Air and soil temperature were measured in the cold climatic zone at three localities (catchments) under different plant cover during the growing seasons 2002-2007. The catchments Kout (dead forest), Doupě (clearing) and Stolec (mature spruce forest) are situated in the National Park of the Šumava Mts. (1105-1330 m a. s. l.). The three catchments have very similar natural conditions, but differ significantly in vegetation cover. The following conclusions were obtained from the interpretation of measured data: (1) The air temperature of the catchment covered by the dead forest had a greater daily fluctuation compared to the stands covered by clearing or mature forest. (2) The air temperature of catchments covered by mature forest had the smallest daily fluctuations. (3) The more extreme air temperatures in the dead forest caused the systematic raising of the soil temperature at a depth of 15 cm compared to soil in the clearing and mature forest.