Northern European coniferous forest region
The northern European coniferous forest region is an area in northern Europe that encompasses large parts of Fennoscandia . The term Northern European coniferous forest region was mainly used by Hannes Mayer. The region is part of the boreal coniferous forest. The wood from this region is known to us as Nordic wood. It has high durability and high strength. The region consists mainly of hilly landscape, but also contains some mountains and in Finland also lakes. Pine and spruce trees in particular grow in the region, but also birch trees. This area is part of the boreal coniferous forest . The climate is very cold in winter and also in summer it is mostly cool. However, temperatures of up to 30 degrees Celsius can then also be reached.
Location
The region extends over almost all of Fennoscandia , including Finland , Sweden and Norway, as well as Iceland . The north and south of this region are excluded. In the north it is limited by the polar tree line and in the south by beech forests. In the east, the region is bounded by the Gulf of Finland , the White Sea , Onega and Ladoga Lakes. In this area, there is also a clear change in the tree species composition. In the west the area is bounded by the Atlantic .
The area is mostly hilly at heights of 100 to 400 m. But in some areas there are also mountains such as the Jotunheimen Mountains on the southern border of the northern European coniferous forest region or the Skanden . There the highest mountains are up to 2469 meters high. These are mostly made of slate , granite and gneiss . There are usually layers of clay and sand above it. There are also many raised bogs in this area, but further north Norway and Sweden remain partly mountainous and the mountains reach heights of up to approx. 2100 meters. The area slowly flattens towards Finland and there are many lakes here. These lie at 20–200 meters above sea level. There are around 60,000 lakes in total. These locally account for an area share of up to 50%.
The climate is very cool due to the far north. The monthly mean temperatures of 10 to 15 degrees Celsius in June are normal, while the values in January can drop to minus 4 to minus 12 degrees in the monthly mean. This results in an annual average of 5 and 7 degrees Celsius in the south, while temperatures of only 0 to 3 degrees in the annual average are reached in the north. However, these poor conditions are partially mitigated by the Gulf Stream and long summer days. The precipitation is mostly between 500 and 900 mm. In the western area in the Skanden, the Jotunheimen Mountains and directly by the sea, due to westerly winds, precipitation values can sometimes reach up to 4000 mm.
The number of vegetation days and thus the species composition also depends on the amount of precipitation and the temperatures. In the south of Finland and Sweden there are still stands of beech and oak, while in the north there are pure conifer and birch forests. In the south there are still up to 140 days of vegetation per year. Oaks and other deciduous trees can also grow up to this value. Below 60 days of vegetation, only pure coniferous and birch forests can exist. This area is mainly located in the central part of Fennoscandia and in the mountains of Norway. Forests can no longer exist if there are less than 30 vegetation days. This is where the taiga begins.
The polar forest and tree line
In Fennoscandia or generally in the polar areas, the tree line is called the polar forest and tree line. The distinction between the tree line and the tree line is important here. The tree line is the limit from which there are no more forests, while the tree line is the limit from which trees no longer grow. In the Alps, with their subalpine forest and tree line, forest and tree line almost coincide. In Fennoscandia, the transition from forests via individual trees to the tree-free area is fluid and up to 200 kilometers long. This is mainly due to the very slow change in temperature and precipitation from north to south. However, it is primarily local conditions such as wind, snow protection, soil conditions and waterlogging that determine the forest structure to a large extent. However, there are exceptions. Both in the Jotunheimen Mountains and in the Scandinavia, the two different (subalpine and subpolar) types of forest and tree line mix because of the mountain location. Overall, one can say that the birch forms the tree line in the northwest, while the pine is the northernmost tree species in the northeast. The fact that the birch forms the north-western tree line is initially very surprising, but this is due, among other things, to the fact that the birch can also exist in very high moisture and is also more bush-like than tree-like.
The different types of areas
The northern European coniferous forest region can generally be divided into three large sub-regions. These are the subarctic-subalpine birch forest, the boreal Fennoscan coniferous forest and, last but not least, the subboreal deciduous and mixed coniferous forest.
In the far north of Fennoscandia and parts of Iceland there is the subarctic-subalpine birch forest. The conditions here are extremely hostile to growth. There are only about 30 to 40 days of vegetation. A vegetation day is defined by a mean daily temperature of at least 10 ° Celsius. In January there are average temperatures of minus 10 to minus 15 ° Celsius and in July average temperatures of 14 to 16 ° Celsius and at the same time there is high precipitation and therefore there is little sunshine. Due to all these adverse factors, the birch can be found here less as a tree, but much more as a bush. In the north, it is mostly found in areas that are protected from snow and wind, the soil is in good condition and / or the soil is not as wet. The lower limit is as follows: The area begins at the island of Hinnøya . The border then runs north along the coast. In Tromsø it then runs to the east, where they will meet near the northernmost part of Finland on the coast. In the north the area is bounded by the sea. About 1% of Iceland is forested.
Further south is the boreal Fennoscan coniferous forest. Above all, pine, spruce and birch grow here. The climate here is still strongly influenced by the Atlantic, but the rainfall here is not as high as on the coast. Apart from the three tree species mentioned, there are almost no other tree species. However, there are many different sub-societies and variants of the three tree species. These tree species are not always found together, but separately. This is due to the adjustments made by the trees. The birch tree prefers northern Scandinavia, areas with raised bogs and sandy areas. The pine is found particularly in locations with raised bogs, sandy soils and moraines, as well as in dry locations and on glacier slopes. The spruce is found mainly in the mountains of southern and central Norway. It prefers flat bogs, moist and loamy soils. The forest in this area takes a long time to grow. Sometimes the forest here needs 200 to 600 years from the first planting to the full-grown forest. There is a high anthropogenic influence, especially in the further southern part. This has existed for around 2000 years. In the past, it was mainly about creating pasture for the cattle and hunting them. Today it is more about increasing the proportion of spruce in the forests, as you can earn more money with spruce than with pine or birch. The northern limit of the boreal Fennoscan coniferous forest corresponds to the southern limit of the subarctic subalpine birch forest. The southern border can be described by the following: On the Norwegian and Swedish sides, the Jotunheimen Mountains form the southern border. In Finland, the border from Kokkola on the Gulf of Bothnia runs east. The eastern border is defined by the connection between the White Sea - Lake Onega - Lake Ladoga - Gulf of Finland. There is a clear change in the tree species composition here.
The southernmost region is the subboreal mixed deciduous forest. It is mild here compared to the other areas. There are between 90 and 140 days of vegetation throughout the year. There are many different types of trees here. There are ash, oak, elm, linden, spruce, pine, birch, beech and many others. The northern limit is the southern limit of the boreal coniferous forest. The southern border of the subboreal mixed deciduous forest in Finland is the Baltic Sea. In Sweden the area ends about 50 kilometers from the southern border of Sweden. In Norway, the area ends about 20 kilometers from Norway's southern border.
Threats and Changes
One of the greatest challenges for the northern European coniferous forest region is climate change. For areas near the poles, climate changes are generally very difficult because they are very unstable. Here, climate changes express themselves on a comparatively high scale, especially with regard to temperature. Another important factor is the rate of growth of vegetation. Due to the fact that plants grow very slowly in these latitudes, the forest cannot adapt as quickly.
Forest fires are an additional threat. Forest fires are generally primarily a natural process, triggered by lightning strikes. However, these are more common in today's world. Usually this is done by fire to burn off harvest residues. These are often not supervised and quickly get out of control. The consequences are devastating for the forest. A forest in Scandinavia takes around 200 years to mature. If it is very far to the north, this can even take up to 600 years. In addition, a forest fire leads to even more drought in Scandinavia, which is usually already very dry. In addition, most of the soil humus is lost. In the case of permafrost soils, this even has the effect of thawing the soil. One can therefore say that the forest fire made it very difficult for the following vegetation to thrive.
Individual evidence
- ^ Hannes Mayer: Forests of Europe. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 978-3-437-30441-5
- ^ Hannes Mayer: Forests of Europe. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 978-3-437-30441-5
- ^ Hannes Mayer: Forests of Europe. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 978-3-437-30441-5
- ^ Hannes Mayer: Forests of Europe. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 978-3-437-30441-5
- ^ Johann Georg Goldammer: Vegetation Fires and Global Change. Kessel Publishing House, Remagen-Oberwinter 2013, ISBN 978-3-941300-78-1