Diagnosis of damage to Norway spruce (Picea abies) through biochemical criteria

Bioindication can be carried out at different hierarchical levels, eg. cell, organism, and ecosystem. While the monitoring of damage by visible criteria (e.g. loss of needles) is connected with the organism as a whole, the monitoring of damage by biochemical indicators is above all connected with cell metabolism.
The degree of vitality of a tree can be ascertained through the integration of a number of biochemical parameters. Furthermore, a differential diagnosis of a particular stress pattern can be carried out because of the feedback pattern of several biochemical indicators. In order to describe and interpret biochemical or physiological changes that have been caused by a number of factors, multivariate statistical methods are being used more frequently. Apart from cluster and discriminant analysis, it is especially factor analysis which provides a helpful tool when dealing with problems in the field of environmental analysis. Factor analysis can be used for an integrating as well as a differentiating assessment.
Within the framework of forest damage research, numerous changes at the level of cell metabolism have been detected to which a bioindicative character can be attached. A number of physiological and biochemical parameters with bioindicative character concerning Norway spruce are presented.