Plant species richness in managed boreal forests—Effects of stand succession and thinning

Disturbance is a key factor affecting plant species richness and it has been hypothesized that species richness reaches a peak some time after disturbance occurs. Managed boreal forests are characterized by large scale disturbance in the form of clear-cuttings, which partly resembles natural disturbance regimes. The young stands however, which may be important to many plants, are often homogenous and dense compared to naturally regenerated stands. We examined previously unstudied effects of disturbance, succession and management practices on plant species richness in boreal forests. Survey data covering the northern and central parts of Sweden (4465 plots) were used to compare species richness and composition in four stand maturity classes—“cutting”, “young”, “pre-mature” and “mature”, and two fertility classes—“rich” and “poor”. In addition, the effect of thinning was examined in young and pre-mature forests.