Effects of thinning intensity on species diversity and timber production in a conifer (Cryptomeria japonica) plantation in Japan

In conifer plantations, enhancement of species diversity has become an important management goal. Although thinning is a useful method to enhance diversity, determining optimum thinning intensities may be rather complicated because of potential trade-offs among a broad array of management goals (e.g., recovery of biodiversity, increasing individual tree sizes, increasing net primary production, saving management costs). To evaluate the optimum thinning intensity by analyzing these relationships, we conducted a thinning experiment with three different thinning intensities-unthinned, 33% thinned, and 67% thinned-in a Cryptomeria japonica plantation in 2003, and investigated the number, diameter at breast height (DBH), and diversity of hardwoods (height > 1.5 m) in 2008, and the growth of conifers over five years. In hardwoods, the number of individuals, number of species, mean DBH, and total basal area were greatest in the 67% thinned treatment, irrespective of successional status. However, Shannon's diversity index did not differ among the three treatments due to a disproportionate increase with thinning intensity in the abundance of a mid-successional species, Cornus controversa. Diameter growth of conifers was also highest in the 67% thinned and lowest in the unthinned treatment, whereas the reverse was true for stand volume increment. These results suggest that intensive thinning is a reliable method to convert conifer plantations into conifer-hardwood mixed forests at canopy level much more quickly and consistently than weak thinning, although primary production is to some extent reduced. If forest managers prefer sustainable timber production of conifers rather than full recovery of diversity, weak thinning may be suitable.