Abstract Thinning alters forest structure and functioning, yet its effects on canopy biochemistry, growth, carbon uptake and hydraulic dynamics remain poorly quantified across spatial and temporal scales. We combined Sentinel-2 PROSAIL inversion with explicit uncertainty propagation to derive monthly canopy traits in paired thinned and control stands of Pinus sylvestris and P. nigra, integrating these with high-frequency eddy-covariance GPP, maximum daily stem-shrinkage (MDS), and decadal basal area increment (BAI) from tree-ring records. Thinning reduced canopy density, pigment content, and albedo, indicating a shift in stand optical properties toward a more open but less reflective canopy structure. Functionally, thinning increased long-term basal-area increment by ~90% in P. sylvestris and ~35% in P. nigra, but reduced spring GPP by up to ~9 μmol CO₂ m−2 s−1 and intensified summer hydraulic drawdown (ΔMDS ≈ −60 μm). Trait–function models explained 61% of BAI, 85% of GPP, and 30% of MDS variance, indicating distinct biophysical controls across response variables: leaf structural traits (especially LMA) was the strongest predictor of long-term growth, canopy architecture primarily explained seasonal productivity, and pigment–structure interactions contributed most to stem-water dynamics. This multi-scale, uncertainty-aware framework shows how integrated satellite, flux-tower and dendrochronological measurements can robustly detect and interpret thinning impacts in Mediterranean pine forests.
Cachinero-Vivar et al. (Thu,) studied this question.