Acta Scientiarum Polonorum
Silvarum Colendarum Ratio et Industria Lignaria

A network of sample plots was established in stands devastated by a hurricane-force wind in order to characterize the degree of tree damage. The wind was classified as F1 in the Fujita scale, which corresponds to wind speeds of 117–180 km/h. Instances of tree damage were categorized into nine classes. Tree species and diameter at breast height (DBH) were determined. The wind damaged about half of the trees; every fifth tree exhibited crown damage (from broken individual branches to damage exceeding ¾ of the crown volume). Approximately every tenth tree was broken below the crown and a similar proportion of trees were uprooted. The wind damaged trees of all DBH classes, and the percentage of affected trees increased with DBH: from a little over 1/3 for trees with DBH of less than 10 cm to 85% for trees with DBH of more than 63 cm. Due to the high variation of the affected site, it was difficult to adopt a schematic management response. On most plots, damaged trees were neighbored by unscathed ones. Thus, under the circumstances an individualized approach should be applied to each stand.