Impact of simulated aspen shoot blight on trembling aspen

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 719-725 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.V. Blenis

Although aspen shoot blight (ASB), caused by Pollaccia americana Ondrej, is a common disease of trembling aspen ( Populus tremuloides Michx.), its impact is uncertain. Mechanical wounding, previously shown to be a reliable surrogate for ASB infection, was used to assess ASB impact in two experiments. In the first experiment, the effect of date of wounding on impact was studied by wounding 1-year-old aspen on four dates between 29 June and 10 August 2001. Tree form at the end of the 2001 growing season varied with wounding date, and for each of the wounding dates, tree height was reduced relative to that of unwounded, control trees. After the 2005 growing season, only trees wounded on 17 July were shorter than unwounded trees and the difference in heights was only 62 cm. In the second experiment, trees spaced at 2.0 or 0.67 m were wounded in four successive seasons to determine the effect of multiple years of infection on trees growing at different densities. Simulated ASB reduced tree height by an average of 16 cm, whereas branchiness was not increased by ASB, even at the lower density. Although ASB should not be ignored, these results suggest that it is unlikely to be amongst the most destructive pests of intensively managed aspen.

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 310-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin C Fraser ◽  
Victor J Lieffers ◽  
Simon M Landhäusser

In early May, 1-m sections of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) roots in a forest cutblock were carefully exposed and examined for damage. Undamaged roots were subjected to one of three wounding treatments (scrape, sever, or uninjured control) and were then reburied to either the full normal organic layer depth or to one third of the normal depth. Following one growing season, the roots were reexposed and assessed for aspen sucker numbers and growth rates. Results indicate that injured roots produced suckers nearly twice as often as uninjured roots. Further, injured roots produced more suckers per root, and these suckers were taller and had greater leaf area. Roots buried under shallow organic layers also generated more suckers, regardless of injury type. The side of injury (distal or proximal) did not affect any of the measured variables. The present study suggests that moderate wounding of aspen roots increases initial sucker numbers and growth rates.Key words: trembling aspen, root sucker, root injury, regeneration.


1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (10) ◽  
pp. 1940-1947 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry R. Taylor ◽  
Dennis Parkinson

Freshly fallen leaf litter was collected from a stand of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta each autumn from 1981 through 1984. Leaves from 1981 and 1982 were yellow, waxy, and strong. Leaves from 1983 were pale brown and very brittle, and almost 1% of them suffered symmetrical deformities. Leaves from 1984 were composed of 80% yellow leaves and 20% green leaves, which apparently abscissed before senescence. Green and yellow 1984 leaves were distinctly different with respect to total (3 days) leaching loss, leachate conductivity, and proportions of ash, cellulose, and labile material. Green 1984 leaves contained twice as much nitrogen as yellow ones (13.1 vs. 6.5 mg∙g−1) and significantly more phosphorus (1.6 vs. 1.3 mg∙g−1). Leaves of different years varied widely with respect to leaf mass, water absorption rate, mass and conductivity of leachate, and proportions of cellulose, labiles, lignin, and ash, but there was no consistent ordering among years; leaves of different colouration (especially 1981 and 1983) were often physicochemically similar, while leaves identical in appearance were often chemically different. Small but significant differences in N and P concentrations among years were removed by 2 h leaching. Leaves of 1981 decomposing in laboratory microcosms at 26 °C lost less mass than either 1982 or 1983 leaves after 1 month, but not after 2 months. Ability of the cuticle to resist water absorption was probably responsible for the difference in initial decomposition rate.


2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek F. Sattler ◽  
Philip G. Comeau ◽  
Alexis Achim

Radial patterns of modulus of elasticity (MOE) were examined for white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) and trembling aspen (Populus tremuoides Michx.) from 19 mature, uneven-aged stands in the boreal mixedwood region of northern Alberta, Canada. The main objectives were to (1) evaluate the relationship between pith-to-bark changes in MOE and cambial age or distance from pith; (2) develop species-specific models to predict pith-to-bark changes in MOE; and (3) to test the influences of radial growth, relative vertical height, and tree slenderness (tree height/DBH) on MOE. For both species, cambial age was selected as the best explanatory variable with which to build pith-to-bark models of MOE. For white spruce and trembling aspen, the final nonlinear mixed-effect models indicated that an augmented rate of increase in MOE occurred with increasing vertical position within the tree. For white spruce trees, radial growth and slenderness were found to positively influence maximum estimated MOE. For trembling aspen, there was no apparent effect of vertical position or radial growth on maximum MOE. The results shed light on potential drivers of radial patterns of MOE and will be useful in guiding silvicultural prescriptions.


2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 2262-2268 ◽  
Author(s):  
N Carmosini ◽  
K J Devito ◽  
E E Prepas

In situ net N mineralization and net nitrification rates were measured in organic forest floor (LFH) and mineral horizons of mature and logged trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) stands on the Boreal Plain in western Canada. Cumulative May to September mineralization for mature and logged plots was 1354 ± 534 and 1631 ± 1584 mg N·m–2, respectively, in the LFH horizon and 810 ± 394 and –305 ± 3957 mg N·m–2, respectively, in the mineral horizon. Net nitrification in mature and logged plots was 86 ± 142 and 658 ± 435 mg NO3-N·m–2, respectively, in the LFH horizon and 67 ± 50 and 409 ± 325 mg NO3-N·m–2, respectively, in the mineral horizon. Monthly mean NH4-N concentrations in the LFH tended to be higher in logged plots than in mature plots. Winter net N mineralization and nitrification rates in the LFH of mature plots were up to 7% and 11% of growing season net rates, respectively. In comparison, these rates in logged plots were up to 127% and 59% of the growing season net rates, respectively, indicating that winter activity may make a large contribution to annual net mineralization and nitrification after logging.


2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (5) ◽  
pp. 590-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brin Jones ◽  
Jacques Tardif ◽  
Richard Westwood

The present study investigated the effect of artificial defoliation on weekly radial xylem production in trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.). It was hypothesized that defoliated trees would show reduced xylem and vessel production and thinner secondary walls in fibres. Two adjacent natural forest sites were selected within Winnipeg, Manitoba. Microcores were extracted weekly from the stems of 30 aspen trees from May to October 2002. Ten aspen trees were defoliated using pole pruners between 22 June and 6 July. Measurements included weekly xylem increment, annual vessel characteristics, and late growing season fibre dimensions. No significant difference in overall ring width was observed; however, trees from both groups showed a significant reduction in ring width in 2002. The ratio of radial growth in 2002 / radial growth in 2001 was significantly less in defoliated trees, suggesting a higher reduction in radial growth due to defoliation. Sigmoidal regression models suggested early growth cessation in defoliated trees. No significant differences in vessel characteristics were observed between groups; however, the diameter and lumen width of fibres was significantly reduced in defoliated trees. It is speculated that a shorter radial growing season may have led to a reduced cell elongation period. An early cessation of the radial growing season associated with a reallocation of carbohydrates to produce a second flush of leaves could explain the reduced size of fibres from defoliated trees.Key words: wood anatomy, diffuse porous, image analysis, radial growth, cell dimension, dendrochronology.


2009 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 548-557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur Groot ◽  
Rongzhou Man ◽  
Jim Wood

The density, height and diameter of trembling aspen sucker regeneration was assessed over a 10-year period in openings created by harvesting in a 40-year-old, 19-m-tall aspen stand in northeastern Ontario. The 5 types of opening comprised: circular openings of 9-m- and 18-m-diameter, 150-m-long east–west strips of 9-m and 18-m width, and a 1.5 ha (100 m × 150 m) clearcut. Density of aspen regeneration was significantly affected by opening type, location relative to the opening, time since harvest, and by all interactions of these factors. Aspen densities within the circular openings declined to low levels by year 10, despite considerable initial recruitment. Trembling aspen height and diameter were significantly influenced by opening type, location relative to the opening, time since harvest, and by opening × time and location × time interactions. Trembling aspen heights in the circular openings were substantially less than in the clearcut and strip openings by year 10. The results support the traditional view that aspen is best managed under the clearcut silvicultural system, and that trembling aspen regeneration following forest harvesting can be reduced by controlling the extent or intensity of overstory removal. Finally, the results suggest that disturbances that create gaps greater than 1 tree height in width in aspen or mixedwood forests may allow gap dynamics to function. Key words: trembling aspen, silviculture, boreal mixedwoods, regeneration, forest openings


2012 ◽  
Vol 144 (6) ◽  
pp. 756-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Gray ◽  
Don P. Ostaff

AbstractSynchrony between herbivore and host phenology can be an important factor in herbivore fitness. The survival of first-instar forest tent caterpillar (FTC) (Malacosoma disstria Hübner; Lepidoptera: Lasiocampidae) larvae and performance of surviving larvae are reduced when egg hatch and host budbreak are asynchronous. Budbreak in trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michaux; Salicaceae) and largetooth aspen (Populus grandidentata Michaux; Salicaceae), two preferred hosts of FTC, differ by ∼14 days. We examined the phenological requirements of FTC egg hatch to see if an inherent difference exists between FTC egg masses on the two hosts, and if the difference would promote synchrony with each host. Egg masses from a haphazard selection of clones of each host were collected in a mixed stand of trembling and largetooth aspen in New Brunswick, Canada. Egg masses were subjected to controlled temperature regimes in the laboratory, and hatch was monitored daily. Despite the differences in host phenologies and the obvious benefits of being synchronised with host phenology, egg masses collected from trembling aspen began hatching only 3 days earlier, and completed hatching only 2 days earlier, than egg masses collected from largetooth aspen. Bet hedging is discussed as a possible strategy to explain the absence of host-specific synchrony between egg hatch of FTC and the hosts it selects for oviposition.


1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Lamontagne ◽  
Hank Margolis ◽  
Francine Bigras

Light-saturated photosynthesis following artificial frosts was monitored for black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP), jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.), and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.). None of the species exposed to -9°C in May or to -6 and -9°C in August recovered within the 23- and 14-day monitoring periods, respectively. Black spruce and jack pine treated at -6°C in May recovered within 5 and 23 days, respectively. Black spruce treated at -3°C in August recovered within 10 days. Frosts were applied to the upper and lower canopies of mature black spruce and jack pine in June and to mature trembling aspen in July. For black spruce, the lower canopy did not recover whereas the upper canopy partially recovered over the 10-day monitoring period. For jack pine and trembling aspen, there were no differences in recovery between canopy levels. Jack pine treated at -5.5°C recovered within the 10-day monitoring period whereas at -8.5°C, it only partially recovered. Although recovery period varied with species, phenological state, and frost temperature, gradual recovery of photosynthesis over 5-21 days seems a reasonable modelling algorithm for boreal tree species when growing season frosts lower than -3°C occur. However, cooling rates in our experiments were greater than those that normally occur in nature.


1978 ◽  
Vol 56 (15) ◽  
pp. 1798-1803 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. D. W. James ◽  
D. W. Smith

Concentrations of N, P, K, Ca, and Mg were determined at monthly intervals over the growing season in the leaves, twig bark, and twig wood of Populus tremuloides Michx. (trembling aspen) and in the leaves and stems of Cornus stolonifera Michx. (red osier dogwood) in southern Ontario. Concentrations of N, P, and K in the leaves of both species decreased from May to August. Levels of Mg and Ca increased. Nutrient changes in aspen twigs during the May to September period, with the exception of magnesium, followed the reverse direction to those in the leaves. Seasonal changes in all of the nutrients in twigs were very small. Seasonal nutrient variability in red osier stems was also slight, but concentrations of Mg and Ca showed a July peak, and K showed a peak in June. N and P declined from early spring to midsummer but by September in dogwood the levels had returned to the April values.


Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 59
Author(s):  
Olivier Fradette ◽  
Charles Marty ◽  
Pascal Tremblay ◽  
Daniel Lord ◽  
Jean-François Boucher

Allometric equations use easily measurable biometric variables to determine the aboveground and belowground biomasses of trees. Equations produced for estimating the biomass within Canadian forests at a large scale have not yet been validated for eastern Canadian boreal open woodlands (OWs), where trees experience particular environmental conditions. In this study, we harvested 167 trees from seven boreal OWs in Quebec, Canada for biomass and allometric measurements. These data show that Canadian national equations accurately predict the whole aboveground biomass for both black spruce and jack pine trees, but underestimated branches biomass, possibly owing to a particular tree morphology in OWs relative to closed-canopy stands. We therefore developed ad hoc allometric equations based on three power models including diameter at breast height (DBH) alone or in combination with tree height (H) as allometric variables. Our results show that although the inclusion of H in the model yields better fits for most tree compartments in both species, the difference is minor and does not markedly affect biomass C stocks at the stand level. Using these newly developed equations, we found that carbon stocks in afforested OWs varied markedly among sites owing to differences in tree growth and species. Nine years after afforestation, jack pine plantations had accumulated about five times more carbon than black spruce plantations (0.14 vs. 0.80 t C·ha−1), highlighting the much larger potential of jack pine for OW afforestation projects in this environment.


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