Heatwave in Estonian forests: Researchers Investigate Resilience of Dominant Tree species

Heatwave is a period of unusually high temperature lasting for days, during which the heat builds up locally. Heatwave events occur frequently in Southern Europe. As global warming advances, they are now also appearing in Nordic regions. This raises an important question: what will happen to the Nordic forests that have long adapted in the cooler environment? How do the young forest trees cope with sudden burst of heat? 

This summer, the researchers from the Chair of Crop Science and Plant Biology built six open-top chambers in both the Tartu and Saaremaa regions, where the temperatures around the seedlings were raised to about 35°C using controlled warm-air flow. The main goal is to mimic heatwave conditions and study the potential ecotypic adaptation strategies among different dominant tree species in Estonia.

During the field campaign, climate data in both heated and control chambers including ambient air temperature and humidity were closely monitored and recorded. Fresh leave materials harvested from seedlings will be further subjected to physiological, metabolic and molecular analyses. By combining these three levels of study, the researchers hope to gain new sights into how Nordic forests may respond to future climate extremes. The results are also expected to help stakeholders better predict and manage the forest regeneration under a warming climate.

This project is funded by the Estonian Research Council (PRG2748, 2025-2029). Interested in our work or having any questions? Please contact Dr. Bin Liu ([email protected]) for more information.