COST Action E 52 - vTI - Bund.de

deterioration (early leaf abscission, sparser crowns, etc.). This may lead to mass mortality if extreme
dry summers appear in 3 – 4 years consecutively (Rasztovits, Berki, Móricz 2009).
In Zala County, a decline syndrome was triggered by the severe droughts of the period 2001 – 2003,
in mature beech stands under regeneration, where the canopy closure was opened up recently
(Fig. ). This led to the outbreak of beech buprestid (Agrilus viridis). As a consequence, more than
100,000 m3 sanitary felling had to be undertaken in 2005 (Góber 2005). Damage of Biscogniauxia
nummularia disease and of the beech bark beetle (Taphrorychus bicolor) often occurred together with
the buprestid damage. On average over the last 5 years (2004 – 2008) damage by these two insect
species was recorded on about 300 hectares annually (Hirka 2008).
sILvIcuLTure, ForesT maNaGemeNT
In Hungary, beech attains the culmination of its height growth increment at the age of 15 – 20 years,
the diameter increment culminates – depending on crown closure – at the age of 50 – 60 years. On
favourable sites it reaches 400 m3 .ha-1 standing volume at the age of 50, and exceeds 600 – 00 m3 .ha-1 at the felling age of 100 years. Compared to the total volume of Hungarian forests, the standing
volume of beech represents, with 39.3 million m3 , a much larger ratio (11%) than its area.
In pure beech stands shelterwood cutting, in mixed stands group-, strip-, or strip-and-groupwise cutting
is used for regeneration. At a young age beech thickets are kept very dense. Frequent interventions are
necessary only in mixed stands. Juvenile stands differentiate well up to age 20 – 25; thinning is restricted
to the upper storey. In adult forests, thinning is vigorous. For the support of silvicultural tending
procedures, standard tending models have been developed by the Forest Research Institute, which are
followed by the industry especially in stands producing high-valued timber (Bondor 1986).
Annually, 500,000 m3 of beech are harvested in Hungary, so beech has an important role in Hungarian
wood processing. 6 – % of the harvested assortment is veneer log; 35 – 40% is saw log. Low quality
beech wood is used as pulp and fiber wood for HDF boards (20%) and as firewood (35 – 40%). On
better sites the quality of the timber deteriorates after 100 years of age because of the development of
false heartwood and other timber defects which reduce drastically the value of the timber (Molnár,
Bariska 2006).
ForesT research
Priority themes of beech research are in the field of ecology, forest yield and silviculture, as well as in
forest genetics. Exploration of the ecophysiological processes, such as water and organic substance
uptake and discharge of beech forests is carried out in permanent ecological research areas in order
to forecast the effects of changing climatic conditions. The investigation of the total organic material
sink volume of beech ecosystems represents an important element in the clarification of the role of
forests in the carbon cycle.
Forest yield research has been maintained for more than 50 years in approximately 100 permanent
yield experiments in beech. Research results, such as structural investigation of stands, are indispensable
to define growth functions and to deduct optimal measures of yield regulation. Silvicultural
research work is carried out in tending test series to define the effect of various silvicultural
interventions and to develop optimized methods for practical forest management.
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