Accuracy Test of Coring for Measuring Annual Increment in Quercus mongolica, Kalopanax septemlobus, and Pinus densiflora

Coring has been widely used to measure annual increment in temperate forest ecosystems. This method is attractive because cores can be taken in just one visit. However, the accuracy of this method has not been tested. We expected coring to be less accurate than band dendrometers because of the eccentricity of tree growth. We studied 41 trees at the Long Term Experimental Forest in Mt. Gyebang, which has been monitored with band dendrometers since 1996. We collected two tree cores from the south and north face of each tree, 10 cm below the growth band. Increment cores were measured to 0.01 mm under stereomicroscopy. Annual growth from 1997 to 2006 was 3.2 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Quercus mongolica, 3.5 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Kalopanax septemlobus, and 5.7 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Pinus densiflora. The difference between the two methods was 10% for Q. mongolica, 14% for K. septemlobus, and 4% for P. densiflora. Compaction in the corer and shrinkage during drying decreased diameter increment by 5.6% and 1.0% on P. densiflora, respectively. This study suggests that the two methods for annual increment measurement are very similar, but species specificity should be concerned for direct comparison.