Chair of Silviculture

Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources
Institute of Forest Sciences

Chair of Silviculture

Since more than 80 years, the Chair of Silviculture has been dealing with the management of forested ecosystems to achieve economic, ecological and social management goals. In research and teaching, both the control of tree growth and the development of forests as well as the effects of silvicultural practices on vegetation, location and nutrient cycles are addressed.

News

Future Forests

The adaptation of complex socio-ecological systems to global change is the subject of a Cluster of Excellence initiative at the German Research Foundation. The aim of the cluster proposal is to develop, analyze and evaluate transformation pathways towards resilient forests and resilient systems, their governance, management and use. Jürgen Bauhus is the spokesperson for the cluster initiative.

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New publication

Forest Dieback in Drinking Water Protection Areas: A Hidden Threat to Drinking Water Quality

Forest dieback in German drinking water protection areas has led to deteriorating drinking water quality, with average nitrate concentrations doubling in affected areas, shows a study led by the University of Freiburg.

New publication

Tree diversity reduces heat peaks in forests

A forest with high tree-species diversity is better at buffering heat peaks in summer and cold peaks in winter than a forest with fewer tree species. This is the result of a new study with participation from the University of Freiburg, which was published in the journal Ecology Letters.

New publication

Tree diversity increases carbon sequestration

Forests with many tree species can store significantly more carbon than those with only one species: An international study led by the University of Freiburg, published in Global Change Biology, supports this finding using data from the world’s oldest tropical tree diversity experiment.

Award

Dr. Andreea Spinu receives the Hansjürg Steinlin Award

Dr. Andreea Spinu receives the Hansjürg Steinlin Award for her excellent dissertation “Quality and temporal development of habitat trees and their microhabitats in temperate European forests”. The prize was awarded during the opening ceremony of the academic year of the University of Freiburg on October 16th, 2024.

In the media

Prof. Bauhus comments on the Federal Forest Inventory and the amendment to the Federal Forest Law

“The National Forest Inventory shows that the forest in Germany is suffering from global change. But it’s about more than just storing carbon in the ecosystem.” Prof. Bauhus speaks as an expert in various contributions about the results of the Federal Forest Inventory and the planned amendment to the Federal Forest Law.

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