Concept for sustainable management of Oriental Hornbeam (Carpinus Orientalis Mill.) forests in Bulgaria

The Oriental hornbeam (Carpinus orientalis Mill.) forests cover about 5 % of the Bulgaria's forest area. These forests were considered of low value from a forest industry perspective and during the last 60 years forestry in Bulgaria has put huge effort into their removal by clearcutting and subsequent afforestation with pines. The Oriental hornbeam forests survived nonetheless and gave us an opportunity to appreciate their important ecological role.The Oriental hornbeam is one of the most drought-resistant trees and is tolerant to very poor soil conditions. It forms forest ecosystems that supply a variety of ecosystem services from extremely poor and dry sites where other tree species cannot survive. The main aim of the present study is to define a scientifically based approach for management of the Oriental hornbeam forests in Bulgaria that takes into consideration their ecological role, sustainability and productivity. A classification of Oriental hornbeam forests has been developed according to site conditions. Three groups of forests are identified depending on their site characteristics: Group I - on very poor sites; Group II - on poor sites; and Group III - on medium fertile and fertile sites. In each group the growth potential of Oriental hornbeam has been studied and compared to that of the alternative tree species. Forest regeneration and natural succession processes in the three groups of forests have been investigated. Based on that, long-term targets for sustainable management of the Oriental hornbeam forests in Bulgaria are proposed.