PECULIARITIES OF GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF PROTECTED FOREST PLANTATIONS OF THE BEECH FAMILY (FAGACEAE) IN THE FOREST-STEPPE PART OF THE RIVNE REGION

Abstract

Conserving and reproducing the genetic diversity of forests is one of the tasks outlined in the State Forest Management Strategy of Ukraine until 2035. This is ensured by the protection of all identified primeval forests, natural forests within the framework of natural monuments, reserve areas, and protected zones in national parks. Several field forest inventory and taxation studies have been conducted in the reserve forest areas of the Western Forest-Steppe and Western Polissia in the Rivne region. The indigenous species, Common Oak (Quercus robur L.), was chosen as the primary focus of the study, thriving in optimal forest plant conditions such as humid oak forests and a forest type characterized by moist hornbeam-oak groves. The study also explored the growth and development characteristics of another representative species in the family, the European Beech (Fagus silvatica L.), at the eastern boundary of its range. Enumeration, selective taxation, and forest surveys of the components of the stands were carried out. Taxation indicators for stands of the respective species were calculated, allowing for the assessment of the vertical structure and tree productivity of the plantations. Actual plantation indicators in these sample areas were compared with data from reference plantations taken from growth tables for the corresponding species. The study investigated the structure of the examined plantations to evaluate the impact of historical events in the 20th century on them.