Production Potential of Poplar in Short Rotation Plantations in Saxony

Data from Saxon trail areas were used in order to study the main factors that affect growth and yield of poplar plantations like Available Water Storage Capacity of soil (AWSC), Soil Quality Index (SQI), Precipitation (P), Temperature (T) and stocking density (N/ha) at different stand ages. Based on these results the potential of biomass production (site productivity) of different poplar clones was modelled by means of linear and nonlinear regressions: In the first step the dominant height of stand (h(dom)) was estimated by age, climatic and soil conditions and in the second step the stand biomass (t/ha) was estimated by dominant height and stocking density.