Climate sensitivity and adaptive capacity of European beech under climate change

With projected increases in temperatures and concomitant increases in dry spells, extreme events such as the 2018 summer are likely to become more frequent. This will likely lead to higher mortality but also a general decrease in carbon sequestration of beech, a dominant tree species in Central European forests. We will conduct a continental-scale climate sensitivity analysis allowing mean climate parameters to define climate sensitivity and vary over time. Results from this model will be used to project future growth of beech across its entire range. We further aim at investigating how different beech provenances differ in their climate growth response. Therefore, we will analyze differences in climate sensitivity of growth increment within and between provenances. We will additionally investigate inter- and intra-annual pattern of wood anatomical properties related to water transport. This project contributes to better understand beech's adaptation to climate and develop climate-smart management strategies.