Strukturne, proizvodne i razvojne karakteristike hrasta kitnjaka na Fruškoj gori | Structural, production and development characteristics of sessile oak on Fruska Gora mountain

In the paper, the structural, production and development characteristics of a potentially overripe and devitalized sessile oak stand on Fruška Gora were investigated. Structural and production characteristics were investigated on the ICP Forests plot Level 2, where data from two surveys in 2015 and 2020 were used. Developmental characteristics were investigated using center cores of 22 dominant sessile oak trees sampled in 2014 and using electronic and manual dendrometers on six trees from 2015 Topola/Poplar 2022, 210, 29-40 www.ilfe.org 30 to 2022. The diameter distribution shows that the researched stand is two-storeyed and mixed, and based on the diameter distribution of the first floor, it was a pure even-aged stand of sessile oak in the past. Productivity in the period from 2015 to 2020 shows stagnation, but with a clear decrease in the share of sessile oak, especially in the total basal area and volume. By analyzing the age and development characteristics, individual trees show clear signs of devitalization during most of their life, and for the whole stand we can conclude that it is significantly too old and in clear devitalization, especially after 2019. The diameter growth in the growing season is characterized by small values and predominantly occurs in May and June. The general conclusion is that the researched stand is overaged, devitalized (the main species of the stand is the sessile oak), with the regression of the sessile oak in relation to other competing species and very slow growth dynamics even on an annual basis, which from the perspective of future management puts the forestry profession in a very unenviable role and requires an adaptive approach to managing such stands.