Bashar Tobo*(1), Hikmat Abass(1) , Wael Ali(1 ) and Ahmad Mahmoud(2)
(1). Postgraduate student (Doctorate) Department of Ecology and Forestry, Faculty of Agriculture, Tishreen University, Latakia, Syria.
(2).General Commission for Scientific Agriculture Research, Latakia, Syria.
(*Corresponding author: Bashar Tobo, Email: bashar.tobo33@gmail.com).
Received: 23/08/2022 Accepted: 17/11/2022
Abstract:
This research was carried out in the Shuh forest in Slonfeh – Lattakia governorate in the Syrian coastal mountains region, which is one of the most important threatened forest ecosystems in Syria. The aim of this research is to estimate the growth and wood yield of Abies cilicica trees located in the Cedar and Fir Reserve in Lattakia Governorate and to establish a database for the Cilician fir forest (diameters – heights – wood stocks) using traditional inventories. The field measurements were carried out in the winter of 2020, and (46) circular sample plots (with an area of 400 square meters) were taken to cover all variations in the forest. The mean diameter of trees (1239 trees) in all plots was 22.5 ± 42.6 cm, and the mean height was 8.7 ± 22.7 m. The highest value of basal area and woody stock were in the southwestern exposure, with a value of 70.4 m2/ha and 883.8 m3/ha with a tree density of 487 trees/ha, followed by the western exposure with a value of 57.1 m2/ha in basal area and 655.8 m3/ha in woody stock with a tree density of 518 trees/ha, followed by the northwestern exposure with 56.4 m2/ha in basal area and 651.4 m3/ha in woody stock 529 trees/ha respectively. While the lowest value in basal area was 37.2 m2/ha and in woody stock was 374.8 m3/ha in the northern exposure with a tree density of 525 trees/ha, followed by the eastern exposure with a value of 34.8 m2/ha in basal area and 358 m3/ha in woody stock and tree density of 514 trees/ha respectively. The value of the mean annual increment in each of the southwestern, western and northwestern exposure outperformed its counterparts in the eastern and northern exposure, while the value of the mean annual increment in the northwestern exposure was 5.1 m3/h/year respectively. The lowest value of the mean annual increment was in the eastern and northern exposure, with a value of 3.2 m3/h/year in the northern exposure, and a value of 3 m3/h/year in the eastern exposure.
key words: Abies Cilicica, Cedar and Fir Reserve, wood productivity, mean annual increment, exposure, Syria.
Full paper in Arabic: pdf