Growth and foliar nutrition of western red cedar fertilized with sewage sludge, pulp sludge, fish silage, and wood ash on northern Vancouver Island

1994 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 297-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.A. McDonald ◽  
B.J. Hawkins ◽  
C.E. Prescott ◽  
J.P. Kimmins
Keyword(s):  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Vancouver Island ◽  
Wood Ash ◽  
Organic Wastes ◽  
Inorganic Fertilizer ◽  
Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽  
Average Height ◽  
Growth Responses ◽  
Red Cedar ◽  
Western Red Cedar

The fertilizer efficacy of a variety of organic wastes was tested in a 9-year-old plantation of western red cedar (Thujaplicata Donn ex D. Don) growing on a cutover of cedar–hemlock (Tsugaheterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.) forest on northern Vancouver Island. Seven treatments were compared: municipal sewage sludge, sewage sludge plus pulp sludge, fish silage and wood ash, silage and ash plus pulp sludge, wood ash alone, ammonium nitrate with triple super phosphate, and control (untreated). Each treatment was replicated three times. Rates of application were 225 kg N•ha−1 in the inorganic fertilizer and about 500 kg N•ha−1 in the organic wastes (except wood ash). The height and diameter of the cedar trees 2 years after fertilization were greatest in the plots treated with inorganic fertilizer (average height was 274 cm, vs. 211 cm in control plots; average diameter at 30 cm was 49 mm, vs. 34 mm in control plots). Smaller but significant growth responses were achieved with sewage sludge and fish silage plus ash. Mixtures of sewage sludge or silage with pulp sludge produced smaller height growth responses, but did not affect diameter growth. Wood ash alone had no effect on tree growth. All treatments except wood ash increased the concentrations of macronutrients in foliage. Foliar N concentrations were greatest in trees treated with fish silage or inorganic fertilizer. Stagnated plantations of western red cedar appear to provide an opportunity for recycling these organic wastes.

Responses of western hemlock, Pacific silver fir, and western red cedar plantations on northern Vancouver Island to applications of sewage sludge and inorganic fertilizer

1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. 1815-1820 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.F. Weetman ◽  
M.A. McDonald ◽  
C.E. Prescott ◽  
J.P. Kimmins
Keyword(s):  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Vancouver Island ◽  
Western Hemlock ◽  
Municipal Sewage ◽  
Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽  
Phosphorus Fertilization ◽  
Silver Fir ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Red Cedar ◽  
Western Red Cedar

A field experiment was designed to determine whether or not municipal sewage sludge would be effective for fertilization for chlorotic and checked plantations of western hemlock (Tsugaheterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.), Pacific silver fir (Abiesamabilis (Dougl.) Forbes), and western red cedar (Thujaplicata Donn ex. D. Don) already shown to be responsive to conventional nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization. Sewage sludge was applied at an estimated rate of 500 kg N/ha and 133 kg P/ha and ammonium nitrate and triple superphosphate were applied at 225 kg N/ha and 75 kg P/ha to plots planted 8 years earlier on a cutover of old-growth cedar–hemlock forest. Current-year leader growth and foliar vector analyses showed that the trees responded to both treatments during the first growing season with a doubling or tripling of growth rates and improved nutrition. The apparent problem of insufficient sulphur following nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization was not seen in trees treated with sludge. There were no apparent problems in micronutrient supply in these plantations. The extensive area of checked plantations on northern Vancouver Island present an opportunity for the disposal of sewage sludge.

Five-year growth response of western red cedar, western hemlock, and amabilis fir to chemical and organic fertilizers

1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (9) ◽  
pp. 1328-1334 ◽  
Author(s):  
C E Prescott ◽  
S M Brown
Keyword(s):  
Wood Ash ◽  
Tsuga Heterophylla ◽  
Pulp And Paper ◽  
Organic Fertilizers ◽  
Western Hemlock ◽  
Thuja Plicata ◽  
Paper Sludge ◽  
Growth Responses ◽  
Red Cedar ◽  
Western Red Cedar

The hypothesis that growth responses of conifers to application of organic fertilizers are of longer duration than responses to chemical fertilizers was tested in two trials on northern Vancouver Island. Both trials were in 10-year-old plantations of conifers on a salal-dominated cutover known to have poor N supply. In Trial 1, western red cedar (Thuja plicata Donn ex D. Don), western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.), and amabilis fir (Abies amabilis (Dougl.) Forbes) were treated with municipal biosolids at 542 kg N·ha-1 and 162 kg P·ha-1 or ammonium nitrate and triple superphosphate at 225 kg N·ha-1 and 75 kg P·ha-1. Height increments in the 5 years following applications were two to five times greater in plots treated with either biosolids or fertilizer than in untreated plots. In Trial 2, western red cedar was treated with fertilizer at 225 kg N·ha-1 and 75 kg P·ha-1 or the following organic amendments at 504-610 kg N·ha-1: biosolids, biosolids and pulp and paper sludge, fish silage and wood ash, fish silage with wood ash and pulp and paper sludge, and wood ash alone. Height increments in the 5 years following applications were similar in all treated plots (except wood ash alone). These experiments provided no evidence for sustained growth responses in plots treated with organic fertilizers compared with those treated with chemical fertilizer.

Mass and nutrient content of woody debris and forest floor in western red cedar and western hemlock forests on northern Vancouver Island

1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 1052-1059 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodney J. Keenan ◽  
Cindy E. Prescott ◽  
J.P. Hamish Kimmins
Keyword(s):  
Forest Floor ◽  
Forest Type ◽  
Woody Debris ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Vancouver Island ◽  
Western Hemlock ◽  
N Availability ◽  
Red Cedar ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Western Red Cedar

Biomass and C, N, P, and K contents of woody debris and the forest floor were surveyed in adjacent stands of old-growth western red cedar (Thujaplicata Donn)–western hemlock (Tsugaheterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.) (CH type), and 85-year-old, windstorm-derived, second-growth western hemlock–amabilis fir (Abiesamabilis (Dougl.) Forbes) (HA type) at three sites on northern Vancouver Island. Carbon concentrations were relatively constant across all detrital categories (mean = 556.8 mg/g); concentrations of N and P generally increased, and K generally decreased, with increasing degree of decomposition. The mean mass of woody debris was 363 Mg/ha in the CH and 226 Mg/ha in the HA type. The mean forest floor mass was 280 Mg/ha in the CH and 211 Mg/ha in the HA stands. Approximately 60% of the forest floor mass in each forest type was decaying wood. Dead woody material above and within the forest floor represented a significant store of biomass and nutrients in both forest types, containing 82% of the aboveground detrital biomass, 51–59% of the N, and 58–61% of the detrital P. Forest floors in the CH and HA types contained similar total quantities of N, suggesting that the lower N availability in CH forests is not caused by greater immobilization in detritus. The large accumulation of forest floor and woody debris in this region is attributed to slow decomposition in the cool, wet climate, high rates of detrital input following windstorms, and the large size and decay resistance of western red cedar boles.

Sewage Sludge Increases Early Growth and Decreases Fusiform Rust Infection of Nursery-Run and Rust-Resistant Loblolly Pine

1989 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 68-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas M. Stone ◽  
Harry R. Powers
Keyword(s):  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Volume Growth ◽  
Early Growth ◽  
Municipal Sewage ◽  
Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽  
First Year ◽  
Average Height ◽  
Fusiform Rust ◽  
Rust Infection

Abstract An intensively prepared site in a high-rust hazard area was fertilized with municipal sewage sludge to provide 300 or 600 lb/ac total nitrogen before planting nursery-run and fusiform rust-resistant seedlings. Rust-resistant seedlings had significantly greater first-year survival andsignificantly lower rust infection at age 6. The sludge treatments increased 6-year diameter and volume growth and decreased rust infection significantly; there were no differences between the two sludge levels. Sludge fertilization significantly increased average height, diameter, and stemvolume of the largest 300 trees/ac and has begun to stimulate crown class differentiation. The greater growth of the larger trees did not alter the proportion infected by rust. Results indicate that even in areas of high-rust hazard, intensive site preparation and sludge fertilization canincrease early growth and accelerate stand development of loblolly pine if rust-resistant stock is planted. South J. Appl. For. 13(2):68-71.

Root Grafts and their Silvicultural Implications

1972 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Eis
Keyword(s):  
Root System ◽  
Vancouver Island ◽  
Douglas Fir ◽  
Western Hemlock ◽  
Slow Recovery ◽  
Red Cedar ◽  
Western Red Cedar ◽  
Root Grafts

Many trees in stands of Douglas fir, western hemlock and western red cedar on Vancouver Island were joined by functional grafts. In a partially cut stand, 45% of the stumps showed evidence of continued growth and half of these (23%) were still growing vigorously more than 22 years after logging. On experimentally detopped trees, growth extended several meters up the bole. Dominant trees usually supported the growth of the root system and lower boles of grafted suppressed trees.Translocation through grafts may partially explain the frequent stagnation and slow recovery of stands after thinning from above, and may be involved in the usually rapid increase of growth after thinning from below. It is probably a contributing factor in establishing dominance and determining mortality in overtopped trees. In species that graft freely, the use of silvicides in spacing and thinning treatments should be restricted to young stands before grafts are established.

scholarly journals Industrial and urban organic wastes increase soil microbial activity and biomass

2012 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 1629-1636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cácio Luiz Boechat ◽  
Jorge Antonio Gonzaga Santos ◽  
Adriana Maria de Aguiar Accioly ◽  
Marcela Rebouças Bomfim ◽  
Adailton Conceição dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Microbial Activity ◽  
Pulp Mill ◽  
Soil Microbial Activity ◽  
Organic Wastes ◽  
Metabolic Quotient ◽  
Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Pulp Mill Sludge ◽  
The Impact

Microbial processes have been used as indicators of soil quality, due to the high sensitivity to small changes in management to evaluate, e.g., the impact of applying organic residues to the soil. In an experiment in a completely randomized factorial design 6 x 13 + 4, (pot without soil and residue or absolute control) the effect of following organic wastes was evaluated: pulp mill sludge, petrochemical complex sludge, municipal sewage sludge, dairy factory sewage sludge, waste from pulp industry and control (soil without organic waste) after 2, 4, 6, 12, 14, 20, 28, 36, 44, 60, 74, 86, and 98 days of incubation on some soil microbial properties, with four replications. The soil microbial activity was highly sensitive to the carbon/nitrogen ratio of the organic wastes. The amount of mineralized carbon was proportional to the quantity of soil-applied carbon. The average carbon dioxide emanating from the soil with pulp mill sludge, corresponding to soil basal respiration, was 0.141 mg C-CO2 100 g-1 soil h-1. This value is 6.4 times higher than in the control, resulting in a significant increase in the metabolic quotient from 0.005 in the control to 0.025 mg C-CO2 g-1 Cmic h-1 in the soil with pulp mill sludge. The metabolic quotient in the other treatments did not differ from the control (p < 0.01), demonstrating that these organic wastes cause no disturbance in the microbial community.

Use of 31P NMR in the Study of Soils and the Environment

1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leo M. Condron ◽  
Emmanuel Frossard
Keyword(s):  
Nmr Spectroscopy ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
31P Nmr ◽  
Chemical Nature ◽  
Parent Material ◽  
Organic Wastes ◽  
Municipal Sewage ◽  
Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽  
Soil P ◽  
Plant System

Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient for plants and animals because of its vital role in energy transformation processes such as photosynthesis and glycolysis. Soil is the primary source of P for plants (and animals), and while native soil P is mainly derived from the mineral apatite (Ca10(PO4)6(OH,F)2) present in soil parent material, supplementary P is added in fertilizers. In addition, large quantities of P are present in household and industrial chemicals such as detergents, and as a result organic wastes such as municipal sewage sludge contain significant amounts of various chemical forms of inorganic and organic P. The biogeochemical cycling of P in soil is determined by a complex interaction of chemical, biochemical and biological processes, which in turn are influenced by a variety of environmental and anthropogenic factors in natural and agro-ecosystems. It is clear that P is a key element in the environment; it is indispensable for plant growth, but its release into water bodies such as rivers and lakes can cause significant environmental damage as a result of eutrophication. The detailed chemical nature and associated transformations of P in the soil—plant system, and the fate of native and applied P in particular, must be fully understood in order to maximize the agronomic benefits of P while minimizing any adverse environmental impacts. The latter is particularly important in view of the growing importance of land application as a disposal option for organic wastes such as animal manures and municipal sewage sludge. The large gyromagnetic ratio of the 31P nucleus and its 100% natural abundance make 31P easy to detect by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, and accordingly NMR has been used to examine P in a wide variety of environments. In particular, NMR spectroscopy has been shown to be a valuable tool for investigating the chemical nature and transformations of P in the soil environment and the associated fate of fertilizers, pesticides and organic wastes. This chapter includes a brief summary of the use of liquid-state 31P NMR to investigate the chemical nature and cycling of P in the soil-plant system and the fate of selected pesticides.

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