Possibilities of assessing the condition of cultivated spruce stands intended for transformation to close-to-nature forests as exempli ed by a supraregional biocentre -- the rst stage

Considerable proportion of extensive even-aged monocultures and their low sta- bility require more frequently increasing of their resistance. From the point of view of resistance, sustainability, uniformity and close-to-nature forest, questions of "transformations" are recently repeatedly discussed. These are based on bio- logical principles of close to-nature and ecologically justi ed forest management. The long-term strategy of these transformations has to correspond with biological requirements of concerned species. With respect to facts mentioned above, 6 re- search plots were established in several stand types in the broader protective zone of the national nature reserve Kněhyně- ert v Mlyn in the Moravian-Silesian Be- skids. The primary purpose of these research plots is to monitor particular steps of the long-term transformation of a spruce mountain forest (altitude 850 to 970 m). In 2008 this species composition was nd: silver r 1--18%, beech 4--81% and Nor- way spruce 20--97%. The long-term objective of the research is to provide informa- tion on the method of transformation through small-area shelterwood elements, which would be applicable in the area of the Moravian-Silesian Beskids.