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Natural distribution of Fagus sylvatica in The Netherlands<br />
Extracted from:<br />
Beech Forests, Rob Peters, 1997<br />
Kluwer Aca<strong>de</strong>mic Publishers, The Netherlands.<br />
Houtteelt <strong>de</strong>r gematig<strong>de</strong> luchtstreek Deel 1: De Houtsoorten<br />
Dr. G. Houtzagers, 1954<br />
N.V. Uitg.-Mij W.E.J. Tjeenk Willink, Zwolle.<br />
Fig. 1: Natural distribution of Fagus sylvatica in The Netherlands<br />
The majority of the beech forests are concentrated on the sandy soils in the middle and eastern parts<br />
of the country; 58.2% of the beech forests grow on poor sandy soils and 31.8% on rich sandy and on<br />
more loamy soils.<br />
In relation to predicted changing climate, beech is expected to suffer health problems in the (near)<br />
future in relation to drought as well as changing ground water tables (De Vries 200 ). Climate scenarios<br />
ma<strong>de</strong> by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) predict for The Netherlands higher<br />
temperatures and more precipitation, but most of this precipitation is expected to fall outsi<strong>de</strong> the<br />
growing season and therefore will not directly benefit the trees. On the other hand it could mean rising<br />
ground water tables, and it is well known that beech can suffer much from both changing ground<br />
water tables and from higher temperatures. The question is to what extent beech forests can adapt to<br />
these changing situations or to what extent they are plastic enough to cope with the changes. Another<br />
possibility could be to introduce beech reproductive material from sources with comparable climates<br />
as predicted for The Netherlands in the future. Well-adapted basic material is of high importance<br />
both now and in the future. Present provenance research is carried out using Dutch provenances<br />
(Kranenborg, Jager, <strong>de</strong> Vries 2010) as well as provenances from foreign countries from several<br />
locations covering the entire distribution range of beech (Kranenborg, <strong>de</strong> Vries 2001). A special<br />
reference can be ma<strong>de</strong> for the International beech trial established in Wageningen in 1998 that is part<br />
of a network of European international field trials network (Wühlisch et al. 2008).<br />
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