MSC 316 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Transpiration, Soil Fertility, Temperate Forest
13 Oct 2016
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Document Summary
Temperate forests: deciduous and coniferous, 2. 3 4 species per km2. A few species dominate: fertile soil, litter on forest floor. Slower remineralization, decay than tropical forests: distinct seasons with deciduous leaf abscission, majority between 40degrees and 50degrees latitude. Old growth: rain average 650 2,000mm, fertile soils alfisols. Long growing season dominated by deciduous plants. Short growing season dominated by conifers: biomass production can be very high. Many years can take in more carbon than they give off. Serve as carbon sink: many major human population centers. Climate and biomes: temperature and precipitation major determinants of plant composition. Average npp: less than tropical rainforests, this is due to shorter growing season, tropical rainforest npp about 2,500, temperate rainforest npp about 1,550, the warmer it is, the more net primary production. Linear function: the greater the water balance, the more net primary production. Linear function: the more nitrogen, the more net primary production.
