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Abstract
Quercus variabilis forests in China have degraded because of over exploiting and cutting. Stump sprouting is an important reproduction mechanism in secondary Q. variabilis stands; however, limited information exists on factors affected sprouting in this species. We cut trees in December 2007 and May 2008 in three stands in Foping, Shaanxi Province, China, and monitored sprout initiation and growth for three years in order to examine the impact of stump diameter, stump height, and cutting season on sprouting. Trees were cut at six heights randomly (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 cm aboveground). All stumps sprouted in the first year after cutting, and stump survival rate, sprout number, and sprout growth declined with time after cutting. Stumps formed in dormant season displayed greater sprouting ability than those cut in growing season. Cutting season did not affect sprout number per stump. Stump diameter affected sprouting positively throughout the entire study period. Stump height influenced sprout number and sprout height during the first year, and the effect disappeared in the second and third years. Cutting Q. variabilis with a larger base diameter (>15 cm) at more than 30 cm high aboveground during the dormant season can maximize stump sprouting.
Acknowledgements
This study was financially supported by the Forestry industry research special funds for public welfare projects of China (Grant No. 201004011) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 30872018). The authors are grateful to Prof. Dr Markus Hauck of Plant Ecology Department, University of Goettingen, Germany for his constructive comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript. The authors thank Haoqiang Zhang of Leibniz-Institute of Vegetable and Ornamental crops (IGZ), Germany for his linguistic comments. They also thank Baolin Yang, Changhu Bao, Chenglei Wang, Min Wu, and Minjian Zhou of Northwest A&F University, China for their cooperation in fieldwork.