Knowledge Climate change is massively affecting beech trees

Beech trees are suffering from the increasingly extreme dry years. Climate change is having a massive impact on the tree, as researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL state in a study.

"Drought can lead to the partial death of the crown, which often means the death of the tree the following year," said lead author Arthur Gessler in a press release published on Wednesday. The extreme years from 2018 to 2020, 2022 and partly also 2023 have left visible damage to the trees, which points to future developments.

Specifically, the trees will no longer be able to regenerate well and will be very susceptible to extreme events, which could lead to large-scale dieback and then complete disappearance due to a lack of regeneration, according to the study published in the specialist journal "Allgemeine Forst- und Jagdzeitung". The extent to which beech trees will be affected by the end of the century and in which locations will depend on the course of climate change and therefore ultimately on the success of measures to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) globally.

Even with a significant reduction in CO2 emissions, beech will suffer, says Gessler. Forestry would have to adapt to fundamental changes. "In order to make forests fit for the future, heat- and drought-tolerant tree species such as oak should also be introduced into the stands," says the researcher. A high diversity of structures and tree species, as well as genetic diversity in beech, could help. This would allow drought-resistant tree species to survive and prevent total failure, even if the beech were to suffer massive drought damage.

SDA