Effect of climate change on Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) growth across Europe: decrease of tree ring fluctuation and amplification of climate stress

From an economic perspective, Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris L.) is one of Europe's most important tree species. It is characterized by its wide ecological adaptability across its natural range. This research aimed to evaluate the forest structure, productivity and especially radial growth of heterogenous pine stands in the 16 research plots in the Czech Republic, Poland, Spain and Scotland. The study assessed the tree-ring formation and its relationship to climate change for each country, using 163 dendrochronological samples. The tree-ring growth evaluation focused on two periods – before (Period 1: 1951–1985) and during the climate change (Period 2: 1986–2016). The stand volume of mature pine forest ranged between 91–510 m 3 ha − 1, and carbon sequestration in tree biomass was 40–210 t ha − 1 . The stands had a prevailing random distribution of trees with a high vertical structure close to selection forests. Spectral analyses showed a substantial decrease in fluctuations in the tree-ring index and a loss in natural growth cyclicity in the second period. Generally, 11-year growth solar cycles were most often found. In the second period, a higher effect of climate factors on radial growth was observed. The results also evinced that air temperature was the most important factor influencing the radial growth compared to precipitation totals. Pine thrives well in precipitation-stable locations, as shown by the results from Scotland. The conclusions of this study confirm the fundamental effect of ongoing global climate change on the dynamics and growth of pine forests in Europe.