Effect of Norway Spruce Forest Dieback on Soil Water Balance: The Examples from Upland Areas of the Czech Republic

Abstract

This study focuses on the description of soil water balance under three different spruce monoculture conditions, nemaly living forest, disturbed forest with dead trees and after forest clear-cutting. Analysis was based on sampling instantaneous moisture in surface soil layers in a non-rainfall period and soil water content measurements from the last-half of 2021. We investigated both column daily soil moisture and its vertical distribution in invidual soil layers. Highest soil moisture was observed in the disturbed forest, the other sites generally having comparatively lower soil moisture, probably due to higher evapotranspiration and different soil properties.