Effects of the Cover of Evergreen Broadleaved Species on Stand Structures of Coppice Forest after the Vegetation Management

The stand structure after vegetation management for 11 years was investigated in coppice forests (summergreen secondary forests) with different amounts of cover of evergreen broadleaved species, in southern Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. Coppice forests were managed by cutting evergreen shrubs and bamboo grasses, and by keeping dominant trees like Quercus serrata intact. In forest floor vegetation after the 11-year management, the smaller the cover of evergreen broadleaved species before the vegetation management, the greater the frequency and the tree size of summergreen species (summergreen tree and summergreen shrub). On the other hand, the greater the cover of evergreen broadleaved species before the management, the greater the frequency and the tree size of evergreen broadleaved tree species after the management. It is considered that light conditions, influenced by evergreen broadleaved species before the management and the increase in evergreen broadleaved species by the vegetation management, affects the stand structure after the vegetation management. These results suggest that selective and frequent cutting of evergreen broadleaved species is necessary for creating the physiognomy of summergreen high forests and for increasing species richness, in the coppice forest with much cover of evergreen broadleaved species.