Determination of deadwood amount in pure and mixed caucasian spruce stands: A case study of Velikoy Forest Enterprise and Karagol-Sahara National Park

In this study, firstly, it is aimed to determine the amount of deadwood in pure and mixed Caucasian spruce (Picea orientalis (L.) Link.) stands which are managed in Şavşat-Veliköy Forest Enterprise and unmanaged in Karagöl-Sahara National Park and to reveal the change in the amount of dead wood according to some stand, physiographic, and spatial spatial factors. The amount of deadwood in the stands that are managed (Veliköy Forest Enterprise) and unmanaged (Karagöl-Sahara National Park) were compared. Taking into account some stand, physiographic and spatial-spatial factors that affect the change of deadwood trees, it was taken that there were 238 sample plots (476 sample plots considering the measurements made 40 m north of the sample plots). In each sample plot, the number and dimensions (diameter and height) of deadwood trees such as standing dead trees, snags, downed dead trees, stumps, and the detailed characteristics of the deadwood trees (deadwood tree type, decay stage of deadwood trees) were measured. The results showed that the mean volume of the total deadwood volume and its ratio to live volume was 10.1 m3/ha and 2.5% in the Veliköy Forest Enterprise and 22.5 m3/ha and 4.2% in the Karagöl-Sahara National Park. The volume of standing deadwood was 3.0 m3/ha (29.5%), that of stumps was 3.8 m3/ha (37.8%), and that of lying deadwood was 3.3 m3/ha (32.7%) in the Veliköy Forest Enterprise. The total volume of dead wood consists of 47.8% (10.8 m3/ha) standing deadwood, 22.7% of stumps (5.1 m3/ha) and 29.4% (6.6 m3/ha) lying deadwood. The amount of total deadwood volume increased in relation to stand age, density, crown closure, distance to road, and distance to settlement, and the site index improved. In both management types, the highest dead wood volume is found in spruce + fir mixed stands. Most of the deadwood volume in the study area was in the weekly (second class) and medium (third class) decayed classes in Veliköy (57.6%), in Karagöl-Sahara (71.0%) and in both of them (67.0%). In this study, the variation of deadwood volume in decay class distribution in managed and protected forests gives an indication of temporal variation in tree felling and tree mortality and can be utilized as an indicator of a forest's history. The distribution of dead wood volume by dead wood types and decay classes provides an indication of the temporal variation in tree mortality and can be used to estimate the optimal deadwood volume ratio in biodiversity integrated forest management planning.