Three hundred years of spatio-temporal development in a primary mountain Norway spruce stand in the Bohemian Forest, central Europe Pavel Janda a,⇑ , Miroslav Svoboda a , Radek Bac ˇe a , Vojte ˇch C ˇ ada a , JeriLynn E. Peck b a Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Department of Silviculture, Kamy ´cká 1176, 165 21 Praha 6, Suchdol, Prague, Czech Republic b The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, 207 University Park, PA 16803, United States article info Article history: Received 22 January 2014 Received in revised form 23 June 2014 Accepted 24 June 2014 Keywords: Dendrochronology Disturbance chronology Age structure Canopy accession Spatio-temporal pattern abstract The model of developmental dynamics has grown in recent years to include the role of disturbances, but few studies have examined fine-scale spatio-temporal dynamics. We present a unique study from mountain Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) forests in central Europe to evaluate the role of disturbances in spatio-temporal tree distribution patterns. We established three one-hectare permanent study plots (PSP) in an old-growth mountain Norway spruce forest in a strictly protected nature reserve in central Europe. We mapped the spatial positions of all trees >1.3 m in height and extracted increment cores of all canopy trees >6 m in height. Disturbance chronologies were reconstructed based on dendroecological approaches indicating disturbance events from: (1) abrupt increases in radial growth (release) and (2) intensive juvenile growth (open canopy recruitment). Spatio-temporal patterns were detected using Moran’s I. Recruitment and canopy accession were discontinuous over time. Synchronous radial growth release events were observed during 1750–1770 and 1810–1830 and synchronous new recruitment was observed in 1770–1800. Most of the detected disturbances could be associated with historical records of strong winds or bark beetle outbreaks of moderate severity. Most trees ascended into the canopy via open canopy recruitment and many formed distinct patches (about 20–50 m in diameter) with a similar date of canopy accession. Our study provides evidence of a mixed historical disturbance regime including large-scale infrequent moderate intensity disturbance combined with frequent low severity events. These disturbances created large-scale synchronous periods of recruitment and canopy accession. The resulting developmental model indicates a complex spatio-temporal pattern of tree death and establishment across a large range of patch sizes. For ecologically based management systems we suggest the application of a mixed harvest intensities at different spatial and temporal scales to better replicate natural disturbance patterns and associated legacies. Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) is one of the most important and widespread tree species in Europe. Because its valu- able timber and adaptability make Norway spruce well suited to plantations, its natural range in Europe has been expanded over the past 300 years (Fanta, 1997; Tjoelker et al., 2007). In the tem- perate core of its native range, spruce creates monospecific or mixed forests in mountainous areas (Splechtna et al., 2005; Tjoelker et al., 2007; Svoboda et al., 2014). These mountain spruce forests serve important economic and ecologic functions, such as wood production, soil protection, water retention, avalanche protection, etc. (Brang et al., 2000; Führer, 2000; Bebi et al., 2001; Pretzsch et al., 2008). Effective and sustainable ecosystem- based resource management of mountain Norway spruce forests depends upon understanding the natural processes and distur- bance dynamics of these forests (Peterken, 1999; Veblen, 2003). Disturbances are now appreciated as important driving forces of forest ecosystems (Pickett and White, 1985; Frelich, 2002), with complex influences that affect varying temporal and spatial scales (White and Jentsch, 2001; Johnson and Miyanishi, 2007). The mountain Norway spruce forests of central Europe are subject to a variety of different disturbances, such as wind, bark beetles and fungi (Holeksa and Cybulski, 2001; Schelhaas et al., 2003; Müller et al., 2008). In some cases, the occurrence of one disturbance can increase the probability of another, as seen with the interaction of windstorms and bark beetles (Schroeder and Lindelöw, 2002; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2014.06.041 0378-1127/Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. ⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +420 224 383 795; fax: +420 234 381 860. E-mail address: jandap@fld.czu.cz (P. Janda). Forest Ecology and Management 330 (2014) 304–311 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Forest Ecology and Management journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/foreco