Decline in the Characteristic Oak Forest of the Hungarian Resort Caused by Environmental Changes

Eszter Bakay, Orsolya Fekete, Andrea Wallner, Sandor Jombach and Krisztina Szabó ()
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Eszter Bakay: Institute of Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning and Garden Art, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, 1118 Budapest, Hungary
Orsolya Fekete: Institute of Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning and Garden Art, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, 1118 Budapest, Hungary
Andrea Wallner: Institute of Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning and Garden Art, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, 1118 Budapest, Hungary
Sandor Jombach: Institute of Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning and Garden Art, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, 1118 Budapest, Hungary
Krisztina Szabó: Institute of Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning and Garden Art, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, 1118 Budapest, Hungary

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 11, 1-31

Abstract: The vegetation of settlements can be particularly important for ecology and cityscapes and also plays a role in shaping and structuring the fabric of the settlement. However, there are very few settlements where the nature of woody vegetation is a defining characteristic of the settlement image. The vitality and health of the vegetation of a settlement can depend on the extent of development, increasing urbanization and the influencing effects of climate change. We monitored the changes in the vegetation of our study area, Balatonalmádi-Káptalanfüred, Hungary, going back 300 years by analyzing military and historical maps and satellite images, using the NDVI vegetation index of the last 20 years, as well as by field visits, tree examinations based on visual surveys and a plant population survey at 5 sampling points. Our results show that due to the increase in construction, the historical map shows a significant decrease in green space, and the satellite images show a dramatic decrease in the vitality of the remaining green spaces. In addition, field visits have also revealed serious plant health problems, which may lead to a relatively rapid decline of the dominant oak population. The research shows that as the upper canopy level decreases, the second canopy level becomes dominant. In order to preserve the strong, distinctive oak character of the settlement, we make proposals to mitigate the destruction of the current woody vegetation and, in the long term, to replace the stands with climate-resilient species.

Keywords: Quercus ssp.; climate change; vegetation vitality; settlements; stand replacement (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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