Measured net exchanges of carbon dioxide, water vapour, solar radiation and sensible heat along chronosequence of slash pine plantations in north-central Florida. These sites included a recent clear-cut, a mid-rotation stand, and a rotation aged stand. Data were collected between 1195-1997 at the oldest stand which was then harvested to create the clearcut,studied along with the mid-rotation site during 1997-2000.Studies of soil CO₂ and methane fluxes, plant community composition, decomposition, and stand biometry were also conducted so that net exchanges could be interpreted and modeled. Results are being assembled into a series of papers, with two on chronosequence water/energy and carbon balances in final submittal stages. Results confirm by direct measurement that these ecosystems recover rapidly after clear cutting - within three years the ecosystem carbon balance is aging positive. Also, carbon budgets are highly sensitive to stand age, management history and environmental conditions, while water and energy balances become similar once LAI is re-established. Results are being utilized to construct assessments of historic( 25-yrs) changes in the carbon and energy balances of the northern Florida landscape and as the basis for more mechanistic new studies of pine responses to extended drought, freezes and other environmental factors

This report also  contains other submissions :

-Lon-Term dynamics of pine and hardwood litter in contrasting environments: towards a global model of decomposition

 Henry L. Gholz, DAVID A. Wedin,Stephen M. Smitherman, Mark E. Harmon and William J.Patrons

-Soil CO2 efflux and its spatial variation in a Florida slash pine plantation

C. Fang, John B. Moncrieff, Henry L. Gholz and Kenneth L. Clark

-Phenology and productivity of saw palmetto (Serenoa reopens) in a north Florida slash pine plantation

H.L Gholz, D.N. Guerin, W.P. Cropper