Springtime photoinhibition constrains regeneration of forest floor seedlings of Abies sachalinensis after a removal of canopy trees during winter

A clear-cutting of canopy trees during winter often causes severe foliar damage during the following spring in forest floor seedlings of Abies sachalinensis, a typical shade-tolerant evergreen coniferous species. The maximum photochemical efficiency of photosystem II after an overnight dark adaptation showed a temporary decrease immediately before budbreak in 1-year-old shoots of A. sachalinensis seedlings grown under full sunlight in a nursery, suggesting “springtime photoinhibition” related to the phenology of evergreen coniferous species. In the field, a greater rate of canopy tree cutting during winter was associated with more severe photoinhibition in the following spring, immediately before budbreak, which subsequently resulted in a reduction in carbon gain in 1-year-old shoots, and consequently suppressed the growth of current-year shoots. Although photoinhibition under low temperature is a well-known factor to determine the survival rate of tree seedlings during winter in cool regions, the present study additionally proposes that the temporary increase in the susceptibility to photoinhibition in springtime i.e. “springtime photoinhibition” would be a constraint for the regeneration of coniferous seedlings especially when the canopy trees are removed during winter.