Desertification has been expanding with a remarkable speed across the Northeast Asia. Desertification in Northeast Asia significantly influences Korea's economy and environmental health conditions in recent years. For these reasons, a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Korea have carried out the reforestation projects to combat desertification in China and Mongolia. Several tree plantation projects were implemented in Mongolia and China. The objective of this study was to analyze and evaluate the performance of tree plantation aid projects carried out by Korean NGOs in Mongolia. The performance of tree plantation projects was examined through effectiveness, efficiency, equity and responsiveness of those projects. The performance was analyzed with the survival rate of planted trees and planting cost, the recognitions of Mongolian people. The analysis of the performance showed that the tree plantation cooperation projects carried out by Korean NGOs in Mongolia had comparatively high performance from a larger point of view. Especially, effectiveness and responsiveness of their projects were highly marked in spite of all the difficulties of carrying out the tree plantation. Such a high effectiveness represented the relatively higher survival rates of trees and Mongolian's positive recognition of plantation projects. Furthermore, the responsiveness also turned out to be high with a great satisfaction of the Mongolian people for plantation projects conducted by the Korean NGOs. Survey results indicated that the efficiency and equity of the projects would be increased by promoting the cooperation projects for tree planting throughout Mongolia with reinforcing infrastructures. By comparison between Korean NGOs and Mongolian Government plantation projects, confirmed the importance of sustained financial support and maintenance activities in the plantation sites.

The pollen morphology of eleven species and three forms of the genus Rhododendron (Ericaceae) in Korea was examined using light, scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy. The pollen grains are grouped in permanent tetrahedral tetrads; viscin threads are present on the tetrads. The hexacolporate tetrads are of tricolporate monads whereby the apertures form in pairs at six points in the tetrad. The exine sculpture pattern is rugulate, scabrate or verrucate on mesocolpium but psilate, rugulate or microscabrate around the aperture on apocolpium. The exine of Korean Rhododendron pollen consists of tectum, columella, foot layer and endexine. The surface of viscin threads is more or less smooth. The threads are sometimes tangled together and occasionally divided into strands. Six types are recognized based on the pollen morphology. The types are: (1) Micranthum-type (rugulate mesocolpium and psilate apcolpium), (2) Tomentosum-type (rugulate mesocolpium and apocolpium), (3) Aureum-type (scabrate mesocolpium and rugulate apocolpium), (4) Brachycarpum-type (scabrate mesocolpium and rod shaped-microscabrate apocolpium), (5) Schlippenbachiitype (scabrate mesocolpium and round-microscabrate apocolpium) and (6) Weyrichii-type (verrucate mesocolpium).

This study examined the biomass data estimated from different allometric models and calculated the mean aboveground biomass, mean belowground biomass and root/shoot ratio values according to the forest types and age classes. These mean values and the forest inventories in 2009 were used to estimate the aboveground and total biomass carbon storage in different forest types (coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests). The aboveground and total biomass carbon storage for all forest types in Korea were 350.201 Tg C and 436.724 Tg C. Over the past 36 years, plantations by reforestation programs have accounted for more than 70% of the observed carbon storage. The carbon storage in Korean forest biomass was 436.724 Tg C, of which 175.154 Tg C for coniferous forests, 126.772 Tg C for deciduous forests and 134.518 Tg C for mixed forests, comprising approximately 1/20 of the total carbon storage of the East Asian countries. The total carbon storage for the whole forest sector in Korea was 1213.122 Tg C, of which 436.724 Tg C is stored in forest biomass if using the ratio of carbon storage in different pools examined from the United States. Such large carbon storage in Korean forests is due mainly to active plantations growth and management practices.

Coring has been widely used to measure annual increment in temperate forest ecosystems. This method is attractive because cores can be taken in just one visit. However, the accuracy of this method has not been tested. We expected coring to be less accurate than band dendrometers because of the eccentricity of tree growth. We studied 41 trees at the Long Term Experimental Forest in Mt. Gyebang, which has been monitored with band dendrometers since 1996. We collected two tree cores from the south and north face of each tree, 10 cm below the growth band. Increment cores were measured to 0.01 mm under stereomicroscopy. Annual growth from 1997 to 2006 was 3.2 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Quercus mongolica, 3.5 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Kalopanax septemlobus, and 5.7 mm $yr^{-1}$ for Pinus densiflora. The difference between the two methods was 10% for Q. mongolica, 14% for K. septemlobus, and 4% for P. densiflora. Compaction in the corer and shrinkage during drying decreased diameter increment by 5.6% and 1.0% on P. densiflora, respectively. This study suggests that the two methods for annual increment measurement are very similar, but species specificity should be concerned for direct comparison.

This study described the general pattern of genetic variation among ten teak (Tectona grandis Linn. f.) provenances in Myanmar and determined the most suitable seed sources for the plantation program in Bago Yoma region. Seeds of ten provenances were collected to cover the whole teak natural distribution in Myanmar and planted at four trial sites in Bago Yoma region in 1998. Seven years after planting, variation was assessed for growth, morphological characteristics and their correlation with geoclimatic factors. Statistical analysis using ANOVA revealed that there were significant differences in most of the traits measured among provenances, trial sites and provenance ${\times}$ site interaction at five percent level. A positive significant correlation (p<0.01) was found among most of the traits. The regression analyses between all traits and geoclimatic factors indicated the existence of ecoclinal variation in teak. Most of the traits were negatively correlated with the latitude while a positive significant correlation was found between longitude and C/B ratio, crown-diameter, average branch angle and leaf-remain. There was no significant correlation between the mean temperature and any other traits in this study. Furthermore, growth traits and crown diameter were positively correlated with the mean annual rainfall while negative correlation was found between the geographical distance and growth traits. Results indicate that the latitudinal pattern of teak genetic variations in growth performance was attributed to the limit of mean annual rainfall. Comparative assessment showed that local provenances were generally the best and could be use as suitable seed sources for the plantation program in the Bago Yoma region.

Biomass expansion factors that convert the timber volume (or dry weight) to biomass are used to estimate the forest biomass and account for the carbon budget on a national and regional scale. This study estimated the biomass conversion and expansion factors (BCEF), root to shoot ratio (R), biomass expansion factors (BEF) and ecosystem biomass expansion factor (EBEF) of Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) forests based on direct field surveys and publications in Korea. The mean BCEF, BEF, and R was 0.6438 Mg $m^{-3}$ (n = 7, SD = 0.1286), 1.6380 (n = 27, SD = 0.1830), and 0.2653 (n = 14, SD = 0.0698), respectively. The mean EBEF, which is a simple method for estimating the understory biomass in Korean pine forest ecosystems, was 1.0218 (n = 6, SD = 0.0090). The values of the biomass expansion factors in this study estimated the Korean pine forest biomass with more precision than the default values given by the IPCC (2003, 2006).

The concentration of monoterpenes (12 species) was measured from spring to fall in 2008 in ambient air at six different forests located in the southern parts of Korea. Sampling - using a Solid Adsorption Tube - was conducted at 2-hour-interval a day (24 hours) of each season. The highest annual average concentration of total monoterpene was 0.715 ppbv, which occurred at Mt. Baega. ${\alpha}$-Pinene, sabinene and ${\beta}$-pinene were the most abundant compounds throughout the sampling periods and areas. The concentrations of monoterpene were higher in spring than in any other seasons. The compositions and concentrations of monoterpene displayed a distinct pattern by area. Most of monoterpenes had diurnal variations with higher concentrations during the daytime, and lower during the nighttime. This may be due to the fact that the amount of monoterpenes emitted increases at elevated ambient temperatures and increased sunlight intensity. The results of this study showed that each area had distinct monoterpene compositions, which depended on the tree species, topography and local climate at each area.

Understanding of chemical composition and energy contents in tree is important to develope strategies of renewable energy policy to cope with climate change. Residual biomass as renewable energy source was evaluated and focused on the bark-containing branches. Chemical analysis studies were conducted for different part of yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), which were partitioned to inner bark, outer bark, small branches, medium branches, big branches and trunk. The variations in hydrophobic extractives, hydrophilic extractives, lignin, carbohydrate compositions, energy contents (higher heating value) and the ash content were determined. The inner and outer bark had higher ash content, hydrophobic and hydrophilic extractives content, and higher energy content than those of tree trunk. Polysaccharides content in inner and outer bark was quite lower than those of stem or branches. Based on the energy content of residual biomass, replacement of fossil fuel and greenhouse gas emission abatement were calculated.

We investigated physiological responses and phytoextraction ability of Pinus thunbergii in cadmium contaminated soil as part of our efforts in identifying plant materials for the restoration and revegetation of forest soil contaminated by heavy metals. Thirty seedlings (ten per treatment) were assigned to three treatments (control, 0.3 and 0.6 mM $CdSO_4$ solution) at first year experiment. At second year, ten seedlings per treatment treated with Cd during the first year experiment were divided by two groups (no Cd-treated and consecutive Cd-treated group). At first experiment, photosynthetic pigment content, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities have significantly reduced by Cd application, and the reduction rate was increased much higher as the rate of Cd application increased. On the other hand, thiol and malondialdehyde (MDA) content were significantly increased at the application of 0.6 mM of Cd. At the second year experiment, a general increase in chlorophyll and carotenoid content was observed with Cd treatment while SOD and GR activities showed a relative reduction compared to the control. Similar to the first year measurement, thiol and MDA contents also increased considerably due to Cd treatment. At harvest, dry matter was significantly reduced by Cd treatment especially at the rate of 0.6 mM Cd, but dry yield of P. thunbergii treated with 0.3 mM Cd was less affected and it was comparable with the control seedling. Cadmium concentration in seedling tissues increased with increasing Cd application rate while Cd uptake was higher in seedlings supplied with 0.3 mM Cd, which could be ascribed to their high dry matter. Overall, our study has demonstrated the unique physiological response of P. thunbergii to Cd-prolonged exposure by showing that the changes in photosynthetic pigment content and antioxidative enzyme activities were dependent on the concentration and duration of treatment. In addition, our results have demonstrated the potential of P. thunbergii to withstand up to 0.3 mM Cd (equivalent to cumulative Cd concentration of 134.4 to 268 mg $kg^{-1}$) without showing growth reduction, hence it might be used for phytoremediation of Cd contaminated areas.

On the basis of vegetation data in the 9.12 ha (380 m ${\times}$ 240 m) permanent sample plot of the spruce-fir valley forest in Liangshui National Reserve of Xiaoxing'an Mountains, the study was conducted to evaluate spatial distribution pattern and spatial association by using point pattern analysis for living and dead trees of Larix gmelini by DBH size class. The number of L. gmelini were counted as 59 living stems/ha (6.42 $m^2$/ha of basal area) and 34 dead stems/ha (2.86 $m^2$/ha of basal area). The distributional curve of diameter class exhibited bimodal shape. The analysis of spatial distribution patterns of all living larch stems noted the clumped distribution on the whole. The size of larch aggregates of dead stems was decreased as diameter class was increased. The distribution of dead stems became gradually randomized with decreased clumped size as the scale increased. Living stems and dead stems of the larch had positive spatial association at most of scales, illustrating that the occurrence of mortality of the larch tree was closely related to the distribution pattern of living larch trees.

Publications with the data on allometric equation, biomass and productivity of major oak forests in Korea were reviewed. Different allometric equations of major oak species showed site- or speciesspecific dependences. The biomass of major oak forests varied with age, dominant species, and location. Aboveground tree biomass over the different oak species was expressed as a power equation of the stand age. The proportion of tree component (stem, branch and leaf) to total aboveground biomass differed among oak species, however, biomass ranked stem > branch > leaf in general. The leaf biomass allocation over the different oak species was expressed as a power equation of total aboveground biomass while there were no significant patterns of biomass allocation from stem and branch to the aboveground biomass. Tree root biomass continuously increased with the aboveground biomass for the major oak forests. The relationship between the root to shoot ratio and the aboveground tree biomass was expressed by a logarithmic equation for major oak forests in Korea. Thirteen sets of data were used for estimating the net primary production (NPP) and net ecosystem production (NEP) of oak forests. The mean NPP and NEP across different oak forests was 10.2 and 1.9 Mg C $ha^{-1}year^{-1}$. The results in biomass allocation, NPP and NEP generally make Korean oak forests an important carbon sinks.

This study examined the ecological attributes of classified forest community by cluster analysis in the mixed forest of Mt. Seokbyung Experimental Forest of Gangwon-Do. The vegetation data were collected in randomly established 51 sample plots (2.04 ha) and analysis adopted the cluster analysis, importance value index, and Shannon's diversity index. Main results were as follows; 1) the study area was classified into 4 clusters (A, B, C and D). 2) The cluster A was dominated by Pinus densiflora with an importance value of 71.6%. The most dominant species in the cluster B and cluster C were Larix leptolepis (57.1%) and Quercus mongolica (40.2%), respectively. Finally, The cluster D was dominated by P. densiflora (30.6%) and Q. mongolica (31.0%) with the mixed forest. 3) In the P. densiflora community (cluster A), distribution of DBH class showed a reverse J-shaped curve. In the L. leptolepis community (cluster B), individuals of dominant species had the bell-shaped distribution. Oak species indicated uniform distribution of DBH class (under 25 cm) in the mixed P. densiflora - Q. mongolica community (cluster D). 4) The species diversity index of the communities in descending order were: Pinus densiflora - Q. mongolica community > Larix leptolepis community > Pinus densiflora community > Quercus mongolica community.

Enzymatic hydrolysate from non pre-treated biomass of yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) was prepared and used as resource for bioethanol production. Fresh branch (1 year old) of yellow poplar biomass was found to be a good resource for achieving high saccharification yields and bioethanol production. Chemical composition of yellow poplar varied significantly depending upon age of tree. Cellulose content in fresh branch and log (12 years old) of yellow poplar was 44.7 and 46.7% respectively. Enzymatic hydrolysis of raw biomass was carried out with commercial enzymes. Fresh branch of yellow poplar hydrolyzed more easily than log of yellow poplar tree. After 72 h of enzyme treatment the glucose concentration from Fresh branch of yellow poplar was 1.46 g/L and for the same treatment period log of yellow poplar produced 1.23 g/L of glucose. Saccharomyces cerevisiae KCTC 7296 fermented the enzyme hydrolysate to ethanol, however ethanol production was similar (~1.4 g/L) from both fresh branch and log yellow poplar hydrolysates after 96 h.

Among the environmental conditions employed in micropropagation, light quality plays an important role in growth, specially morphogenesis and photosynthesis. The effect of radiation quality (350-740 nm) on the development and growth of zygotic embryos and in vitro plantlets of open-pollinated chestnut (Castanea crenata S. et Z.) were studied. Two types of explants were exposed for 4 weeks to cool white (W, as control), monochromatic red (R, peak emission 650 nm), monochromatic blue (B, peak emission 440 nm), red+blue (R+B, 1:1), or red+far-red (R+Fr, 1:1, far-red peak emission 720 nm) radiation from a light-emitting-diode (LED) system. While the zygotic embryos showed positive photoblastic behavior, their germination was inhibited by blue radiation. Hypocotyl elongation and root development were promoted by red radiation. The emergence of primary leaf and its expansion were faster under blue than under red radiation. In the plantlets, red and red+far-red radiation significantly increased the formation and growth of the root, whereas blue light reduced rooting. Therefore, radiation quality appears to influence some steps in the development of zygotic embryos and plantlets in the chestnut.

This study analyzed water quality data from a coniferous forest catchment in order to quantify the contributions of runoff components to stormflow, and to understand the effects of antecedent moisture conditions within catchment on the contributions of runoff components. Hydrograph separation by the twocomponent mixing model analysis was used to partition stormflow discharge into pre-event and event components for total 10 events in 2005 and 2008. To simplify the analysis, this study used single geochemical tracer with Na+. The result shows that the average contributions of event water and pre-event water were 34.8% and 65.2% of total stormflow of all 10 events, respectively. The event water contributions for each event varied from 18.8% to 47.9%. As the results of correlation analysis between event water contributions versus some storm event characteristics, 10 day antecedent rainfall and 1 day antecedent streamflow are significantly correlated with event water contributions. These results can provide insight which will contribute to understand the importance of antecedent moisture conditions in the generation of event water, and be used basic information to stormflow generation process in forest catchment.

The composition of minerals and amino acids in Allium victorialis var. platyphyllum tissues collected from different habitats in Ulleung Island and Mt. Hambeak of the Korean Peninsula is investigated. The mineral composition of A. victorialis stem was high compared to that of bulb in all population samples. The most abundant mineral found in all the samples was potassium (K). The mineral composition was variable in garlic population of Ulleung Island in a habitat dependent manner. The A. victorialis stems and bulbs showed significant differences in their amino acid compositions according to varying habitats of Ulleung Island and Mt. Hambeak. Among the amino acids the most abundant amino acid in A. victorialis bulb tissue was arginine, followed by leucine and valine. The amino acids leucine, valine, and phenylalanine were abundant in stem tissues. The total amino acids of the A. victorialis stem tissue from Teawha pass peak sample (837 mg/100 g dry wt) were higher than the mean of other population samples (355-824 mg/100 g dry wt). However, content of amino acids in the bulb was high in A. victorialis from Nari basin (1,919 mg/100 g dry wt).

This study was conducted to assess the existing flora and fauna, and to develop a spatial map of Alapang communal forest located in the province of Benguet, Philippines. A total of 52 species belonging to 27 families were identified during the inventory in this communal forest using the quadrat method while a total of 30 species belonging to 18 families were recorded using line intercept technique for the assessment of grasses, herbs, vines and other low-lying vegetation. The diversity index of the species in Alapang communal forests using the quadrat method was 2.6649 while for the line intercept technique it was 2.5446. The most dominant species in this area was found to be Pinus kesiya Royle ex Gordon (Benguet pine) under Family Pinaceae with an importance value of 106.74%. In the faunal assessment, four species of birds and a small mammal particularly a rodent were identified during the study. Aside from the high species diversity of this communal forest, the presence of endemic and indicator species in the area denotes that this forest was still in good condition hence must be protected. Spatial maps and database system were generated based from data gathered in the field using Geographic Information System (GIS).