Effects of harvesting intensity, vegetation control and fertilization on 5–20 year post-harvest N availability in boreal jack pine and black spruce forest soils in northern Ontario, Canada

This paper presents soil fluxes of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and carbon dioxide (CO2) from 12 sites located in four major forest types, black spruce ( Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP), jack pine ( Pinus banksiana Lamb.), aspen ( Populus spp.), and alder ( Alnus spp.) stands, in the Eastmain and Chibougamau regions of Quebec. Fluxes were determined with closed chambers during the snow-free period from May to October 2007. Well-drained black spruce, jack pine, and aspen forest soils were net sinks of atmospheric CH4 (–0.33 ± 0.11 mg·m–2·day–1), while alder-dominated wetland soils were sources of CH4 (0.45 ± 0.12 mg·m–2·day–1). The cut-over alder wetland soil produced 131 times more CH4 than the undisturbed wetland soil. Soil moisture and temperature mainly regulated CH4 fluxes. N2O fluxes from these forest soils were highly variable and smaller (1.6 ± 0.33 µg N·m–2·h–1) than those from deciduous forest soils. N2O emission from the cut-over black spruce forest soil was 2.7 times greater than that from the mature black spruce forest soil. Large C/N ratios (27 to 78) and slow soil N mineralization and nitrification rates in these forest soils may have led to small N2O fluxes. CO2 emissions from these forest soils, ranging from 0.20 to 2.7 g·m–2·day–1, were mainly controlled by soil temperature.

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Hand and Machine Tree Planting in Northern Ontario

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc46477-6 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 46 (6) ◽

pp. 477-478

Author(s):

W. C. Stevens

Keyword(s):

Black Spruce ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Tree Planting ◽

White Pine ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Rock Outcrops ◽

Important Species ◽

Precambrian Shield ◽

Limited Scale ◽

Commercial Forest

Northern Ontario lies entirely in the Precambrian Shield with its many rock outcrops, sand plains, valleys and extensive lowlands.Tree planting started on a limited scale in Northern Ontario in the 1920's but it was not until the mid-fifties that the program really expanded into millions of trees.White spruce, black spruce, jack pine, red pine and white pine are the most important species planted for commercial forest products.The advent of new site preparation techniques has made possible the planting of areas that were previously by-passed.Due to the rugged conditions in Northern Ontario, tree planting by machine is still not too prevalent.For the purpose of this paper, Northern Ontario is that portion of the province lying north of the historic fur-trading route of the French and Mattawa Rivers and the Great Lakes. The area is made up entirely of Precambrian shield with many outcrops of rock, sand plains of jack pine, valleys and extensive lowlands of spruce.

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Critical period of interspecific competition for four northern conifers: 10-year growth response and associated vegetation dynamics

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x06-058 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 36 (10) ◽

pp. 2474-2485 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Robert G Wagner ◽

Andrew P Robinson

Keyword(s):

Interspecific Competition ◽

Critical Period ◽

Black Spruce ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Red Pine ◽

Growth Responses ◽

White Pine ◽

Conifer Species ◽

Stand Volume ◽

Vegetation Control

The influence of the timing and duration of interspecific competition on planted jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.), red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.), eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.), and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) was assessed using 10-year growth responses in a northern Ontario experiment. Stand volume was 117%, 208%, 224%, and 343% higher for jack pine, red pine, white pine, and black spruce, respectively, with 5 years of vegetation control than with no vegetation control. Stand volume increased linearly with number of years of vegetation control, and the slope of the relationship varied among conifer species. Change-point regression analysis was used to derive segmented weed-free and weed-infested curves, and to simultaneously estimate key critical-period parameters. Weed-free and weed-infested curves in the 10th year were similar to those derived in year 5, indicating that the patterns established during the first few years after planting were relatively robust for the first decade. The critical-period was 2 and 3 years after planting for jack pine and red pine, respectively, and occupied most of the 5-year period for white pine and black spruce. Principal components analysis of the vegetation community indicated that repeated herbicide applications caused differential shifts in the relative abundance of shrub, fern, and moss species through the 10th year. Species richness, however, was not substantially different between the untreated control and the most intensive treatments. Difference modeling was used to quantify how annual volume increment during the first decade varied with time, conifer species, cover of woody and herbaceous vegetation, and stage of development.

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Individual-tree basal area growth models for jack pine and black spruce in northern Ontario

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc80366-3 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 80 (3) ◽

pp. 366-374 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Lianjun Zhang ◽

Changhui Peng ◽

Qinglai Dang

Keyword(s):

Tree Growth ◽

Black Spruce ◽

Basal Area ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Mixed Stands ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Individual Tree ◽

Basal Area Growth ◽

Wide Range ◽

Area Growth

Individual-tree models of five-year basal area growth were developed for jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) in northern Ontario. Tree growth data were collected from long-term permanent plots of pure and mixed stands of the two species. The models were fitted using mixed model methods due to correlated remeasurements of tree growth over time. Since the data covered a wide range of stand ages, stand conditions and tree sizes, serious heterogeneous variances existed in the data. Therefore, the coefficients of the final models were obtained using weighted regression techniques. The models for the two species were evaluated across 4-cm diameter classes using independent data. The results indicated (1) the models of jack pine and black spruce produced similar prediction errors and biases for intermediate-sized trees (1228 cm in tree diameter), (2) both models yielded relatively large errors and biases for larger trees (> 28 cm) than those for smaller trees, and (3) the jack pine model produced much larger errors and biases for small-sized trees (< 12 cm) than did the black spruce model. Key words: mixed models, repeated measures, model validation

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Growth and Morphology of Black Spruce, Jack Pine, and White Spruce Container Seedlings in Northern Ontario

Northern Journal of Applied Forestry ◽

10.1093/njaf/12.2.69 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 69-74

Author(s):

Anneli Jalkanen

Keyword(s):

Shoot Growth ◽

Black Spruce ◽

Growing Season ◽

White Spruce ◽

Dry Mass ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Morphological Attributes ◽

Crop Development ◽

In The Beginning

Abstract The development of morphological attributes of containerized seedlings during the growing season was studied in eight crops from three nurseries in Northern Ontario, including four black spruce crops, three jack pine crops, and one white spruce crop. The variability was proportionally largest in root and shoot dry mass, followed by height and diameter. During seedling growth, proportionally the variability of size did not seem to increase. In absolute scale, however, differences between individual seedlings increased more than differences between seedling trays, possibly due to competition between individuals. Height and shoot growth were greater in the beginning of the growing season, and diameter and root growth were greater toward the end. In comparison to standards, the balance between morphological attributes (height/diameter, shoot/root) was usually acceptable, and usually independent of seedling size. The easiest way of monitoring crop development is to take seedling samples at regular intervals and to construct a growth progression curve for seedling height, if diameter growth reaches acceptable level. Care should be taken that the height of seedlings does not increase too much at the expense of diameter and root development in the larger crops. To monitor this, height-diameter ratios and shoot-root ratios might be measured a couple of times during the growing season to take corrective action if necessary. North. J. Appl. For. 12(2):69-74.

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Shelter Spot Seeding Trials with Jack Pine, Black Spruce and White Spruce in Northern Ontario

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc62446-5 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 62 (5) ◽

pp. 446-450 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

S. W. J. Dominy ◽

J. E. Wood

Keyword(s):

Picea Mariana ◽

Pinus Banksiana ◽

Black Spruce ◽

White Spruce ◽

Sowing Date ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Medium Sand ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Bare Spot ◽

Height Data

Seeding trials were established on four different sites in northern Ontario (46°41′N to 49°19′N) in 1979 and 1980. Jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) was seeded on two medium sand sites, black spruce (Picea mariana [Mill.] B.S.P.) on a sandy clay site, and white spruce (P. glauca [Moench] Voss) on a clay site. Conventional bare spot seeding was compared with spot seeding under Finnish-designed plastic shelters. At least two seeding dates were compared in each trial. Third- and fifth-year stocking and fifth-year height data are presented.Stocking of all three species was increased, regardless of sowing date, when shelters were used. With the exception of June-sown black spruce and one June sowing of jack pine, height growth was not significantly improved through the use of seed shelters. Shelters may prove to be a viable regeneration option only on cooler, exposed sites with little vegetative competition. Key words: Shelter spot seeding, bare spot seeding, Pinus banksiana Lamb., Picea mariana [Mill.] B.S.P., P. glauca [Moench] Voss.

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Aspects of ecological development in managed stands of jack pine and black spruce in northern Ontario: Understory vegetation and nutrient relations

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc81061-1 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 81 (1) ◽

pp. 61-72 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

S L Hunt ◽

A M Gordon ◽

D M Morris

Keyword(s):

Species Composition ◽

Forest Floor ◽

Black Spruce ◽

Basal Area ◽

Jack Pine ◽

Understory Vegetation ◽

Northern Ontario ◽

Nutrient Pools ◽

Site Type ◽

Stand Basal Area

This study investigated relationships between understory vegetation and nutrient pools in managed stands of jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) and black spruce (Picea mariana [Mill.] BSP) in the Lake Nipigon region of northern Ontario. The species composition, biomass, and nutrient pool sizes in the understory vegetation, as well as biomass and nutrient pools in trees and soils, were determined in 16 managed stands ranging in age from 10 to 53 years since establishment and one mature, natural stand. Patterns of above-ground biomass accumulation in understory vegetation varied with overstory tree species and general site type (dry, sandy soils, or mesic, finer-textured soils). Understory vegetation contributed little (0.3 to 2.6%) to total above-ground organic matter (live biomass plus forest floor) but accounted for higher proportions of total above-ground nutrient pools (e.g., 0.7 to 3.4% of N; 3.2 to 11.7% of K) and net primary productivity (1.2 to 21.2%). The species composition of the understory vegetation was strongly related to stand basal area as well as to concentrations of nutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg) in the forest floor and mineral soil. The greatest amount of change in vegetation community composition occurred from the pre-to post-canopy closure stages of stand development; fewer differences were observed among stands of a given species and site type 35 to 50 years after establishment. The effects of silvicultural practices were detected in certain stands 35 years after establishment; for example the most severely treated (bladed and thinned) jack pine stand differed from other stands of similar age and soils with its Cladina/Vaccinium-dominated understory, and large amounts of biomass in the moss/lichen stratum. The understory vegetation communities in other managed jack pine stands, by 35 to 50 years, were similar to that of the mature, natural stand, indicating resilience to silvicultural disturbances. Silviculture may have lasting effects on understory vegetation biomass and species composition through its effects on stand basal area, overstory species, and soil nutrients. This research serves as baseline information for further studies into the ecology of managed stands in northern Ontario. Key words: understory, nutrients, managed forests, jack pine, black spruce, canonical correspondence analysis

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