• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.81-89
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• 2020

In the forest ecosystems, litterfall is an important component of the nutrient cycle that regulates the accumulation of soil organic matter (SOM), the input and output of the nutrients, nutrient replenishment, biodiversity conservation, and other ecosystem functions. Therefore, a profound understanding of the major processes (litterfall production and its decomposition rate) in the cycle is vital for sustainable forest management (SFM). Despite these facts, there is still a limited knowledge in tropical forest ecosystems, and further researches are highly needed. This shortfall of research-based knowledge, especially in tropical forest ecosystems, may be a contributing factor to the lack of understanding of the role of plant litter in the forest ecosystem function for sustainable forest management, particularly in the tropical forest landscapes. Therefore, in this paper, I review the role of plant litter in tropical forest ecosystems with the aims of assessing the importance of plant litter in forest ecosystems for the biogeochemical cycle. Then, the major factors that affect the plant litter production and decomposition were identified, which could direct and contribute to future research. The small set of studies reviewed in this paper demonstrated the potential of plant litter to improve the biogeochemical cycle and nutrients in the forest ecosystems. However, further researches are needed particularly on the effect of species, forest structures, seasons, and climate factors on the plant litter production and decomposition in various types of forest ecosystems.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.38-48
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• 2013

Decomposition of plant material is an important component in the study of forest ecosystem because of its critical role in nutrient cycling. Different tree species has different nutrient release patterns, which are related to leaf litter quantitative traits and seasonal environmental factors. The quantitative traits of leaf litter are important predictors of decomposition and decomposition rates increase with greater nutrient availability in the forest ecosystems. At the ecosystem level, litter quantitative traits are most often related to the physical and chemical characteristics of the litter, for example, leaf toughness and leaf mass per unit area, and lignin content tannin and total phenolics. Thus, the analysis of litter quantitative traits and decomposition are highly important for the understanding of nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. By studying the role of litter quantitative traits on decomposition and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems will provide a valuable insight to how quantitative traits influence ecosystem nutrient dynamics. Such knowledge will contribute to future forest management and conservation practices.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.199-207
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• 2006

Recent global warming seems to be dramatic and has influenced forest ecosystems. Changes in phonology of biota, species distribution range shift and catastrophic climatic disasters due to recent global warming have been observed during the last century. Korean forests located mainly in the temperate zone also have been experienced climatic change impacts including shifting of leafing and flowering phonology, changes in natural disasters and forest productivity, However, little research has been conducted on the impact of climate change on forest ecosystems in Korea which is essential to assess the impact and extent of adaptation. Also there is a shortage in basic long-term data of forest ecosystem processes. Careful data collection and ecological process modeling should be focused on characteristic Korean forest ecosystems which are largely complex terrain that might have hindered research activities. An integrative ecosystem study which covers forest dynamics, biological diversity, water and carbon flux and cycles in a forest ecosystem and spatial and temporal dynamics modeling is introduced. Global warming effects on Korean forest ecosystems are reviewed. Forestry activity and the importance of forest ecosystems as a dynamic carbon reservoir are discussed. Forest management options and challenges for future research, impact assessment, and preparation of mitigating measures in Korea are proposed.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.213-222
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• 2019

Climate change has been intensifying and affecting forest ecosystems. Over the years, the intensity and frequency of climate change have increased and the effects of climate change have been aggravating due to cumulative greenhouse gases such as CO₂, which has resulted in several negative consequences, drought being the main threat among all. Drought affects forest ecosystems directly and indirectly. Insufficient soil moisture, due to drought, may affect the growth of plants and soil respiration (SR), and soil temperature may increase because of desiccated soil. In addition, the mortality rate of plants and soil microorganisms increases. As a result, these effects could reduce forest productivity. Thus, in this article, we have presented various research studies on artificial drought using throughfall exclusion, and we have mainly focused on SR, which is significantly related to forest productivity. The research studies done worldwide were sorted as per the main groups of Köppen-Geiger climate classification and intensively reviewed, especially in tropical climates and temperate climates. We briefly reviewed the properties among the exclusion experiments about the temperate climate, which mostly includes Korean forests. Our review is not a proof of concept, but an assumption for adequate investigation of drought effects in the Korean forest.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.84 no.3
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• pp.377-393
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• 1995

Forest ecosystems are major reservoirs because forest lands are up to 65% of the national land of Korea. Biodiversity is the basis of forest conservation as well as development of forest ecosystem productivity. When we are going to establish biodiversity conservation strategies, however, we need to have a good eye in order that we are not limited only to species but we can also understand whole ecosystems. Therefore, to develop the biodiversity conservation strategies, global environmental problems, the development process of biodiversity on the earth, the fundamental logic of biodiversity conservation, the conservation system and steps of the conservation procedures are discussed. In conclusion, research subjects needed urgently are recommended.

• Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.43-58
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• 2011

This paper is performed to study for the plants ecosystems for the rural community forest of designated as natural monument. In addition, it is also proposed the plan of the rural community forest's conservation and restoration for avoiding to the destroy of indiscriminate development such as land-use, cultivation. The rural community forest is a mirror that reflect the regional culture and history, as well as environment. According to this view, undoubtedly, we need to recognise the formative background of rural community forest, the relations between the environment around and the characteristic of plants ecosystem comprehensively. For the purpose of proposing to the plan of rural village forests' conservation and restoration, therefore, this study is: 1) reviews the previous research and ancient documents, and 2) surveys the vegetation structure and the growing conditions in rural village forest directly.

• Proceedings of The Korean Society of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology Conference
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• 2001.06a
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• pp.77-80
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• 2001

In many temperate forest ecosystems, large quantities of pine pollen are deposited over a short period in early summer (Doskey and Ugoagwu 1989). Because pollen grains decompose rapidly and have macronutrient concentrations, the pollen rain may be an important component of nutrient dynamics in natural terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems (Stark 1972).(omitted)

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.99 no.5
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• pp.682-685
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• 2010

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.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.247-254
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• 2015

Changes in land-use type can affect soil and water properties in stream ecosystems. This study examined the effects of different land-use types on biogeochemical properties and microbial activities of a stream. We collected water and sediment samples in a stream at three different sites surrounded by varying land-use types; a forest, a radish field and a rice paddy. Nitrogen contents, such as nitrate, nitrite and total nitrogen in the stream water body, showed significant differences among the sampling sites. The highest nitrogen values were recorded at the site surrounded by cropland, as fertilizer runoff impacted the stream. Soil organic matter content in the sediment showed significant differences among sites, with the highest content exhibited at the forest mouth site. These differences might be due to the organic matter in surrounding terrestrial ecosystems. Microbial activities determined by extracellular enzyme activities showed similar values throughout all sites in the water body; however, the activities in the sediments exhibited the highest values near the forest site and mirrored the soil organic matter content values. From these results, we conclude that different land-use types are important factors affecting water and sediment properties in stream ecosystems.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.115-125
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• 2020

Background: The phenomenon of tree dieback in forest ecosystems around the world, which is known to be associated with high temperatures that occur simultaneously with drought, has received much attention. Korea is experiencing a rapid rise in temperature relative to other regions. Particularly in the growth of evergreen conifers, temperature increases in winter and spring can have great influence. In recent years, there have been reports of group dieback of Pinus densiflora trees in Korea, and many studies are being conducted to identify the causes. However, research on techniques to diagnose and monitor drought stress in forest ecosystems on local and regional scales has been lacking. Results: In this study, we developed and evaluated an index to identify drought and high-temperature vulnerability in Pinus densiflora forests. We found the Drought Stress Index (DSI) that we developed to be effective in generally assessing the drought-reactive physiology of trees. During 2001-2016, in Korea, we refined the index and produced DSI data from a 1 × 1-km unit grid spanning the entire country. We found that the DSI data correlated with the event data of Pinus densiflora mass dieback compiled in this study. The average DSI value at times of occurrence of Pinus densiflora group dieback was 0.6, which was notably higher than during times of nonoccurrence. Conclusions: Our combination of the Standard Precipitation Index and growing degree days evolved and short- and long-term effects into a new index by which we found meaningful results using dieback event data. Topographical and biological factors and climate data should be considered to improve the DSI. This study serves as the first step in developing an even more robust index to monitor the vulnerability of forest ecosystems in Korea.