Local chronology of Intermediate Hawthorn (Crataegus media Bechst.), Poland

Local chronology of Intermediate Hawthorn (Crataegus media Bechst.), ST

Location of the research area: STOBNO - ST (N: 53°25'04.59 "E: 14°24'17.12", 45 m above sea level), NW Poland (about 2.2 km east from the Polish-German border, and about 5 km to the west of Szczecin city limits), on a morainic plateau composed of Last Glacial sediments, in a typically agricultural landscape.

At present, it is a monospecific mid-field woodlot, formed by trees and shrubs of intermediate hawthorn (Crataegus media Bechst.), composed of several hundred individuals of this species, of varying age. The woodlot is about 75 m long and 20-25 m wide, located on a SE-facing scarp rising up to 4 m above the surrounding. The substratum is composed of boulder clay, on which a cover of brown soils has developed. From all sides, the woodlot is surrounded by farmland.

Samples were taken using Pressler drills, at a level of 1.3 m above ground. A total of 22 trees were sampled, including 30 trunks (numerous hawthorns had 2-3 trunks), yielding 52 wood cores.

The chronology, code-named ST, was compiled based on dendrochronological curves derived from 20 trees, including 24 trunks. The ST chronology spans 56 years from 1965 to 2020, however, only for the period 1981-2020 (40 years) the chronology is made up of 10 or more samples.