1. The Black Forest

1.1 Morphology and Location

The Black Forest ("Schwarzwald") is one of the most famous landscapes in Germany. Because of the many diverse natural phenomenas the scenic area in the south-west of Germany is very popular.
The mountain range of the Black Forest reaches from Basel in Switzerland to the city of Karlsruhe,160 km along the right side of the "Rheintal" (Rhine Valley). Due to climatical, geological and morphological aspects, the Black Forest is divided into two landscape units, the North Black Forest and the South Black Forest.
The southern part is 60 km wide, the northern part is 20 km wide. The total area of the mountain range is about 6000 sqkm. Its altitude above sea level reaches from 250 metres in the south of the Rhine Valley up to 1500 metres to the highest point of the Black Forest, the Feldberg mountain. The Feldberg massif is the most popular recreation area for downslope and cross country skiing in winter and for hiking in spring, summer and autumn.

1.2 Climate

The Black Forest mountain range belongs to the suboceanic forest climates of the humide zones. The South Black Forest is protected from the frequent clouds of the western winds by the High Vosges on the left side of the Rhine Valley in France. Therefore precipitations of more than 2000 mm per year can be found in the heights of the northern part which are better exposed to western winds.

1.3 Geology

The western and southern part consist of granite and gneiss the eastern and northern parts consist of (quarternary) new red sandstone layers. The glaciers of the glacial epoch, the huge amount of precepetation and the melting water in spring time formed the shape of the recent landscape.

1.4 Forests: Vegetation and Disribution

The scenery of the Black Forest is determined by conifer forests. Native tree species are primarily beeches (fagus sylvatica) and firs (abies alba). The native "White Fir" is the most important species because it is a stable tree with huge roots and it is able to protect and stabilize other trees in case of snow and storms.
Under the influence of man the mixture of tree species has changed in the past 2 centuries. After the vaste wood exploitation spruces had been planted in the devastated forests while firs and pines had been rejuveniled naturally. Today beeches and other broadleaves make almost 10% of the forested area which is not very much.
On the other hand, the steep, south western slope of the Black Forest is naturally dominated by beeches; in an altidute of 500 - 600 meters firs join the beeches; over 1000 meters spruces are predominant. Not only the peak of the Feldberg but many other high peaks remained open and unforested after the forest clearings during the middle age.
The forested area is about 3700 sqkm; the average forest percentage is about 61% (71% in the North Black Forest); the forested area per head is 0.35 hectare per citizen (Germany in total: 0.13 hectare per citizen).

1.5 Test Sites

We are going to choose 3 test sites in the South Black Forest. One is part of the State Forest in the Feldberg massif with a lot of recreation activities and an old historical (silvicultural) forest management method, the "Badische Femelschlag".
The second site is part of the corporate forest of the city of Freiburg. Freiburg (180.000 inhabitants) is known for its old university including one of four forestry faculties in Germany. The city is supposed to be a "green capital". Its mixed forests (fagus sylv., quercus spec., castanea sativa, acer spec., tilia spec., other soft broadleaves, picea abies, pseudotsuga menziesii, abies alba, pinus sylvestris, taxus baccata) are an important part of the urban life, for recreation and outdoor activities.
The third test site is located about 70 km to the north of Freiburg. It­s part of a 90 hectare huge private owned forest. In this area the farmer­s forest management is famous for its historical selective logging (another silvicutural method): a ­regeneration under selection system­ par excellence, the so called "Plenterschlag". The scenic forest is located in a recreation area nearby the holiday resort of Freudenstadt. The economical situation and the monetary loss of the forest due to new damages of forest decline is well researched by the Forestry Research Institute in Freiburg.