Growth and Stand Dynamics of Unmanaged and Managed Forests Under Global Change

Dear Colleagues,

Currently, we are witnessing many global environmental changes caused by, among other things, anthropopressure, i.e., climate change, which fundamentally impacts forest ecosystems, both those subject to forest management and those excluded from it. Crucially, this impacts the fulfilment of all forest functions. In managed stands, we can take corrective or, better yet, preventive actions, which can increase the stability and durability of such stands. In forests excluded from management, we cannot carry out such actions. However, such forests are a source of invaluable information on the effects of these changes on forests. Through insightful observations, we can draw conclusions about interventions in managed forests and consolidate their readiness to fulfil versatile functions (productive, social, protective, cultural, etc.) and provide various ecosystem goods and services.

This Special Issue will provide an overview of the most recent advances in the field of growth and stand dynamics for both managed and unmanaged forests affected by environmental changes. This Special Issue aims to showcase selected contributors presenting advances in pure and multi-species forest growth rules, unmanaged and managed stand dynamics, and the implementation of conclusions resulting from observations of unmanaged forests that can aid in the modification of the management of managed forests in light of environmental changes.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• Pure and mixed-species performance in managed and unmanaged forests;
• Managed and unmanaged stand dynamics;
• Forest productivity and stability;
• The growth characteristics of managed and unmanaged forests;
• The resistance, resilience, and recovery of managed and unmanaged forests;
• A modified or new concept of silvicultural intervention in managed forests based on unmanaged stand dynamics;
• Growth models;
• Appropriate silvicultural treatments in managed forests.
• The policy and governance of managed forests.

All listed topics should consider the impact of environmental changes on forests.

Prof. Dr. Maciej Pach
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.