© 1992 Heron Publishing—Victoria, Canada
Patterns in aboveground carbon allocation and tree architecture that favor stem growth in young Scots pine from high latitudes
Tim Kuuluvainen and Markku Kanninen
University of Helsinki, Department of Silviculture, Unioninkatu 40B, 00170 Helsinki, Finland / Received May 22, 1991
Summary
The production and allocation of aboveground biomass and the characteristics of tree architecture were examined in eight-year-old
Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). Considerable among-tree variation existed in tree architecture, total aboveground dry mass production, and dry mass
partitioning among tree parts. A linear relationship existed between needle and branch mass. Stem mass was directly proportional
to tree height, which in turn was directly proportional to the allocation ratio between stem mass and total needle + branch
mass production. The architectural characteristics that were related to a high proportional allocation to stem and high stemwood
production were a large mean shoot volume, large mean number of branches per whorl, long needle retention and a high crown
length/crown width ratio. Individual trees were found that combined high stemwood production with both high harvest index
and high stemwood specific gravity.
