A thorough synthesis of current knowledge about the ways canopies grow, develop, and function. Only recently have advances in simulation modeling in plants begun to emphasize the structural and functional properties of plant canopies in addition to those of the individual constituent leaves. The book considers these properties in terms of the processes--such as transpiration and photosynthesis--by which the canopy and its aerial environment interact. Topics discussed include the meaning of canopy structure, interception of solar radiation, exchange processes, nitrogen nutrition, leaf...

Studies of global climate change predict that increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration and temperature are expected to occur over the next century. To help gain an insight into the potential effect of these changes on forests, this book describes how major European tree species respond to experimentally manipulated environmental conditions. The contributors describe the effects on photosynthesis, respiration, and development and use the results to generate models of the likely response of European forests to the predicted changes in climate. The volume encompasses studies carried out under...

The Carbon Balance of Forest Biomes provides an informed synthesis on the current status of forests and their future potential for carbon sequestration. This volume is timely, since convincing models which scale from local to regional carbon fluxes are needed to support these international agreements, whilst criticisms have been levelled at existing empirical approaches. One key question is to determine how well eddy-flux measurements at the stand-level represent regional-scale processes. This may be related to specific management practices (age, plantation, fertilisation) or simple bias in...