A multidisciplinary study to reveal the historical value of wooden structures and to develop a conservation approach: Dere and Karh Mosques in Samsun, Turkey

Wood is one of the oldest traditional construction materials used for religious and civil architecture in the Black Sea Region of Turkey. Samsun, located in the central Black Sea Region, has qualified examples of wooden mosques in rural areas. In the scope of this paper, two wooden mosques (Dere and Karl1), located in rural areas of Kayak district (Samsun), were studied in detail with an interdisciplinary study. We aimed to emphasize the historical value of both mosques by determining their building dates, defining their conservation problems and offering proper conservation approach principles. While the Dere Mosque was registered as immovable cultural heritage by Samsun Regional Council of Conservation, Karl! Mosque has not yet been registered. However, both mosques have similar conservation problems, caused particularly by improper management such as unqualified interventions, abandonment, neglect and fire risk. For the sustainability of wooden religious heritage, it is important to reveal the historical value of the mosques and to develop detailed conservation proposals. We believe that this research will guide the quality refurbishment of wooden structures with similar conservation problems in the region and stimulate the protection of wooden heritage. (C) 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved

Influence of Climate on Radial Growth of Black Pine on the Mountain Regions of Southwestern Turkey

WOS: 000483537400050PubMed ID: 31395839In this study, we identified the most important climate factors affecting the radial growth of black pine at different elevations of the mountain regions of Southwestern Turkey (Sandiras Mountain, Mugla/Turkey). We used four black pine tree-ring chronologies, which represent upper and lower distribution limits of black pine forest on the South and North slopes of Sandiras Mountain. The relationships between tree-ring width and climate were identified using response function analysis. We performed hierarchical cluster analysis to classify the response functions into meaningful groups. Black pine trees in the mountain regions of Southwestern Turkey responded positively to a warmer temperature and high precipitation at the beginning of the growing season. As high summer temperatures exacerbated drought, radial growth was affected negatively. Hierarchical cluster analysis made clear that elevation differences, rather than aspect, was the main factor responsible for the formation of the clusters. Due to the mountainous terrain of the study area, the changing climatic conditions (air temperature and precipitation) affected the tree-ring widths differently depending on elevation.Ege University Scientific Research Project (BAP)Ege University [2010-EDB-006]This research was funded by Ege University Scientific Research Project (BAP); Project Number 2010-EDB-006

Assessing Ecotourism Potential of Traditional Wooden Architecture in Rural Areas: The Case of Papart Valley

The aim of this study is to reveal the resource values that the rural areas host, and with a very disciplined approach, to discuss opportunities to benefit from those values in terms of ecotourism practices specific to Papart Valley. As a first step in this study, we took an inventory of natural and cultural assets of Papart Valley in Eastern Black Sea Region, Artvin province. Then, a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats ( SWOT) analysis was conducted with the participation of all stakeholders and the current situation was analyzed in terms of ecotourism practices. In light of SWOT results, along with observed natural resource assets in the region, the traditional wooden houses were seen to have potential in terms of ecotourism and it was detected that there were a large number of wooden homes and home plans suitable for both the settlement of the local people and accommodation of guests. On the other hand, it was determined that there was a lack of information for sufficient protection and care of wooden houses, and despite their potential, there was a lack of regulations and positive attitudes towards accomodation businesses in traditional wooden houses. In order to eliminate these deficiencies, proposals for the protection of traditional building stock were developed, by first determining the causes of material degradation in the wooden houses. Also, to emphasize the worth and importance of these structures, dendrochronology studies were conducted in order to determine the antiquity of the structures and potentially to make them more attractive for eco-tourism

The effect of temperature and precipitation on the intra-annual radial growth of Fagus orientalis Lipsky in Artvin, Turkey

In this paper, we present the longest tree-ring chronology of oriental beech from Artvin, identify the most important climate factors affecting radial growth, and compare our results with the oriental beech chronology from Belgrad Forest. Stem disks were taken from 10 living oriental beech trees, and earlywood and latewood bands were measured separately in addition to ring width. The longest (442-year-long) chronology of earlywood, latewood, and total ring width for oriental beech were built from Artvin, Turkey. All chronologies (earlywood, latewood, and total ring width) were found to be highly sensitive to climate with mean sensitivity values of 0.3034, 0.286, and 0.294, respectively. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to identify relationships between tree radial growth and climate. The results showed that the most distinctive effect of temperature on tree-ring growth occurred with maximum temperature. High mean and minimum temperatures in the period of March to July (especially in May) resulted in growth early in the growing season and wide earlywood, latewood, and total ring formation. Different from Belgrad Forest chronology, precipitation was a limiting factor on tree growth, but only in June. High temperatures had a positive effect during the period of March to July and did not cause a drought problem

Comparative tree-ring anatomy of Fraxinus excelsior with Chalara dieback

We tested the hypothesis that the biometrical characters of wood elements in ash trees (Fraxinus excelsior L.) become modified in response to the progression of disease caused by Chalara fraxinea. Anatomical analyses were performed on wood samples collected at breast height from the trunks of groups of ash trees which contained healthy, weakened and dead trees. We measured (1) tree-ring width, (2) earlywood vessel diameter, (3) earlywood vessel element length, (4) fibre length, (5) fibre diameter, (6) fibre lumen diameter, and (7) fibre wall thickness. We showed that tree-ring width diminished in all analysed groups during disease progression. However, the greatest suppression of growth was observed in dead trees. In both weakened and dead ash trees, the reduction in tree-ring width was accompanied by diminished vessel diameter in the earlywood of the outermost annual rings. The annual rings of dead trees had shorter fibres having greater lumen diameter and thinner cell walls. Consequently, water conduction in the sapwood of dead ash trees was less efficient owing to reduced vessel diameter, and this seems to be one of the greatest disease-induced morphological modifications. All the anatomical modifications might be due to leaf loss and crown dieback triggered by Chalara fraxinea

Changes in stem growth rates and root wood anatomy of oriental beech after a landslide event in Hanyeri, Bartm, Turkey

On 19 May 1998, a small-scale landslide occurred near Hanyeri, Bartin, in the western Black Sea region. The purpose of the study is to investigate the changes in stem growth rates and root wood anatomy of oriental beech (Fagus orientalis Lipsky). According to results from 8 years before and after the event year, growth variation in the affected trees is significantly high. In the control trees, growth increases after the event year, and the growth variation is 116.22%; this value is 69.59% in the affected trees. However, the growth variation values for 11 years are 107.69% and 81.36% in control and affected trees, respectively. Root wood anatomy also revealed a clear response in affected trees after the event year, and ring width on one side of the root showed an abrupt increase

The first forest fire history of the Burabai Region (Kazakhstan) from tree rings of Pinus sylvestris

Forest fires are one of the most important events causing an abrupt decrease in tree-ring width. Although humans are the main cause of forest fires, extreme weather or climate change may promote the frequency and severity of fires. The purpose of this study is to reconstruct historical fires in the Burabai Region of Kazakhstan including their frequency and seasons. Five tree cross-sections with fire scars were collected from two different sites, Akylbai and Burabai. After sanding the transversal surfaces of the cross-sections, the year and season of fire scars were determined. We identified 15 fires during the last 300 years in the region. The mean fire interval is 27 years, with minimum and maximum fire intervals of 9 and 53 years, respectively. The seasonally determined fire scars generally occurred during the middle earlywood formation (77%), and less in early earlywood (22%). Three site chronologies of Pinus sylvestris L. were also used to find the effect and extent of the fires. The negative effect of fires on tree growth lasted 1 to 8 years after the fire. Four of the fire scars had long-term negative effects (up to 10 years) on tree growth in the years of 1759, 1779, 1871, and 1952. Fires of 1759, 1797, 1824, 1833, 1852, and 1871 are seen in both sites, suggesting that these fires spread over large areas

Tree-ring chronologies of Pinus sylvestris from Burabai Region (Kazakhstan) and their response to climate change

Pinus sylvestris L. (Scots pine) is the main forest tree species in Burabai National Park. Trees here grow under continental climate conditions. There are no dendroclimatological studies based on Scots pine of this region. The purpose of this study was to find the relationships between tree-ring widths and climate. For this purpose, a total of 176 cores from 100 Scots pine trees were collected. After measuring tree-ring widths, standard chronology building methods were used, and three site chronologies were constructed. Correlation coefficients between tree-ring widths with temperature and precipitation were calculated. Precipitation from October of the previous year to July of current year had a positive influence on tree-ring widths and August-September precipitation have the opposite effect. Temperature in the winter had positive effect for tree-ring growth but significantly negative during summer. Effects of climate changes on tree-ring widths were observed. The variation and sensitivity of tree-ring widths increased after 1940s. An increasing trend in precipitation, temperature, and tree-ring widths were clearly observed. In conclusion, tree-rings of Scots pine in Burabai are highly sensitive to growing site conditions and are affected by climate changes