Pfynwald - Switzerland

Basic Information
Site Name
Pfynwald
Short name
PFYN
Country
Switzerland
Web Address
Long-term Irrigation Experiment Pfynwald
Site Manager
Flurin Sutter
Funding Agency
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL
Site Description
As the largest contiguous pine forest in Switzerland, the Pfyn forest in Canton Valais (46° 18' N, 7° 36' E, 615 m ASL) offers the best conditions for such measurements. In light of this, a WSL research team installed a long-term experiment of 20 years duration in the Pfyn forest. The average temperature here is 9.2°C, the yearly accumulated precipitation is 657 mm (average 1961-1990). The pines in the middle of the forest are about 100 years old and 10.8 m high. The test area has 876 trees covering 1.2 ha divided into 8 plots of 1'000 m2 each (Image 4). Between the months of April and October four of these plots are irrigated by a sprinkler system providing an additional 700 mm of water, annually. In the other four plots, the trees grow under natural, hence relatively dry conditions.
Last modified
2021-11-23 11:11:29

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General Characteristics and Status
Site Status
Operational
Year Established
2003
Observed properties
atmospheric parameter
air humidity
air temperature
air vapor pressure deficit
daylight length
frost point
global radiation irradiance
maximum temperature
mean annual air temperature
mean annual precipitation
mean annual temperature
precipitation intensity
relative humidity
solar radiation
vapor pressure deficit
wind direction
wind speed
biological parameter
above ground biomass
age class
age distribution
age structure
biological diversity
breast height diameter
canopy cover rate
canopy growth rate
canopy height
crown closure
drought resistance
drought tolerance
forest cover
leaf age
leaf area
leaf area ratio
leaf nitrogen concentration
leaf nutrient
leaf size
microbial biomass carbon
mortality rate
net photosynthetic rate
net primary productivity
nitrogen content
phenotypic plasticity
photosynthetic rate
plant nitrogen concentration
primary productivity
root biomass
root density
root dry weight
root growth rate
root length
seed mass
seed production
seed size
seed viability ratio
seedling growth rate
seedling survival rate
shoot dry weight
shoot growth rate
stress response
stress tolerance
survival rate
tree age
tree basal area
tree condition
tree diameter
tree diameter at breast height
tree height
tree mortality
chemical parameter
ammonium content
ammonium nitrogen content
below ground autotrophic respiration
biochemical composition
cation exchange capacity
nitrogen budget
pH value of water
soil acidity
soil alkalinity
soil carbon storage
soil gas flux
soil pH
total carbon
total organic carbon
ecosystem parameter
above ground biomass
bacteria presence
bacterial diversity
deadwood position
earth worms abundance
ecosystem health
ecosystem structure
forest cover
forest structure
species presence
genetic parameter
DNA sequence
remote sensing parameter
soil parameter
Photos
Google Earth Pfynwald

Google Earth Pfynwald

Geographic
View in site map
Size
1.20ha
Elevation (average)
615.00msl
Elevation (min)
612.00msl
Elevation (max)
620.00msl
Affiliation and Network Specific Information
Affiliation
ILTER✔This site is a verified "ILTER" member.
LTER Europe✔This site is a verified "LTER Europe" member.
TreeNet✖The affiliation of this site with "TreeNet" is not verified by the network on DEIMS-SDR.
LTER Switzerland✔ (LTER_EU_CH_020)This site is a verified "LTER Switzerland" member.
Projects
eLTER (H2020)
eLTER PLUS (H2020) - RA
eLTER PLUS (H2020) - TA
eLTER PLUS (H2020) - VA
Teabag
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Site information [.json]

Centroid coordinates [.shp] [.kml]
Bounding Box [.shp] [.kml]
Boundaries [.shp] [.kml]
GEO-BON Biome
Terrestrial
Biome
Evergreen Forest
Ecosystem Type
Forest
Evergreen Forest
Biogeographical Region
Alpine Bio-geographical Region
EUNIS habitat
Woodland, forest and other wooded land (G)
Woodland, forest and other wooded land (G) » Coniferous woodland (G3)
Air Temperature: Average Annual
9.20°C
Precipitation Annual
657.00mm
Site Type
Stationary land-based site
Design of Experimentation
partly experimentation
Scale of Experimentation
plot scale
Design of Observation
mainly observation
Scale of Observation
plot without link to explicit catchment
Permanent Power Supply
Yes
Equipment
Data infrastructure » Data services » Data portal
Data infrastructure » Data storage » Structured file
Data infrastructure » Data storage » XML database
Energy and data transmission infrastructure » Data transmission » Data Transmission Type (from site) » GMS/UMTS
Energy and data transmission infrastructure » Energy supply » Permanent Power Produced » More than 100 kW
Energy and data transmission infrastructure » Energy supply » Permanent Power Supply Location » Central station(s)
Maintenance infrastructure » Snow clearing frequency » Weekly
Observation devices » Measurement tower » Less than 10 m above canopy
Observation devices » Temperature Controlled Container
Supporting infrastructure » Lodging at site » Unknown number of beds
Supporting infrastructure » Staff room at site » 2 - 5 places
Equipment notes
The site is equipped with permanent power supply. 1.2 ha are divided into 4 irrigated (irrigated) and 4 non-irrigated (ambient) plots. Irrigation (additional 700 mm per year) has been provided since 2003. In 2013, 1/3 of the area of each irrigated plot, the irrigation has been stopped (irrigation-stop). 6 scaffolds (2 per treatment; ambient, irrigated, irrigation-stop) are providing access into the crown of approx. 3-6 trees per scaffold. Two containers provide shelter for instruments, computers and storage.
Accessible All Year
Yes
All parts of Site Accessible
Yes
Access Type
regular car
Permanent Operation
Yes
Site Visit Interval
1
Maintenance Interval
14
General Data Policy
Co-authorship on publications resulting from use of the dataset
LTER Site Classification
Master