COMPARATIVE PHYTOSOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF SELECTED FOREST STANDS WITH ABIES ALBA MILL. IN BANAT MOUNTAINS (WESTERN ROMANIAN CARPATHIANS)

Abstract

The article deals with the phytosociological analysis and habitat characterization of certain forest communities with beech and silver fir in Banat Mountains. Two plant associations were identified: Phyllitidi-Fagetum Vida (1959) 1963 which develops on calcareous bedrock and Festuco drymejae-Fagetum Morariu ex Resmeriță 1977 which grows on metamorphic substrate. The floristic composition of these woody plant communities displays varying proportions of silver fir with coverage levels of up to 40% and with a good regeneration capacity. Nevertheless, the basic structure of these forests is dominated by the European beech, which also demonstrates strong regenerative capabilities. In this context, the studied forest stands belong to submontane beech forests that can be further categorized into two types based on the geological substrate: (i) karstic beech forests on Cretaceous limestone with skeletal soil, and (ii) acidophilous beech forests on metamorphic bedrock, growing on deeper and slightly moist soils. The differences in their floristic composition are also revealed by the results of hierarchical clustering, which clearly separates the two beech stands growing on different geological substrates. The paper also provides insight into the origin and evolution of the silver fir in Banat region and in the structure of the studied forest communities. The silver fir is likely to have a secondary, anthropogenic origin in the studied area, having been planted and naturalized over the past few centuries.