystems as influential factors affecting soil ecological processes and the distribution of humus forms. This study investigates the morphology of humus under the litter of different trees on compacted skid [...] Read more.
Tree species and litter play a key role in the functioning of forest ecosystems as influential factors affecting soil ecological processes and the distribution of humus forms. This study investigates the morphology of humus under the litter of different trees on compacted skid trails at different time intervals after skidding operations (6, 10, and 20 years) in the Kheyrud forest, Nowshahr. Each skid trail was identified with three replications in pure beech, beech-hornbeam and mixed beech stands and a total of 81 profiles with dimensions of 30 × 30 cm, drilled and classified using the European Humus Group Proposal (EHGP). According to the results, the mull of the most dominant humus was under the mixed beech litter, while in the pure beech litter the amphi humus was the most abundant form of humus. Three types of humus mull, moder, and amphi were observed in the skid trail under the beech-hornbeam litter. Oligomull was the most abundant form of humus mull in the skid trail under mixed beech litter, while in the trails under pure beech Eumacroamphi, Eumesoamphi, and Hemimoder were the most common forms of humus amphi and moder. Also, the thickness of the organic layer (Organic litter, Organic fragmentation, and Organic humus) was higher in all skid trails under the pure beech litter as compared to other treatments, while from younger trails (6 years) to older trails (20 years), the thickness of the organic-mineral horizon (Ah) increased under the beech mixed litter. We can conclude that different litter types were the main factor to control the presence of different forms of humus after forest operations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Forest Operations on the Sustainable Management of Forest Soils)
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