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Forests
Volume 17
Issue 7
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Forests, Volume 17, Issue 7 (July 2026) – 133 articles

Cover Story (view full-size image): Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.) is the dominant plantation conifer in Atlantic Europe, yet the genomic basis of provenance-level climate adaptation remains poorly resolved. We applied gradient forest analysis to 31,049 genome-wide SNPs from 1106 individual trees representing 79 native-range provenances in the IUFRO collection, using three environmental predictors retained after collinearity screening: Longitude, Temperature Seasonality, and Annual Precipitation. Longitude was the dominant driver of genomic turnover (mean R2 = 0.01168), followed by Temperature Seasonality (0.00672) and Annual Precipitation (0.00228), reflecting the long-distance coastal gradient of the native range. A redundancy analysis conditioned on ancestry principal components confirmed a significant multivariate genotype–environment association (F = 8.679, p = 0.001). View this paper
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18 pages, 2034 KB  
Article
Interactive Effects of Litter and Understory Removal on Soil Nematodes Community in a Climate Transitional Forest
by Weiya Xue, Ruohan Wang, Hui Zhou, Cancan Zhao, Fanglong Su and Lei Su
Forests 2026, 17(7), 860; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070860 - 22 Jul 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 308
Abstract
Litter and understory are key components of forest ecosystems, playing vital roles in soil carbon inputs and microhabitat regulation. Their removal is a common forest management practice: litter removal (L) reduces fire and pest risks while promoting nutrient cycling, whereas understory removal (U) [...] Read more.
Litter and understory are key components of forest ecosystems, playing vital roles in soil carbon inputs and microhabitat regulation. Their removal is a common forest management practice: litter removal (L) reduces fire and pest risks while promoting nutrient cycling, whereas understory removal (U) alleviates nutrient competition between understory plants and trees. However, the combined effects and underlying mechanisms of litter removal (L) and understory removal (U) on soil nematode communities remain unclear. This study investigated the individual and interactive effects of L and U on soil nematode communities in a coniferous–broadleaved mixed forest in a subtropical–warm temperate transition zone. The results showed that L significantly reduced soil nematode abundance by 18.1%, increased the relative abundance of bacterivores and omnivores-predators by 21.1% and 103.3%, respectively. U significantly elevated the relative abundance of fungivores by 30.8%, while both L and U reduced the relative abundance of plant-parasitic nematodes. Significant interactive effects between L and U were observed on soil nematode abundance, relative abundances of fungivores, plant-parasites, maturity index, and plant parasite index. Litter plus understory removal (LU) alleviated soil nematode resource limitation through synergistic regulation of resource pulses and microhabitat modification. Faunal analysis based on structure and enrichment indices indicated that LU enhanced food web structural complexity and resource-use efficiency. Redundancy analysis identified microbial biomass carbon, microbial biomass nitrogen, and soil total carbon as key drivers of nematode community differentiation. This study reveals the synergistic regulatory patterns of litter and understory vegetation on soil nematode communities, providing a theoretical reference for understanding the responses of soil nematodes to understory disturbance during the growing season in climate transitional forests, and offering basic data for long-term monitoring and forest soil management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Ecology and Management)
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30 pages, 12245 KB  
Article
Topology-Aware Land-Use Polygon Mapping for Forest-Oriented Natural Resource Monitoring via Multi-Source Semantic Fusion
by Jiaming Gu, Dengping Xu, Chengyan Gu, Weiqun Cao, Dian Gong and Lan Xu
Forests 2026, 17(7), 859; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070859 - 22 Jul 2026
Viewed by 487
Abstract
Accurate land-use polygon mapping for forest-oriented natural resource monitoring requires both image-based class prediction and the reconciliation of heterogeneous geospatial semantics. In operational mapping, land survey, forestry survey, and natural resource monitoring datasets often differ in classification systems, management objectives, boundary rules, and [...] Read more.
Accurate land-use polygon mapping for forest-oriented natural resource monitoring requires both image-based class prediction and the reconciliation of heterogeneous geospatial semantics. In operational mapping, land survey, forestry survey, and natural resource monitoring datasets often differ in classification systems, management objectives, boundary rules, and mapping scales, causing semantic conflicts when overlaid or forced into one-to-one categories. To address this issue, this study proposes a topology-aware land-use polygon-mapping framework that integrates multi-source semantic representation learning, semantically guided relation learning, and topology-constrained polygon optimization. In the experiments, remote sensing imagery provides visual evidence, the Third National Land Survey (TNLS) and forestry survey (FS) datasets are encoded as source-specific auxiliary semantic priors, and the natural resource integrated monitoring (NRIM) data serve only as reference labels for training and evaluation. Rather than resolving cross-source conflicts using predefined rules, the framework learns a unified land-use representation, transforms semantic boundary cues into a vertex-edge topology graph, and reconstructs GIS-compatible polygons through topology-constrained polygon optimization. In a representative forest–agricultural landscape, the method achieved an mIoU of 79.86%, an APLS of 56.82%, and a TOPO-F1 of 54.56%. These results suggest that learnable semantic harmonization and topology-aware polygon generation can improve the semantic consistency and vector reliability of land-use products for forest and natural resource monitoring. Full article
(This article belongs to the Topic AI-Enabled Precise Forest Monitoring Through UAV and Satellite Remote Sensing)
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26 pages, 9148 KB  
Article
MS-CBAM-TSCNet: Multi-Stream Convolutional Block Attention Deep Neural Network with Adaptive Gated Fusion for Tree Species Classification Using Aerial Hyperspectral Imagery
by Seyed Yasser Mohseni Zonouzi and Farhad Samadzadegan
Forests 2026, 17(7), 858; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070858 - 22 Jul 2026
Viewed by 390
Abstract
High-precision mapping of tree species composition is essential for sustainable forest management, biodiversity assessment, and ecosystem monitoring. Airborne hyperspectral imagery provides rich spectral and spatial information that enables detailed species discrimination. However, traditional single-stream convolutional neural networks (CNNs) often fail to fully exploit [...] Read more.
High-precision mapping of tree species composition is essential for sustainable forest management, biodiversity assessment, and ecosystem monitoring. Airborne hyperspectral imagery provides rich spectral and spatial information that enables detailed species discrimination. However, traditional single-stream convolutional neural networks (CNNs) often fail to fully exploit multi-dimensional features and are susceptible to spectral redundancy. In this study, we propose the MS-CBAM-TSCNet (Multi-Stream Convolutional Block Attention Deep Neural Network), a novel architecture specifically designed for tree species classification using aerial hyperspectral data. The proposed model integrates three parallel processing streams: a 1D spectral branch for capturing reflectance signatures, a 2D spatial branch for modeling contextual patterns, and a 3D spectral–spatial branch enhanced with Convolutional Block Attention Modules (CBAMs) to adaptively recalibrate channel-wise and spatial–spectral features. An adaptive gated fusion mechanism with attention-based weighting is introduced to dynamically combine the complementary representations extracted from the three streams, improving robustness to spectral redundancy and class imbalance. The method was evaluated on an airborne HyMap hyperspectral dataset (125 bands, with 4 m spatial resolution) acquired over a mixed boreal forest in Karlsruhe, Germany, comprising five dominant tree species. Using five-fold cross-validation on an augmented dataset, the MS-CBAM-TSCNet achieved an overall accuracy of 96.8%, a Kappa coefficient of 0.96, and a macro F1-score of 0.966, outperforming conventional 1D, 2D, and 3D CNNs, as well as a hybrid CNN-SVM approach across all evaluation metrics. An ablation study further confirms the complementary contributions of the multi-stream architecture, CBAM attention, and adaptive gated fusion. Pixel-wise classification maps demonstrate improved boundary delineation and reduced misclassification in mixed stands, highlighting the effectiveness of the proposed framework for operational forest inventory and ecological monitoring. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Inventory, Modeling and Remote Sensing)
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32 pages, 4830 KB  
Article
Spatial and Temporal Patterns and Associated Drivers of Tree Regeneration Density and Diversity in Northwoods Forests
by Catherine R. Henry, Douglas R. Pearsall and Michael B. Walters
Forests 2026, 17(7), 857; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070857 - 22 Jul 2026
Viewed by 470
Abstract
Tree regeneration density and species diversity foretell future forest resilience in the face of changing climate, disturbance regimes, and pest and pathogen outbreaks. However, studies characterizing regeneration composition patterns and their multiple interacting drivers, particularly at regional scales, are scarce. Here, we characterize [...] Read more.
Tree regeneration density and species diversity foretell future forest resilience in the face of changing climate, disturbance regimes, and pest and pathogen outbreaks. However, studies characterizing regeneration composition patterns and their multiple interacting drivers, particularly at regional scales, are scarce. Here, we characterize tree regeneration and associated driving factors for the Northwoods ecoregion, encompassing northern Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, USA. With data from the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis, we modeled current species richness and density of tree regeneration (stems taller than 30.48 cm (hardwoods) or 15.24 cm (conifers) and <2.54 cm diameter at 1.37 m height) as a function of climate, stand composition, ownership, harvest history, and deer use for the six most common forest groups in the Northwoods. By forest group, we also analyzed recent 20-year changes in tree regeneration richness, total density, and density of key species. Our results suggest tree regeneration abundance and richness are generally associated positively with canopy diversity, recent harvesting, and total annual precipitation; negatively with temperature and canopy basal area; and have few significant associations with deer use and ownership. Although species richness has increased over the past two decades, total abundance and abundance of several key species (such as Acer saccharum Marsh. and Quercus rubra L.) have declined, while subcanopy species (e.g., Amelanchier species Medik.) have proliferated, suggesting potential shifts in stand dynamics including future composition and ecosystem services. Our results suggest that harvest may be a viable tool to promote a wider range of regenerating tree species via increasing understory light availability. Declining regeneration of key ecological species at a regional scale confirms managers’ concerns of insufficient regeneration and highlights the potential for future forest compositional change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Biodiversity)
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21 pages, 7976 KB  
Article
Land-Use Change from Pine–Oak Forest to Coffee Plantation Alters Soil Microbial Community Structure While Preserving Functional Potential
by Mario Blanco-Camarillo, Alejandra Miranda-Carrazco, Caliope Mendarte-Alquisira, Martha Hernández-Rodríguez, Marco P. Carballo-Sánchez, A. Darío Delgadillo-Díaz and Julián Delgadillo-Martínez
Forests 2026, 17(7), 856; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070856 - 21 Jul 2026
Viewed by 405
Abstract
Land-use change is a major driver of biodiversity loss and ecosystem transformation in forest landscapes. Different land-use systems frequently exhibit differences in belowground microbial communities and soil properties. Accordingly, this study compared soil microbial abundance, diversity, community composition, predicted functional potential, and soil [...] Read more.
Land-use change is a major driver of biodiversity loss and ecosystem transformation in forest landscapes. Different land-use systems frequently exhibit differences in belowground microbial communities and soil properties. Accordingly, this study compared soil microbial abundance, diversity, community composition, predicted functional potential, and soil fertility between adjacent pine–oak forest and coffee plantation sites in the Sierra Norte de Puebla, Mexico. Soil samples were analyzed using conventional microbiological methods, soil fertility assessments, and metagenomic sequencing on the DNBseq platform. Metagenomic analyses revealed differences in the taxonomic composition of bacteria, archaea, eukaryotes, and viruses between the two land-use systems. Taxonomic richness increased from 393 taxa in the pine–oak forest to 428 taxa in the coffee plantation, whereas forest soils exhibited a more balanced microbial community structure and coffee plantation soils showed a greater representation of microbial groups associated with environmental adaptation and nutrient cycling. Functional annotation based on the COG and KEGG databases indicated that broad predicted functional profiles remained largely conserved despite taxonomic differences, reflecting similar distributions of predicted functional categories between the two land-use systems. Soil fertility analyses showed higher concentrations of ammonium nitrogen (15 vs. 4 mg kg−1) and available phosphorus (2.6 vs. 1.5 mg kg−1) in coffee plantation soils, whereas forest soils contained greater organic matter (8.1% vs. 7.0%). Overall, these findings indicate that the coffee plantation site exhibited a microbial community structure that differed from that of the adjacent pine–oak forest, while both systems exhibited broadly similar predicted functional profiles inferred from gene annotations. These observations are consistent with differences associated with land use under the environmental and management conditions evaluated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consequences of Land Use on the Conservation of Forest Ecosystems: Challenges and Solutions)
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13 pages, 2137 KB  
Article
Comparison of Parentage Verification and Parentage Assignment Methods for Walnut (Juglans regia L.) Controlled-Cross Offspring Using SSR Markers
by Shengqun Chen, Tao Zhou, Yajun Zeng and Na Hou
Forests 2026, 17(7), 855; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070855 - 21 Jul 2026
Viewed by 311
Abstract
To evaluate the effectiveness of microsatellite (SSR) markers for verifying the authenticity of walnut controlled-cross offspring, seven controlled-cross combinations were established using improved and widely cultivated walnut varieties from Guizhou Province, China, generating a total of 108 candidate offspring. Among 60 previously reported [...] Read more.
To evaluate the effectiveness of microsatellite (SSR) markers for verifying the authenticity of walnut controlled-cross offspring, seven controlled-cross combinations were established using improved and widely cultivated walnut varieties from Guizhou Province, China, generating a total of 108 candidate offspring. Among 60 previously reported SSR primer pairs, 15 loci exhibiting stable amplification and clear genotyping profiles were selected for analysis. Parentage identification was conducted using the genotype exclusion and maximum likelihood methods, and the applicability of each method was assessed through genetic diversity and cluster analyses. The 15 SSR loci detected a total of 68 alleles, with an average of 4.53 alleles per locus. The polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0.017 to 0.608, with a mean value of 0.396. The genotype exclusion method confirmed 76 offspring as genetically consistent with their recorded parental combination, corresponding to an overall identification rate of 70.37%. In the maximum likelihood analysis, 27 offspring were assigned to their most likely parent pairs when both parents were unknown, with an identification rate of 25.00%. When the maternal parent was known and only the paternal parent was unknown, 47 offspring were successfully assigned, increasing the identification rate to 43.52%. Cluster analysis showed that most offspring clustered near their corresponding parents, although some individuals deviated from their original cross combinations, suggesting allele sharing or complex genetic origins among the parental materials. The shared maternal parent structure, closely related paternal backgrounds, high-frequency alleles, and null alleles may jointly influence the efficiency of SSR-based parentage assignment. Compared with the maximum likelihood method, the genotype exclusion method showed greater practical stability for verifying recorded cross combinations in a structured walnut breeding population characterized by a shared maternal parent, multiple closely related paternal parents, and moderate SSR polymorphism. These findings indicate that likelihood-based parentage assignment should be interpreted cautiously when candidate parents are genetically similar and marker informativeness is limited. This study provides a technical reference for authenticity verification of walnut controlled-cross offspring, pedigree management, and marker-assisted breeding. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Genetics and Molecular Biology)
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16 pages, 5285 KB  
Article
Predicting the Potential Distribution of Eleutherococcus nodiflorus in China Under Future Climate Scenarios Using MaxEnt Modeling
by Yunan Cao, Tangyi Peng and Qingshan Yang
Forests 2026, 17(7), 854; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070854 - 20 Jul 2026
Viewed by 387
Abstract
Climate change and intensified forest destruction are severely threatening the habitats of numerous wildlife species and plants. Known for its roots, Eleutherococcus nodiflorus (Araliaceae) is a plant used in traditional Chinese medicine, which contains diverse active compounds with significant medicinal value. [...] Read more.
Climate change and intensified forest destruction are severely threatening the habitats of numerous wildlife species and plants. Known for its roots, Eleutherococcus nodiflorus (Araliaceae) is a plant used in traditional Chinese medicine, which contains diverse active compounds with significant medicinal value. However, studies indicate its wild populations are undergoing an accelerating decline due to combined pressures from climate change and human activities. To elucidate the climate change response of E. nodiflorus habitat suitability, we used the ENMeval package to develop an optimized MaxEnt model, incorporating 184 occurrence records and 12 environmental factors. Under the SSP1-2.6 and SSP5-8.5 climate scenarios, we simulated and projected the potential distribution of this species across China for the current period and four future time intervals (2021–2040, 2041–2060, 2061–2080, and 2081–2100). The results indicate that key environmental factors governing the distribution of E. nodiflorus include November precipitation, January minimum temperature, temperature seasonality, and June minimum temperature. Currently, the suitable habitat for E. nodiflorus spans approximately 1.38 × 106 km2 and is predominantly located in central, eastern, and southern China. The high-suitability habitats are concentrated in Hunan Province, southern Anhui, and eastern Zhejiang. According to model projections under both climate scenarios, the suitable habitat of E. nodiflorus will first expand and then contract, while its distribution centroid moves generally toward higher latitudes. Under the trend of ongoing global warming, this study provides valuable references for formulating effective climate change adaptation plans and protecting biodiversity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modeling of Forest Dynamics and Species Distribution)
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36 pages, 2400 KB  
Review
Remote Sensing of Vegetation Dynamics: A Systematic Review on Disturbances in Protected Areas
by Ifigeneia Morfopoulou, Ioannis P. Kokkoris, Ioannis Mitsopoulos and Giorgos Mallinis
Forests 2026, 17(7), 853; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070853 - 18 Jul 2026
Viewed by 371
Abstract
Disturbance and vegetation-recovery monitoring is gaining growing attention in remote sensing-based studies, especially in studies focusing on protected areas. Despite this growth, the methodological diversity and the research themes addressed across these studies have not yet been systematically examined. This systematic review examines [...] Read more.
Disturbance and vegetation-recovery monitoring is gaining growing attention in remote sensing-based studies, especially in studies focusing on protected areas. Despite this growth, the methodological diversity and the research themes addressed across these studies have not yet been systematically examined. This systematic review examines peer-reviewed studies published after 2015 to identify and document how disturbances and post-disturbance recovery are monitored using satellite Earth Observation data. We systematically reviewed 105 studies, following the PRISMA and PSALSAR guidelines, and classified the publications by disturbance type, ecosystem type, geographic region, satellite and auxiliary datasets, analytical methods, and validation approaches employed. The results reveal that the research is concentrated in a small group of countries and predominantly focused on forest ecosystems. Disturbance detection dominates the research literature, while recovery modeling and long-term predictive analysis remain underexplored. Validation practices are highly inconsistent, with limited use of standardized approaches. Overall, this review highlights substantial methodological progress over the past decade and identifies research gaps in disturbance and recovery assessment, multi-sensor integration, and alignment with emerging biodiversity and restoration policy frameworks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Hazards and Forest Ecosystems: A State-of-the-Art Review Collection)
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21 pages, 2312 KB  
Article
Estimating Aboveground Biomass and Surface Fuels in Semi-Arid Oak–Pine Forests Using Sentinel-2 Spectral Indices and Gamma GLMs
by David Efraín Hermosillo-Rojas, Alfredo Pinedo-Alvarez, Pablito Marcelo López-Serrano, Jesús Alejandro Prieto-Amparán, Eduardo Santellano-Estrada and Martín Martínez-Salvador
Forests 2026, 17(7), 852; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070852 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 1075
Abstract
Estimation of forest biomass and surface fuels is essential for wildfire risk assessment, carbon accounting, and ecosystem management in semi-arid forests. This study evaluated Sentinel-2 spectral indices and Gamma generalized linear models (GLMs) for estimating aboveground live biomass, forest floor biomass, and downed [...] Read more.
Estimation of forest biomass and surface fuels is essential for wildfire risk assessment, carbon accounting, and ecosystem management in semi-arid forests. This study evaluated Sentinel-2 spectral indices and Gamma generalized linear models (GLMs) for estimating aboveground live biomass, forest floor biomass, and downed woody debris in oak–pine forests of Northern Mexico. Spectral predictors were grouped according to chlorophyll activity, vegetation vigor, physiological condition, and soil/background correction effects. Measurements of live biomass, forest floor biomass, and downed woody debris were linked to Sentinel-2 spectral information. Aboveground live biomass was most strongly associated with the chlorophyll-related index CIre8A (p < 0.0001), whereas both forest floor biomass and downed woody debris showed stronger relationships with indices associated with red–NIR reflectance gradients, vegetation senescence, and soil/background correction effects, including the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), the Alpha-weighted Red–NIR Vegetation Index (PVIα), the Normalized Pigment Chlorophyll Index (NPCI), and the Atmospherically Resistant Vegetation Index (ARVI) (p < 0.05). Single-index Gamma GLMs showed significant predictive relationships (p < 0.05), supporting the use of individual Sentinel-2 indices as practical predictors of biomass and surface fuels. In contrast, multivariate models combining several spectral indices were affected by collinearity and parameter instability. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) integrated four representative indices into a single orthogonal predictor. The first principal component (Prin1) explained 90.30%–95.25% of total spectral variance, eliminated collinearity effects (VIF = 1), and produced highly significant Gamma GLMs across all biomass components (p ≤ 0.0009). PCA-based models also yielded lower AIC and BIC values, providing the most parsimonious framework when multiple spectral predictors were combined. These results indicate that individual spectral indices offer practical alternatives for biomass estimation, whereas PCA provides a robust approach for integrating complementary spectral information while maintaining model stability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Remote Sensing Approaches for Understanding Forest Ecosystem Structure, Dynamics, and Sustainability)
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20 pages, 10197 KB  
Article
Peri-Urban Agroforestry Landscapes Under Pressure: Ecological Risks Amid Rapid Urbanization—A Case Study of Pidu District, Southwest China
by Yuti Chen, Lijuan Xiao, Chenyuling Wang, Shuangqi Pu and Xiangyun Shi
Forests 2026, 17(7), 851; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070851 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 292
Abstract
Rapid urbanization has been associated with substantial structural adjustments and ecological risks in peri-urban agroforestry landscapes. Taking Pidu District, Chengdu, China, as a representative peri-urban region, this study investigated the spatiotemporal evolution of agroforestry landscapes and their ecological risks from 2000 to 2020. [...] Read more.
Rapid urbanization has been associated with substantial structural adjustments and ecological risks in peri-urban agroforestry landscapes. Taking Pidu District, Chengdu, China, as a representative peri-urban region, this study investigated the spatiotemporal evolution of agroforestry landscapes and their ecological risks from 2000 to 2020. Utilizing multi-period land-use data, we integrated landscape pattern indices, an ecological risk assessment model, etc. The results showed that the agroforestry landscape area decreased by 24.53%, from 275.39 km2 to 207.83 km2, a decline primarily tied to the expansion of construction land. Ecological risk increased continuously over the study period, with high-risk areas concentrated in the rapidly urbanizing southern region and low-risk areas mainly distributed in the northern agricultural zone. Meanwhile, landscape fragmentation intensified, as reflected by increasing patch subdivision and declining landscape integrity. Bivariate spatial autocorrelation analysis revealed a positive spatial association between fragmentation and ecological risk, indicating that structural degradation of agroforestry landscapes is an important factor of ecological risk escalation. Overall, rapid urbanization in Pidu District was accompanied by the coupled processes of agroforestry landscape shrinkage, fragmentation, and ecological risk growth. These findings provide scientific support for ecological risk zoning management and agroforestry landscape conservation in similar rapidly urbanizing regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Urban Forestry)
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14 pages, 1658 KB  
Article
Selection of Stable and High-Yielding Poplar Clones Using BLUP–GGE Across Multiple Environments
by Xiaoyan Zhang, Ruonan Zhuang, Zhidong Zhuang, Weiguo Zhong, Chenggong Liu, Mingsheng Sun, Yinyin Fu, Yanhui Qiao, Shuangyun Li, Shanwen Li, Jinmao Wang and Minsheng Yang
Forests 2026, 17(7), 850; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070850 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 297
Abstract
Understanding genotype × environment interactions (G × E) is essential for selection of stable and productive clones in poplar breeding. However, the performance of hybrid poplar clones often varies unpredictably across sites, hindering efficient regional deployment. In this study, we evaluated the growth [...] Read more.
Understanding genotype × environment interactions (G × E) is essential for selection of stable and productive clones in poplar breeding. However, the performance of hybrid poplar clones often varies unpredictably across sites, hindering efficient regional deployment. In this study, we evaluated the growth performance of 21 hybrid Populus section Aigeiros clones under five contrasting environmental conditions (YI, SHAN, SHEN, FEI, and JUAN). At the end of the growing season, we measured tree height (H), diameter at breast height (DBH), and individual tree volume (V). Both parametric and non-parametric stability statistics were used to assess individual V and fitted a mixed linear model in ASReml–R to generate best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) values for subsequent genotype plus genotype-by-environment (GGE) biplot analysis. All measured traits exhibited substantial phenotypic variation, with coefficients of variation ranging from 17% to 43%. Genotype, environment, and G × E interaction effects were all highly significant (p < 0.01). The GGE biplot explained 89.88% of the total variation in individual V across test environments. Clones 1617 and 1618 exhibited high productivity, broad stability and strong adaptability across sites. Site discrimination and representativeness analyses revealed that SHAN, SHEN, FEI and JUAN were more informative, whereas YI showed weaker genotype differentiation. Clones 1617 and 1618 were particularly well adapted to FEI and JUAN, while clones 81, 1618, 13–22, 1607, I–107 and 1617 performed favourably in the other mega-environment. Our results indicate that integrating BLUP with GGE biplot analysis provides a robust framework for dissecting G × E and guiding clone selection in multi-environment poplar trials. The study provides valuable insights for refining poplar deployment strategies under diverse environmental conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetic Diversity, Seed Quality, and Tree Adaptation Under Environmental Stresses)
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26 pages, 5359 KB  
Article
Exploring Nonlinear Thresholds and Ecological Compensation Mechanisms of Annual Carbon Fixation Rates in High-Density Urban Parks
by Nan Wang, Hao Wang and Weixuan Wei
Forests 2026, 17(7), 849; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070849 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 278
Abstract
As high-density cities face severe conflicts between urban expansion and limited ecological space, exploring the potential drivers of carbon sequestration within urban green spaces is crucial. The overarching aim of this study is to establish an interpretable, model-based analytical framework for assessing the [...] Read more.
As high-density cities face severe conflicts between urban expansion and limited ecological space, exploring the potential drivers of carbon sequestration within urban green spaces is crucial. The overarching aim of this study is to establish an interpretable, model-based analytical framework for assessing the Annual Carbon Fixation Rate (ACFR). To address the limitations of linear models and “black-box” machine learning algorithms, this study analyzed 149 urban parks in Nanjing by coupling Sentinel-2 high-resolution data with a Random Forest algorithm and the SHAP framework to model Annual Carbon Fixation Rate. The model achieved high predictive reliability (R2 = 0.9690). This study quantitatively identified critical nonlinear thresholds: an impervious surface proportion exceeding 30% is associated with a structural decline in carbon sinks, while the optimal Leaf Area Index interval for maximum efficiency is 2.5–3.5. Moreover, the present research identified a potential model-derived ecological compensation effect; optimizing vegetation community structures under high anthropogenic disturbance showed a 23.9% higher modeled marginal ACFR response compared to low-disturbance habitats. This explainable framework attempts to translate complex model-derived biophysical associations into referenced quantitative thresholds. Importantly, the ACFR and derived thresholds represent remote sensing-based model estimates rather than field-measured ecological causality, serving as exploratory planning references. These findings challenge the assumption that greening is inefficient in degraded environments and provide concrete control indicators for targeted micro-renewal and sustainable urban regeneration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Urban Forestry)
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16 pages, 3585 KB  
Article
Potential Stand Structural Drivers of Spatial Variability in Throughfall Kinetic Energy in Unmanaged Japanese Cypress Plantations
by Hyewan Jun, Ji-Hyeok Park, Tomonori Kume and Seonghun Jeong
Forests 2026, 17(7), 848; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070848 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 270
Abstract
Throughfall kinetic energy (TKE) is a physically based index of raindrop-driven splash erosion potential in forest ecosystems. In Japanese cypress plantations, TKE shows substantial spatial heterogeneity beneath the canopy, but the stand structural factors controlling this variability remain poorly understood. Under-canopy structures, such [...] Read more.
Throughfall kinetic energy (TKE) is a physically based index of raindrop-driven splash erosion potential in forest ecosystems. In Japanese cypress plantations, TKE shows substantial spatial heterogeneity beneath the canopy, but the stand structural factors controlling this variability remain poorly understood. Under-canopy structures, such as the dead-branch layer in unmanaged stands, may contribute to localized variation in throughfall erosivity. This study quantified TKE in two unmanaged Japanese cypress plots and examined whether stand structural attributes, particularly the lowest dead-branch height (Hdb), explained within-stand variability. Throughfall (TF) gauges and sand-filled splash cups were co-located at 20 measurement points in each plot, and gross rainfall (GR) and free kinetic energy (FKE) were measured in an adjacent open space. TKE beneath the canopy exceeded FKE, indicating canopy enhancement of rainfall erosivity. Stand-mean TKE was similar between the two plots, whereas TKE varied markedly among measurement points within stands. Hdb showed a significant but modest positive association with TKE (r = 0.447, R2 = 0.20, p < 0.01) in both plots. These results suggest that the under-canopy structure, including Hdb, is associated with within-stand spatial heterogeneity in throughfall erosivity. The normalized stand-mean TKE (unit TKE¯) values were consistent with the reported relationship between stem density (SD) and unit TKE¯. These findings highlight the importance of considering Hdb and SD in spatially explicit assessments of potential splash erosion risk. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Water Conservation and Forest Ecosystem Restoration)
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14 pages, 1735 KB  
Article
First Molecular Cytogenetic Characterization of Ceratonia siliqua and Assessment of Its Genome Size Across the Mediterranean Basin
by Zemouri Zohra, Bou Dagher-Kharrat Magda and Siljak-Yakovlev Sonja
Forests 2026, 17(7), 847; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070847 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 373
Abstract
The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua L., Fabaceae) is an ecologically and economically significant species of the Mediterranean basin, yet its cytogenetic and genomic organisation have remained largely uncharacterised. Here we present the first comprehensive molecular cytogenetic characterisation of C. siliqua, combining [...] Read more.
The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua L., Fabaceae) is an ecologically and economically significant species of the Mediterranean basin, yet its cytogenetic and genomic organisation have remained largely uncharacterised. Here we present the first comprehensive molecular cytogenetic characterisation of C. siliqua, combining conventional karyotyping, fluorochrome banding, fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), and flow cytometric genome size estimation across 29 accessions spanning the Mediterranean basin. A uniform diploid chromosome number of 2n = 24 was confirmed across all 14 populations examined, including Algerian, French, and Lebanese accessions, with no karyotypic variation detected regardless of geographic origin, altitude, or cultivation status. Karyotype analysis revealed a bimodal chromosome set comprising two large metacentric pairs and ten smaller pairs, with an intermediate asymmetry class (AsI = 60.09; R = 2.71). Physical mapping of ribosomal RNA gene families by FISH identified three chromosome pairs bearing 35S rDNA loci, all co-localising with GC-rich CMA3-positive heterochromatin at satellite regions, and a single 5S rDNA locus at the telomeric region of a distinct chromosome pair, corresponding to the S-type arrangement. DAPI staining revealed an additional class of AT-rich constitutive heterochromatin at centromeric positions, compositionally and positionally independent of the rDNA arrays. Genome size was strikingly conserved across all 23 accessions assessed (2C = 1.10–1.23 pg; overall mean 1.14 ± 0.03 pg), with no significant variation attributable to geographic origin, altitude along an Algerian gradient (162–950 m a.s.l.), cultivation status, or sex. The near-identical genome sizes recorded in female and male individuals provide no cytometric evidence for heteromorphic sex chromosomes in this dioecious species. These results establish a stable genomic and cytogenetic baseline for C. siliqua across its Mediterranean range and provide a reference framework for future comparative cytogenetics, molecular marker development, and breeding programmes targeting this increasingly valued climate-resilient crop. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetic and Morphological Structure and Diversity of Forest Species: Implications for Conservation and Climate Change Adaptation)
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18 pages, 1241 KB  
Article
Economic Risk Modeling in Forestry Projects Using Harvesting and Transportation Cost Variables
by Luis Carlos de Freitas, Márcio Lopes da Silva, Francisco de Assis Costa Ferreira, Nilton Cesar Fiedler, Cassio Furtado Lima, Roldão Carlos Andrade Lima, Luciano José Minette, Leonardo França da Silva, Stanley Schettino, Victor Crespo de Oliveira and Lucas Moraes Rufini de Souza
Forests 2026, 17(7), 846; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070846 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 365
Abstract
This study evaluated the economic viability and risk of a eucalyptus forestry project by integrating deterministic and probabilistic economic analyses. Operational costs for motor–manual harvesting, manual extraction and loading, and forest transportation were estimated using standard cost models, while silvicultural, road maintenance, and [...] Read more.
This study evaluated the economic viability and risk of a eucalyptus forestry project by integrating deterministic and probabilistic economic analyses. Operational costs for motor–manual harvesting, manual extraction and loading, and forest transportation were estimated using standard cost models, while silvicultural, road maintenance, and transportation costs were obtained from operational records. Economic viability was assessed using Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Equivalent Annual Value (EAV), and Average Production Cost (APC). Economic risk was evaluated through Monte Carlo simulation (10,000 iterations), considering ±10% variation in interest rate, transportation distance, harvesting productivity, labor, fuel, lubricant, and road maintenance costs, followed by sensitivity and correlation analyses. The project was economically viable, presenting an NPV of USD 110.11 ha−1, an IRR of 8.0%, an EAV of USD 20.43 ha−1 year−1, and an APC of USD 29.11 m−3. Transportation distance showed a limited operational slack of only 10 km when land cost was considered, indicating that the project operates close to its economic limit. Monte Carlo simulation indicated an 11.5% probability of economic infeasibility, while interest rate, transportation distance, and manual loading cost exerted the greatest negative influence on NPV. The integrated deterministic and probabilistic approach enabled the identification of critical operational thresholds for transportation distance, timber price, wood productivity, and land cost under the evaluated conditions, providing practical decision-support parameters for transportation planning, cost management, and economic risk assessment in similar forestry projects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Forest Economics and Policy Analysis)
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18 pages, 5305 KB  
Article
Two-Way Information Disclosure and Community-Based Forest Ecotourism Performance: Evidence from Agritourism Operators Around Giant Panda National Park, China
by Zheng Zhao, Guoxiang Zhu, Siyu Yuan, Jinyu Shen and Wei Duan
Forests 2026, 17(7), 845; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070845 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 323
Abstract
Community-based forest ecotourism is an important livelihood pathway for communities around protected forests, but household agritourism operators often face ecological regulations, seasonal demand and heterogeneous tourist expectations. These conditions increase information asymmetry and make service matching difficult. This study examines how two-way information [...] Read more.
Community-based forest ecotourism is an important livelihood pathway for communities around protected forests, but household agritourism operators often face ecological regulations, seasonal demand and heterogeneous tourist expectations. These conditions increase information asymmetry and make service matching difficult. This study examines how two-way information disclosure affects business performance in community-based forest ecotourism. Drawing on social penetration theory, we test a chained mechanism linking two-way information disclosure to operational performance. Based on 780 valid questionnaires from agritourism operators and core family managers around Giant Panda National Park, China, this study measures information disclosure practices, service responsiveness, operator-side perceptions of tourist responses and self-reported business performance. The results show that seller- and buyer-side information disclosure significantly enhance perceived identification. Seller information disclosure has relatively stable effects on customer orientation, perceived quality and operational performance, whereas buyer information disclosure mainly works through perceived identification. Perceived quality, perceived value and satisfaction act as partial transmission channels. Heterogeneity analysis shows stronger effects among low-income and newly established operators. The findings provide micro-level evidence for reducing expectation mismatch and strengthening sustainable livelihood capacity in forest protected-area communities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Economics, Policy, and Social Science)
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15 pages, 5340 KB  
Article
The Inhibitory Effect of Silver Nanoparticles on Fomitopsis pinicola Growth and Their Application in Scots Pine Wood Protection
by Jacek Piętka, Michał Małecki, Magdalena Kędzierska, Mirela Tulik, Marcin Studnicki and Marta Aleksandrowicz-Trzcińska
Forests 2026, 17(7), 844; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070844 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 352
Abstract
Sustainable development in wood technology demands eco-friendly alternatives to conventional preservatives, positioning nanotechnology as a promising frontier for green wood protection. The antifungal potential of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) against the brown-rot agent Fomitopsis pinicola was investigated in vitro, alongside an assessment of their [...] Read more.
Sustainable development in wood technology demands eco-friendly alternatives to conventional preservatives, positioning nanotechnology as a promising frontier for green wood protection. The antifungal potential of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) against the brown-rot agent Fomitopsis pinicola was investigated in vitro, alongside an assessment of their protective performance on Scots pine wood. AgNPs were tested at 5, 25, 50, and 100 ppm in vitro, with an additional 200 ppm concentration included in the wood-decay test. In the in vitro assays, lower concentrations (5 and 25 ppm) stimulated radial mycelial growth, 50 ppm showed no effect, and 100 ppm caused growth inhibition. In contrast, all tested concentrations enhanced the decay resistance of pine wood. Average wood mass loss ranged from 4.9% to 8.1% after 2 months and from 10.9% to 18.6% after 4 months, with the maximum protective effect observed at 50 ppm. While AgNPs did not entirely prevent F. pinicola-induced decay, they significantly mitigated mass loss. These findings highlight the potential of AgNPs for the short-term preservation of freshly harvested timber, particularly storm- or disaster-damaged wood stored in forests or log yards prior to processing. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Wood Science and Forest Products)
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19 pages, 1317 KB  
Review
Toward Sustainable Cocoa Production in Brazil: Certification Systems and Sustainability Challenges in Bahia
by Mathurin François, Cristiano Villela-Dias, Eduardo Mariano-Neto, Alain N. Rousseau and Deborah Faria
Forests 2026, 17(7), 843; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070843 - 17 Jul 2026
Viewed by 430
Abstract
Forest certification has become an important market-based tool for promoting environmental sustainability, biodiversity conservation, and improved governance across agricultural and forest production systems. This state-of-the-art (SotA) review examines forest and cocoa certification schemes in Brazil, focusing on cocoa-based agroforestry systems in southern Bahia. [...] Read more.
Forest certification has become an important market-based tool for promoting environmental sustainability, biodiversity conservation, and improved governance across agricultural and forest production systems. This state-of-the-art (SotA) review examines forest and cocoa certification schemes in Brazil, focusing on cocoa-based agroforestry systems in southern Bahia. Major programs, including the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Brazilian Forest Certification Program (Cerflor), Instituto Biodinâmico (IBD), UTZ Certified (UTZ), Rainforest Alliance (RA), and Geographical Indication (GI) systems, were analyzed for implementation, sustainability outcomes, and accessibility across producer groups. This SotA review identifies persistent barriers to certification adoption, including high costs, complex regulations, limited technical capacity, and unequal access among producers. Certification adoption varies substantially among producer groups, with cooperatives playing a critical role as intermediaries that reduce barriers and facilitate market access. Finally, this SotA review proposes a conceptual classification of cocoa producers and an AI-enabled perspective for deforestation-free certification in biodiversity hotspots such as southern Bahia, offering new insights into sustainable cocoa production and forest conservation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functions in Forests—2nd Edition)
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29 pages, 1916 KB  
Article
Building Proximity and Height Are Associated with Tree Growth, Crown Structure, and Allometric Relationships in the Arid City of Jericho
by Alaa Amer, Shamim Ahmed, Amgad Hjazin, Jawad H. Shoqeir, Maher Jamal Tadros, Astrid Moser-Reischl, Mohammad A. Rahman, Hans Pretzsch, Stephan Pauleit and Thomas Rötzer
Forests 2026, 17(7), 842; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070842 - 16 Jul 2026
Viewed by 842
Abstract
Building proximity was associated with species-specific patterns in urban tree growth, crown structure, and allometric relationships under arid conditions. Urban trees provide essential ecosystem services in arid cities, yet the extent to which surrounding buildings influence tree development remains insufficiently understood. This study [...] Read more.
Building proximity was associated with species-specific patterns in urban tree growth, crown structure, and allometric relationships under arid conditions. Urban trees provide essential ecosystem services in arid cities, yet the extent to which surrounding buildings influence tree development remains insufficiently understood. This study investigated species-specific responses of urban trees to surrounding urban structures in Jericho, Palestine, using a height-weighted Building Proximity Index (BPIsum) integrating building distance and height. Tree structural variables and aboveground carbon storage were assessed for Delonix regia, Ficus nitida, and Phoenix dactylifera. Linear mixed-effects models and linear models were used to evaluate growth responses and allometric relationships across the BPIsum gradient. Positive BPIsum associations were observed for stem diameter and aboveground carbon storage in F. nitida (β = 0.101, p = 0.011; β = 0.236, p = 0.004, respectively). In contrast, P. dactylifera maintained stable structural characteristics, whereas D. regia exhibited intermediate responses. Crown diameter and crown symmetry remained stable, whereas crown volume showed stronger species-specific variation. These findings highlight species-specific patterns of tree development and have implications for species selection and urban greening strategies in arid cities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Trees Under Climate Change: Growth, Environmental Benefits and Potentials)
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34 pages, 3461 KB  
Review
Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) Wood: A Review of Material Properties, Characterization, and Industrial Potential in Europe
by Mihaela Porojan and Emilia-Adela Manea Salca
Forests 2026, 17(7), 841; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070841 - 16 Jul 2026
Viewed by 557
Abstract
Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) has become an increasingly important tree species in Europe due to its rapid growth, adaptability and potential to provide durable timber under changing climatic conditions. This paper presents a review of the European specialty literature concerning the [...] Read more.
Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) has become an increasingly important tree species in Europe due to its rapid growth, adaptability and potential to provide durable timber under changing climatic conditions. This paper presents a review of the European specialty literature concerning the silviculture, utilization, anatomical structure, chemical composition, main physical properties, mechanical properties and technological processing of black locust wood. Particular attention is given to the relationship between wood characteristics and possible industrial applications. The literature survey indicates that black locust trees perform well on drought-prone and sandy sites and produce timber with favourable mechanical properties. Together with its durability, relatively low shrinkage, good dimensional stability, and satisfactory machinability, these attributes support its use in both indoor and outdoor products. In addition, thermal modification and appropriate drying techniques can further enhance the wood’s appearance and service performance, increasing its competitiveness as a sustainable alternative to tropical hardwood species. The synthesis of existing research highlights the significant yet still underexploited potential of black locust for the European wood industry and emphasizes the need for continued research and wider industrial promotion of the species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wood Quality and Mechanical Properties: 3rd Edition)
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36 pages, 3134 KB  
Review
AI-Assisted Selective Harvesting and Smart Forest Management: A State-of-the-Art Review of Multimodal Sensing and Decision-Support Approaches
by Janis Peksa
Forests 2026, 17(7), 840; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070840 - 16 Jul 2026
Viewed by 392
Abstract
Selective harvesting requires tree-level decisions that balance operational productivity, stand development, and sustainable forest management, yet current AI and sensing studies often remain fragmented across remote sensing, machine perception, optimization, and forestry domains. This review synthesizes research on AI-assisted selective harvesting and smart [...] Read more.
Selective harvesting requires tree-level decisions that balance operational productivity, stand development, and sustainable forest management, yet current AI and sensing studies often remain fragmented across remote sensing, machine perception, optimization, and forestry domains. This review synthesizes research on AI-assisted selective harvesting and smart forest management, with emphasis on multimodal sensing, decision support, and harvester-oriented deployment. A PRISMA-informed scoping review was conducted using Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect, and SpringerLink, resulting in 82 studies retained for qualitative synthesis. The reviewed literature was organized into eight thematic groups covering smart forestry, harvesting operations, RGB-based perception, LiDAR and point-cloud processing, multimodal fusion, edge deployment, decision-support systems, and forecasting-oriented digital forestry. The analysis shows that RGB imaging provides semantic tree recognition, LiDAR enables spatial localization and structural assessment, and decision-support methods can translate tree-level observations into transparent cut/keep recommendations. However, integrated harvester-mounted systems remain underdeveloped, particularly regarding real-time RGB–LiDAR fusion, operator-facing recommendations, and forecasting integration. This review proposes a reference architecture for human-in-the-loop AI-assisted selective harvesting and identifies future research priorities for field validation and smart forest-management integration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Advances in Management and Design of Forest Operations: 2nd Edition)
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18 pages, 13169 KB  
Article
A Lumber Surface Defect Detection Network Integrating Deformable Convolution and Multi-Scale Attention
by Longhai Wu, Kun Zhang, Lu Leng, Hongqing Zhang, Han Wang, Rui Zeng and Mengting Wang
Forests 2026, 17(7), 839; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070839 - 16 Jul 2026
Viewed by 355
Abstract
Intricate natural wood textures and diversified defect morphologies hinder high-precision recognition of visible surface defects on sawn lumber. Six common types of surface defects exist on sawn lumber, including dry knots, edge knots, small knots, sound knots, wavy defects, and splits. Among these [...] Read more.
Intricate natural wood textures and diversified defect morphologies hinder high-precision recognition of visible surface defects on sawn lumber. Six common types of surface defects exist on sawn lumber, including dry knots, edge knots, small knots, sound knots, wavy defects, and splits. Among these defect types, edge knots, small knots, wavy defects, and splits bring great difficulties to detection due to their tiny areas, slender geometric outlines and indistinct boundaries. To accurately identify the above defects, a customized You Only Look Once version 8 medium (YOLOv8m)-based framework was developed for lumber surface inspection. First, the Cross-Stage Partial Bottleneck with Two Convolutions embedded with Efficient Channel Attention (C2f-ECA) and Space-to-Depth Convolution (SPD-Conv) are introduced into the backbone to enhance channel-wise feature representation and preserve fine spatial details during downsampling, while C2f with Deformable Convolution (C2f-DCN) is embedded in the deep feature extraction branch to improve the geometric modeling of irregular defects. Second, a C2f-DCN with Exponential Moving Average Attention (C2f-DCN-EMA) module and dynamic upsampling (DySample) are integrated in the feature-fusion stage to refine multi-scale features and reconstruct local edges. Third, Scaled Intersection over Union (SIoU) loss is used to improve bounding-box regression for defects with extreme aspect ratios. Experiments show that the proposed model achieves 91.8% mean Average Precision at IoU 0.5 (mAP@50) and 69.3% mean Average Precision across IoU thresholds of 0.5–0.95 (mAP@50-95), exceeding the YOLOv8m baseline by 1.0 and 1.5 percentage points, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Wood Materials)
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20 pages, 4670 KB  
Article
Spatial Heterogeneity and Driving Mechanisms of Forest Carbon Storage in Wuyi Mountain National Park
by Yanping Liu, Shujun Tan, Ziwei Wang, Jinfu Liu, Yu Hong, Bo Chen, Kaijin Kuang and Zhongsheng He
Forests 2026, 17(7), 838; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070838 - 16 Jul 2026
Viewed by 320
Abstract
Forest aboveground live biomass carbon storage (hereafter referred to as “forest carbon storage”) is an important indicator of forest vegetation carbon sequestration, and its spatial patterns and associated factors are highly heterogeneous. Identifying these variations can improve the understanding of carbon accumulation in [...] Read more.
Forest aboveground live biomass carbon storage (hereafter referred to as “forest carbon storage”) is an important indicator of forest vegetation carbon sequestration, and its spatial patterns and associated factors are highly heterogeneous. Identifying these variations can improve the understanding of carbon accumulation in complex mountain forests and support fine-scale carbon assessment in similar ecosystems. The results showed the following. (1) The total forest carbon storage in the study area was 3.75 × 106 t C, with a carbon density of 44.83 t C·hm−2. Pinus massoniana and hard broad-leaved tree species were the main contributors, and carbon storage peaked at the mature forest stage. (2) Carbon storage exhibited significant spatial clustering (Moran’s I = 0.312), with high-value areas concentrated within the national nature reserve and low-value areas distributed in regions with frequent human activities. (3) The GWR model outperformed the ordinary least squares model, with R2 increasing to 0.88 and residual spatial autocorrelation reduced by 42.22%. (4) The positive effect of stand volume increased from northeast to southwest, the effect of stand age differed between eastern and western areas, and shrub layer height, soil depth, and slope exhibited region-specific positive and negative effects, with significant interactions among factors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Inventory, Modeling and Remote Sensing)
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30 pages, 13258 KB  
Article
Co-Creating Governance for Community-Based Forest Orchid Cultivation and Ecotourism: Lessons from Lore Lindu National Park, Indonesia
by Teguh Kurniawan, Syifa Amania Afra, Ega Wahyudi, Yohani Ebiantari, Imam Fajri and Raynilda Siringoringo
Forests 2026, 17(7), 837; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070837 - 15 Jul 2026
Viewed by 714
Abstract
Lore Lindu National Park (LLNP), a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, is characterized by its significant biodiversity and ecotourism potential, including endemic forest orchids and rich cultural heritage. Despite its ecological importance, the park [...] Read more.
Lore Lindu National Park (LLNP), a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, is characterized by its significant biodiversity and ecotourism potential, including endemic forest orchids and rich cultural heritage. Despite its ecological importance, the park continues to face deforestation and illegal land use, partly driven by limited community involvement in conservation governance. In this study, we examine the co-creation of governance in community-based forest orchid cultivation and ecotourism initiatives in Karunia Village, where local communities have developed organic orchid cultivation practices since 2004. Drawing on the co-creation governance framework of Christopher Ansell, Eva Sørensen, and Jacob Torfing, we employ a qualitative case study approach based on a literature review, field observations, and in-depth interviews conducted over four months. Our findings reveal that each phase of co-creation is shaped by distinct institutional and socio-political dynamics. Initiation is strongly influenced by local economic pressures and social solidarity, while design encounters regulatory barriers related to licensing and conservation policy. Implementation remains constrained by fragmented coordination among multi-level stakeholders, and systematic evaluation mechanisms are largely absent. We propose the use of a Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed (RACI) Matrix to clarify institutional roles and strengthen collaborative governance arrangements. This article contributes to the literature by expanding the empirical understanding of co-creation practices in the Global South and highlighting the importance of institutional and socio-political dimensions in community-based environmental governance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrative Forest Governance, Policy, and Economics)
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29 pages, 33196 KB  
Article
Spatiotemporal Dynamics and Probabilistic Causal Mechanisms of Habitat Quality in the Taihang Mountains (2000–2020)
by Yu Zhang, Jiping Hai, Yu Bi and Ningxin Si
Forests 2026, 17(7), 836; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070836 - 15 Jul 2026
Viewed by 322
Abstract
Driven by shifting hydro-climatic regimes and accelerating infrastructure expansion, the ecologically fragile Taihang Mountains are experiencing severe landscape fragmentation, threatening regional habitat suitability. This study integrates multiscale spatial regression and dynamic network inference models to analyze habitat quality dynamics and their driving mechanisms [...] Read more.
Driven by shifting hydro-climatic regimes and accelerating infrastructure expansion, the ecologically fragile Taihang Mountains are experiencing severe landscape fragmentation, threatening regional habitat suitability. This study integrates multiscale spatial regression and dynamic network inference models to analyze habitat quality dynamics and their driving mechanisms from 2000 to 2020. The findings reveal that: (1) Mean habitat quality marginally declined from 0.7187 to 0.6982, driven by a significant 20.53% expansion of low-quality patches. (2) Spatial regression and network inference indicate that land-use/land-cover and terrain slope act as robust positive drivers, while gross domestic product impacts exhibit a distinct north–south bipolarity. Land-use composition serves as the primary structural determinant of habitat quality (influence coefficient: 0.877), with terrain slope rigidly constraining land-use transitions (0.676) and landscape configuration heavily governed by the landscape shape index (0.493). (3) Scenario-based simulations demonstrate that climate-driven vegetation greening alone is insufficient for habitat quality upgrades without corresponding land-use optimization. Consequently, regional management must shift from passive greening to active structural intervention, utilizing probabilistic safety thresholds to manage infrastructure expansion and fortify vital mountainous ecological barriers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forests and Green Infrastructure: Multi-Scale Approaches to Achieving SDG 11 in Sustainable Cities)
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17 pages, 4014 KB  
Article
Effects of Different Strip Cutting Regimes on Growth Traits, Root Morphological Plasticity, and Allocation of Nutrients and Non-Structural Carbohydrates in Indocalamus latifolius
by Huijing Ni and Zhenya Yang
Forests 2026, 17(7), 835; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070835 - 15 Jul 2026
Viewed by 276
Abstract
Strip cutting enables efficient, low-cost harvesting and regeneration of abandoned bamboo stands with minimal disturbance to the ecosystem. Nevertheless, the growth and resource allocation mechanisms of Indocalamus latifolius (Keng) McClure in response to varying strip cutting intensities remain unclear. In this study, abandoned [...] Read more.
Strip cutting enables efficient, low-cost harvesting and regeneration of abandoned bamboo stands with minimal disturbance to the ecosystem. Nevertheless, the growth and resource allocation mechanisms of Indocalamus latifolius (Keng) McClure in response to varying strip cutting intensities remain unclear. In this study, abandoned I. latifolius stands were selected as research materials, with four gradient widths of cutting strips established (0 m, 1 m, 2 m, 3 m). This study aimed to clarify the growth and resource allocation mechanisms of I. latifolius in response to strip cutting by measuring organ biomass accumulation, root morphological traits, and the allocation strategies for nutrients and non-structural carbohydrates in cutting and reserved strips under different strip cutting intensities. The results showed that the 1 m strip width facilitated new ramet growth in both cutting and reserved strips, while the 2 m strip width only promoted new ramet growth in reserved strips. Both treatments suppressed fine root proliferation and increased average root diameter. Strip cutting significantly elevated nitrogen and phosphorus contents in new leaves, new stems, rhizomes, and roots, as well as soluble sugar contents in new leaves and new stems across cutting and reserved strips. By contrast, it reduced the non-structural carbohydrate content in roots, as well as nitrogen and phosphorus contents in old stems and old leaves within reserved strips. The 1 m and 2 m strip cutting treatments increased the nitrogen and phosphorus allocation ratios of new leaves, new stems, and rhizomes in reserved strips, and reduced the allocation ratios in roots, old leaves, and old stems. In conclusion, moderate-intensity strip clear-cutting facilitates new ramet sprouting within cutting strips and induces compensatory leaf growth in reserved strips. I. latifolius preferentially allocates nutrients and non-structural carbohydrates to new leaves, new stems, and rhizomes in reserved strips, yet this resource allocation strategy inhibits root growth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Ecophysiology and Biology)
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14 pages, 5876 KB  
Article
Impact of Soil Chemical Properties on the Natural Regeneration of Sycamore Maple (Acer pseudoplatanus L.)
by Monika Konatowska, Igor Florczyk, Paweł Rutkowski and Jean Diatta
Forests 2026, 17(7), 834; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070834 - 15 Jul 2026
Viewed by 342
Abstract
Soil contamination with heavy metals (including Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb), alongside climate change, represents a key challenge for the sustainability of forest ecosystems. Sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus L.), as a pioneer species with high phytostabilization potential, can play a significant role [...] Read more.
Soil contamination with heavy metals (including Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb), alongside climate change, represents a key challenge for the sustainability of forest ecosystems. Sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus L.), as a pioneer species with high phytostabilization potential, can play a significant role in ensuring forest persistence in areas affected by industrial emissions. In this context, the abundance of natural sycamore maple regeneration was determined along a transect originating at the “Gilów” Extractive Waste Treatment Facility in Poland. On 13 research plots arranged along the transect, the share of sycamore maples was assessed within height classes of up to 0.5 m, 0.5–1.5 m, and above 1.5 m. Furthermore, the soil content of Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe, Pb, Cd, Ni, and Cr, among others, was determined for each plot. The results showed a statistically significant positive correlation between Acer pseudoplatanus regeneration and the soil content of iron and nickel, as well as a statistically significant negative correlation with lead content. The results concerning nickel suggest that low concentrations of this element may stimulate the natural regeneration of sycamore maple. Full article
(This article belongs to the Topic Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants, 3rd Edition)
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24 pages, 6665 KB  
Article
Enhancing Plant Diversity and Coloration Along Urban Roads Through Transportation Node Landscape Greening
by Nan Dong, Fengjuan Zhou, Mingming Tang, Yuxin Huang, Jingyi Liu, Tianxiao Ma and Shengjun Wu
Forests 2026, 17(7), 833; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070833 - 14 Jul 2026
Viewed by 319
Abstract
(1) Background: As a central element of plant configuration and the ornamental performance of pedestrian refuge islands, quantitative color analysis provides a novel approach to evaluating landscape plant diversity. (2) Methods: Using spring and winter survey data on plant diversity, color, and traffic [...] Read more.
(1) Background: As a central element of plant configuration and the ornamental performance of pedestrian refuge islands, quantitative color analysis provides a novel approach to evaluating landscape plant diversity. (2) Methods: Using spring and winter survey data on plant diversity, color, and traffic flow, we analyzed the spatiotemporal gradients of plant communities. (3) Results: A total of fifty-three species were documented across 17 islands. The predominant species is Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn., with a utilization frequency of 9. The foliage exhibits 28 standard colors across both seasons, with winter featuring three color series and 13 hues (blackness 20%–80%), and spring featuring two series and 11 hues (blackness 10%–60%). Quantitative traits and alpha diversity are ranked as follows: herb layer > shrub layer > arbor layer. There is a positive correlation between community alpha diversity and cycle length. Additionally, the mean blackness in spring is significantly positively correlated with pedestrian flow and the density of green light slow-traffic, whereas the mean chromaticness in winter correlates with the green split ratio. (4) Conclusions: The presence of diverse horticultural plants contributes to vibrant landscapes with distinct seasonal dynamics on the pedestrian refuge islands of urban Xinyang. Furthermore, slow-moving traffic at intersections is identified as a key anthropogenic factor influencing patterns of roadside plant diversity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Urban Forestry)
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34 pages, 7467 KB  
Review
Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer, a Global Threat to Forest Plantations, Green Infrastructure, and Biodiversity: Status, Challenges, and Solutions
by Bernard Dell, Wei Xu and Nguyen Minh Chi
Forests 2026, 17(7), 832; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070832 - 14 Jul 2026
Viewed by 596
Abstract
Global trade and climate change are accelerating the spread and impacts of invasive forest pests worldwide. The Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (Euwallacea fornicatus) is among the most destructive invasive ambrosia beetles, attacking approximately 680 woody plant species across five continents and [...] Read more.
Global trade and climate change are accelerating the spread and impacts of invasive forest pests worldwide. The Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (Euwallacea fornicatus) is among the most destructive invasive ambrosia beetles, attacking approximately 680 woody plant species across five continents and causing substantial ecological and economic losses. This review synthesizes the current knowledge of PSHB taxonomy, biology, fungal symbiosis, host range, invasion history, surveillance and management. Evidence indicates that eradication is rarely feasible once populations become established, while existing chemical and biological control measures remain of limited effectiveness, making early detection and rapid response essential. This review highlights major knowledge gaps in invasion biology, host susceptibility, fungal interactions and chemical ecology, and identifies research priorities to improve surveillance, risk prediction and integrated management. Advancing these areas will strengthen global biosecurity and enhance protection of forests, urban trees and commercial orchards. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Forest Entomology and Phytopathology: Contemporary Challenges in Forest Conservation)
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27 pages, 17583 KB  
Article
Temporal Changes in Early Post-Fire Vegetation Communities Along a Restoration-Intensity Gradient in the Uljin Wildfire-Affected Area, Korea
by Jeong-Seok Park, Seong-Bin Kim, Gyu-Il Han, Min-Woo Lee, Young-Soo Kim, Se-Kyu Song, Jae-Sun Yi, Seung-Hwan Oh, Seung-Jae Lee and Tae-Im Heo
Forests 2026, 17(7), 831; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17070831 - 14 Jul 2026
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Abstract
This study examined short-term vegetation responses across operational restoration-intensity levels in areas affected by the 2022 Uljin wildfire, Korea. Using 104 vegetation relevés from 52 fixed plots surveyed in 2024 and 2025, we analyzed species- and community-level vegetation patterns based on phytosociological data. [...] Read more.
This study examined short-term vegetation responses across operational restoration-intensity levels in areas affected by the 2022 Uljin wildfire, Korea. Using 104 vegetation relevés from 52 fixed plots surveyed in 2024 and 2025, we analyzed species- and community-level vegetation patterns based on phytosociological data. Species-level attributes were assessed using species richness, diversity, evenness, importance values, life-form composition, habitat-affinity composition, and alien plant occurrence, while community-level patterns were evaluated using Bray–Curtis-based multivariate analyses, SIMPER, and indicator species analysis. A total of 159 vascular plant species was recorded across the two survey years. Species richness generally increased or was maintained, whereas diversity, evenness, and dominance patterns varied among operational restoration-intensity levels. Annual and alien plant occurrence generally decreased, while perennial and some forest-associated species increased. Community composition differed among operational restoration-intensity levels, with species compositional and dominance changes tending to be more pronounced in levels involving greater restoration intervention. These findings indicate that short-term vegetation patterns differed among operational restoration-intensity levels, while temporal effects between the two survey years were comparatively limited. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Ecology and Management)
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