Modelling the risks of natural stand closure release with ageing in pure beech (Fagus sylvatica) and spruce (Picea abies) stands

• Background  

In the development of pure beech and pure spruce pristine forests, we assume there should be a continuous transition from full stocking to successive disintegration and, finally, total replacement of the first generational wave at the end of its lifetime, dependent on mortality due to overcrowding as well as ageing, leading newly recruited cohorts to grow up from below.