This study was analyzed the temporal variation of Moderate Resolution Imaging
Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) of natural
stands of cedrus libani in the northern humid part and eastern exposure of the Syrian
coastal mountains (Slenfeh, Jawbat Burghal), and its correlation with climatic variables
(temperature and precipitation) during the period of 2004-2014. We examined the
interannual and seasonal variation in NDVI values of Cedrus stands, and accumulative
effects of climatic variables (temperature and precipitation) on stands using simple linear
regression and correlation (Pearson). The NDVI values of Cedrus libani stands showed
significant increase in Slenfeh and Jawbat Burghal (0.006, 0.004 /year) respectively. We
found that the annual mean NDVI was significantly correlated with annual mean
precipitation in Jawbat Burghal (R = 0.689).The significant increase trend of seasonal
mean NDVI was in Slenfeh summer and Jawbat Burghal winter (R = 0.638, R = 0.724)
respectively. The results showed, there were accumulative effects of temperature on
Cedrus libani in Slenfeh and Jawbat Burghal in autumn and winter, while the
accumulative effects of precipitation in autumn and summer were noted.
