Abstract: Taking the forest gaps of natural Pinus koraiensis broadleaved mixed forest in Xiao Xing’an Mountains as test object, and by the method of grids, the photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) in the gaps was continuously measured during growth season, and the spatiotemporal distribution patterns of the PPFD were analyzed by fundamental statistics and geostatistics methods. In the forest gaps, the high-value region of PPFD presented an obvious diurnal change, with the maximum PPFD appeared at 12:00 and in the northern part of the gaps. The mean monthly PPFD was the highest in June, and then decreased in the sequence of July, August, and September, with the largest coefficient of variation at different locations occurred in July and the medium variability in all the months. In different months, the intensity and the scale of PPFD spatial heterogeneity in the gaps differed, with the variation degree being the highest in June and the sill and proportion being the largest in July. The complex degree of the monthly PPFD patches also differed, with the maximum located in the northeast part of the gaps. The variation sequence of the mean monthly PPFD in understory and open ground was consistent with that in gap, and the mean monthly PPFD was the highest in open ground, medium in forest gap, and the lowest in understory.

Key words: Korean pine broadleaved mixed forest, forest gap, photosynthetic photon flux density, geostatistics, Xiao Xing’an Mountains, carbon emission reduction, oasis irrigation area, cropping pattern, economic benefits, resource utilization, emergy analysis