Preface

Conifers include a wide range of species that are spread all over the world. These species have wide diversity and variable stand structures ranging from monospecific monocohort to multispecific multicohort. They produce an assortment of products and services, although the most frequent main product is timber. Due to their stand structure variability and dynamics, the characterization and modelling of the interactions between individuals as well as their growth and production comprise a set of approaches. These approaches comprise a suite of methods and techniques that make the bridge between research, and management and forest planning.

Significant issues for conifer stands are stand structure, growth, mortality, harvest, regeneration, reproductive material, diversity, yield, potential productivity, biotic and abiotic disturbances, silvicultural practices, system sustainability, and perpetuity. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of the art in this field. It examines the three pillars of sustainability – environmental, social, and economic – presenting reviews and research studies in the following areas: silviculture, modelling, forest planning, diversity, forest management, abiotic factors, and conifer pollen allergies.

This book is a collection of contributions from several fields and perspectives on the characterization, modelling, management, and diversity of conifer stands and forests, with wide geographical coverage. It includes nine chapters:

Chapter 1: "Maritime Pine, Its Biological and Silvicultural Traits for the Basis of Natural Resources: An Overview"

Chapter 2: "Complexity of Regeneration Dynamic at the Ecocline between Mixedwood and Coniferous Domains of the Southernmost Boreal Zone in Eastern North America"

Chapter 3: "Research Progress on Iron-Heart *Cunninghamia lanceolate*"

Chapter 4: "Conifers: Species Diversity and Improvement Status in Kenya"

Chapter 5: "Larch: A Promising Deciduous Conifer as an Eco-Environmental Resource"

Chapter 6: "*Pinus patula* Plantations in Africa: An Overview of Its Silvicultural Traits and Use under SDG"

Chapter 7: "Management of *Pinus pinaster* Aiton for Wood and Resin Production: A Technical-Financial Feasibility Analysis"

Chapter 8: "Recent Megafires Provide a Tipping Point for Desertification of Conifer Ecosystems"

Chapter 9: "Respiratory Allergy to Conifers"

Editing this book was very rewarding and we hope readers, including researchers and students, will find it to be a valuable reference.

## **Ana Cristina Gonçalves**

Department of Rural Engineering, School of Sciences and Technology, MED - Mediterranean Institute for Agriculture, Environment and Development, Institute of Research and Advanced Information (IIFA), University of Évora, Évora, Portugal

## **Teresa Fidalgo Fonseca**

University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal

> Forest Research Centre, School of Agriculture, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

## **Chapter 1**
