Relevant dimensions and indices of heterogeneity for experiments on mixed and uneven-aged forests

Abstract

Although there is much debate about the relevance of mixed or uneven-aged forests to resilience (1) and to the productivity of ecosystems in a context of global climate change, there are still no recommendations as to the various dimensions of heterogeneity to be monitored and the associated indices to describe and quantify them. In this article, the authors present the main dimensions of heterogeneity that should be considered, on the scale of a stand, for the purposes of experimental study of relations between heterogeneity, dynamics and function of stands: species diversity, diversity of tree size and age, heterogeneity of their spatial distribution and finally, site-factor heterogeneity...