Objective By monitoring the dynamics of Pinus tabuliformis populations and their associated communities, we aim to provide foundational data that will support improvements in plantation quality and advance biodiversity research across North China.
Method This paper focuses on P. tabuliformis forest in the Beijing Baihua Mountain Nature Reserve, where a 5.2 ha dynamic monitoring plot was established in a 50-year-old plantation. All woody plants with DBH ≥1 cm in the plot were tagged, surveyed, and inventoried following the standards of China Forest Biodiversity Monitoring Network. The study analyzed the floristic compositions, diameter class structures, and spatial distribution patterns of woody plant species in the plot.
Result A total of 9 242 individuals with DBH ≥ 1 cm were recorded in the plot, including 7 145 living trees which belong to 15 families, 22 genera and 23 species. The floristic composition of these species exhibited typical characteristics of temperate flora, with 66.66% of the families and 63.64% of the genera possessing temperate components. Five species had importance values > 5%, namely P. tabuliformis, Quercus dentata, Betula davurica, Spiraea ouensanensis, and Larix gmelinii var. principis-rupprechtii, which took account for 95.44% of the overall importance values. The number of rare and accidental species was 8 and 10, respectively. The spatial distribution patterns of dominant species were primarily aggregated.
Conclusion Species diversity is relatively high for P. tabuliformis plantation dynamic plot in the Baihua Mountain. The self-thinning process of P. tabuliformis provides niches for other pioneer tree species, which resulting in spatial aggregated patterns of dominant populations in the community. This study provides baseline data for future research on precision improvement in quality and the mechanisms that sustain biodiversity in P. tabuliformis plantations.
DownLoad: