Exploring Functional Group Classification Based on Growth Forms and Leaf Characteristics: A Case Study of the Secondary Evergreen Broad-leaved Forest in the Shanmaling Area of Western Zhejiang

Using survey data from 575 plots across 23 sample sites in the secondary evergreen broad-leaved forests of western Zhejiang as an example, this study investigates the classification of species into functional groups. A functional group classification system was established based on two major factors: growth form and leaf characteristics, and it was applied to study the structural characteristics of the target plant communities in the western Zhejiang region. The results indicate that the secondary evergreen broad-leaved forests in the study area include 17 functional groups. A comprehensive diagram of functional group structure was constructed based on the number of species, growth forms, and leaf characteristics. Analysis of the target community’s functional group structure diagram shows that the functional group composition of the target community completely aligns with the characteristics of secondary evergreen broad-leaved forests: the proportion of evergreen functional groups is significantly higher than that of deciduous functional groups, and the proportion of broad-leaved functional groups is much greater than that of coniferous functional groups. In the tree layer, the proportion of large, medium, and small tree functional groups decreases as the diameter class increases, fully matching the structural characteristics of secondary forests. The analysis results of this study fully demonstrate that both the functional group classification system and the comprehensive diagram of functional group structure are applicable to the study of evergreen broad-leaved forest communities, particularly in the collection and organization of community sample data, and they possess strong practicality