Reakcja przyrostowa świerka w powiązaniu ze stopniem uszkodzenia korony

The study presents the analysis of the increment of tree diameter at the breast height in connection with two variants of the method of assessment the damage to Norway spruce stands. Variants utilise different assessment criteria. The first one is based on the tree's defoliation, the other one – on the damage index W that links defoliation, condition of the tree−top and branching in the middle part of the crown. Detected relations between damage criteria and type of the increment reaction show that index W characterises the damage to trees and stands better than feature A (defoliation). Therefore, method of assessment the damage to trees and stands based on this parameter is suggested for utilisation in the forestry practice.