OLD-GROWTH BEECH FORESTS IN SERBIA

Old-growth forests play an important role in getting an insight into processes that occur in nature, and consequently in the implementation of those insights through close-to-nature forest management. A segment of familiarity with the above processes is knowledge of the structural and production characteristics of the investigated old-growth forests. The research described in this paper was conducted in beech forests, in a total of 13 sample plots distributed in several mountainous regions of Serbia. Initially, the shape of diameter and height curves was used for the structural definition of the investigated forests, and the results were tested on the basis of the ages of individual trees. In addition, forest productivity was estimated on the basis of the achieved volume, current volume increment and increment intensity. All the investigated stands, except one, were initially defined as even-aged stands. However, due to a high variability in the individual ages of trees in most of the stands, their structure was defined as covert uneven-aged. All the stands but one, which is at the phase of stand development and has a diameter structure similar to selection structure, are in the optimum phase. It is reflected in accumulated volume, slowed dynamics and consequently lower current increment and increment intensity. Although particular site conditions (high mountainous and sub-alpine vegetation belt) more or less differ from the optimum state, the achieved volume indicates high productivity of the investigated beech forests. Finally, the knowledge of structural and production characteristics of old-growth beech forests is an important starting point for defining the goals of forest management on a regular basis, as well as for the selection of the best measures for the achievement of these goals.