Investigation of timber harvesting impacts on herbaceous cover, forest floor and surface soil properties on skid road in an oak (Quercus petrea L.) stand

In this study, we investigated the timber harvesting effects on some soil properties (sand, silt, clay, pH, electrical conductivity, fine soil <2 mm, coarse soil >2 mm, root mass, organic carbon, moisture equivalent, total porosity, bulk density, moisture and compaction) at soil depths (0–5 and 5–10 cm), herbaceous cover and forest floor (unit mass, organic matter and moisture) on skid road of an oak (Quercus petrea L.) stand in Istanbul Belgrad Forest of Turkey. According to the results obtained, the forest floor and the herbaceous cover amount on the skid road have considerably decreased. There has been some crucial changes in the characteristics of the soil, which has been investigated down to 10 cm depth. The fine soil weight and bulk density values were found to be quite high in the samples taken from the skid road subjected to compaction compared to the ones in the undisturbed area; also the porosity and moisture equivalent values decreased to a great extent. Nevertheless, no important difference has been detected between the skid road and the undisturbed area at both soil depths in terms of organic carbon rates. Moreover, the soil acidity (pH) values have shown noteworthy differences in the analysis of soil samples taken from both soil depths, on the skid road and in the undisturbed area.