Dendroclimatic regions of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) in Belarus

In this study, we present the boundaries of five dendrochronologically homogeneous regions of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) and the master chronologies for them for the period 1703-2018 based on 27 tree-ring chronologies from different locations around Belarus. The average length of the master chronologies ranges from 70 to 310 years. Our research shows that the radial increment of a pedunculate oak in Belarus is primarily limited by the previous year's August-September temperature, by the current year's May temperature and by June precipitation. Oak growth in northern Belarus is mostly limited by air temperature, whereas precipitation plays more significant role in central and southern parts of the country. The most unfavorable years for oak growth in Belarus were 1940 and 1952, both of which were years when a very frosty winter was followed by a droughty summer. The results provide an important achievement in Belarusian dendrochronology, since they represent a significant breakthrough for Eastern Europe, where there is a considerable lack of dendroclimatic researches of broadleaved species.