scholarly journals The influence of initial spacing on growth and survival of Scots pine in 40 years period of cultivation in varied habitat conditions

2014 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-125
Author(s):  
Wojciech Gil

Abstract The aim of the research was to determine the effect of initial spacing on the survival and growth of pine trees in dry coniferous and fresh coniferous forest habitats after nearly 40 years from the establishment of plantation. The study presents an analysis of seven spacing variants in square, rectangular and triangular spacing patterns with the initial density ranging from 6 944 seedlings/ha to 15 625 seedlings/ha. The studies were conducted on two study sites. No tending treatments (selective thinning) were performed in the examined stands throughout the growing season. It was shown that habitat conditions had a significant effect on the survival, diameter and height growth of trees in pine stands. In the less productive forest habitat, where the competition of trees is smaller, the survival was 1.5 to 2-fold higher compared to the more productive habitat. Pine trees growing in the fresh coniferous forest had substantially larger diameters at breast height (dbh) compared to the dry coniferous forest. The spacing effect depended on the habitat conditions. This influence was stronger in the less productive habitat compared to the more productive forest habitat which was reflected in the greater differences in the discussed parameters. The average dbh value of all trees on the Płock site increased with the increase of tree growing space (i.e. lower initial planting density) and ranged from 8.24 cm in variant A (15 625 seedlings/ha) to 9.79 cm in variant C (6 944 seedlings/ha). On the Łąck site, the trees growing at a low density (variants C and E) had significantly larger diameters compared to the trees growing at a density from 10 000 plants/ha to 15 625 plants/ha (spacing variants A, B, F, G). The studies also showed a significant effect of the habitat conditions and initial spacing on the diameter of pine trees in biosocial class I. Triangular spacing in the fresh coniferous forest was found to have more positive effect on tree diameter growth. It is consistent with the findings of other authors that trees planted in triangular spacing make better use of space which is positively reflected in their growth. The results obtained from the research allow to formulate the conclusion that habitat conditions have a significant effect on the survival, diameter and height growth of trees in pine stands. The research also showed a significant effect of initial spacing on the diameter at breast height of pines at the end of age class II. No dependence was found of the initial planting density on the height growth rate of trees. In both forest habitats under consideration, trees planted at a density of approximately 11.5 thousand plants per hectare were the highest. The triangular initial spacing pattern had a positive effect on this characteristic.

1995 ◽  
Vol 25 (9) ◽  
pp. 1553-1557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin L. O'Hara ◽  
Narayanan I. Valappil

Ponderosa pine (Pinusponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.) frequently grows in pure, multi-aged stands throughout its range. Sapwood–leaf area prediction equations were developed for multi-aged, multi-strata ponderosa pine stands in western Montana and central Oregon. No significant differences were found between equations for trees from lower or upper strata, or between equations for all trees and equations for upper or lower strata trees in either study location. These results indicate overstory ponderosa pine trees do not require significantly greater sapwood conducting tissue per unit of leaf area than understory trees. Single variable models using only sapwood area at breast height are recommended.


1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Scott ◽  
Rodney Meade ◽  
Richard Leon ◽  
David Hyink ◽  
Richard Miller

Test plantations were established in western Washington and Oregon to compare tree growth at six initial planting densities ranging from 300 to 2960 trees/ha (120 to 1200/acre). A size-density relation was visually apparent 3 to 4 years after planting. Inventory data from the oldest 11 trials (5 or 6 years after planting) showed that initial spacing strongly influenced early growth of coast Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco var. menziesii). Average height and diameter at breast height were progressively larger as planting density increased; at the widest spacing (lowest stand density), average height was 75% and average diameter at breast height was 67% of that at the closest spacing. We have no firm explanation for the early faster tree growth at close spacings. Trees planted at 2960 trees/ha (1200 trees/acre) attained breast height (1.3 m) 2 years earlier than trees planted at a density of 300/ha (120/acre). This finding has practical significance to current efforts to achieve early establishment of plantations.


2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 219-226
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Szewczyk ◽  
Piotr Iwanicki

AbstractSkidding of large-sized logs requires special machinery such as skidders, clambunks, forwarders or farm tractors with a winch or hydraulic tongs. The precise choice of which skidding machine to use depends largely on the desired efficiency and economic factors. The aim of this research was to evaluate the suitability of three different machines (LKT 81 skidder, John Deere 1110D forwarder and Pronar 1221A agricultural tractor with hydraulic tongs) for wood skidding based on technical and economic indicators. The practical work for this research was carried out in the Mirosławiec Forest Division in areas with fresh mixed coniferous forest habitats where the dominant species in the stands was pine and strip-like clear cutting was the preferred management practice.The best machinery performance values were obtained for skidding using the John Deere forwarder.


2011 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. 269-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arkadiusz Tomczak ◽  
Witold Pazdrowski ◽  
Grzegorz Kupczyk ◽  
Tomasz Jelonek

The aim of the study was to determine whether there is a correlation between breast height diameter, tree height and stem total volume of Scots pines, on the one hand, and volume and proportion of juvenile wood, on the other. The investigations comprised pure pine stands of the IInd, IIIrd, IVth and Vth age classes developed in conditions of fresh mixed coniferous forest. A distinct curvilinear correlation was found between volume and proportion of juvenile wood in tree stems and breast height diameter, height and stem total volume. Because of high values of determination coefficients (R<sup>2</sup>), which characterised the above-mentioned correlations, it seems appropriate to use these regularities to assess the quality of the timber raw material regarding the proportions of its volume and juvenile wood in stems of Scots pine trees.


2002 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 1451-1459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahadev Sharma ◽  
Harold E Burkhart ◽  
Ralph L Amateis

The effect of spacing rectangularity on tree growth and stand development was evaluated using tree data obtained annually from a loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) spacing trial monitored through age 16 years. In this trial, plots with an initial planting density of 2240 trees/ha occur at slightly and highly rectangular spacings. Spacings with rectangularities 3:4 and 1:3 were used to evaluate the rectangularity effect. Survival and the development of height, diameter, volume per hectare, and basal area per hectare of loblolly pine trees were not affected by rectangularity. Diameter and height distributions were found to be a function of age but not a function of the rectangularity of initial spacing. Crown width, however, was affected by rectangularity. The crown width was larger at larger row or column distance than at smaller row or column distance, but the ratio of crown widths between and within rows was not equal to the rectangularity of the original planting spacing.


IAWA Journal ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 158-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhao Rongjun ◽  
Yao Chunli ◽  
Cheng Xianbao ◽  
Lu Jianxiong ◽  
Fei Benhua ◽  
...  

The anatomical characteristics, chemical composition, and physical and mechanical properties of fast-growing Populus × euramericana cv. ‘74/76’ juvenile wood were investigated. Four- to five-year-old clonal plantation trees were harvested from two different experimental sites in the suburbs of Beijing. The Shunyi site had black alkali soil with a planting density of 4 × 6 m and the Miyun site had sandy loam soil with a planting density of 3 × 5 m. The test results showed that the poplar trees from the two sites were both fast growing, with poplar at Shunyi growing faster than at Miyun. There were no significant differences in wood properties between trees grown at the two sites. Fiber length at breast height varied from 872 to 1300 μm between growth rings, average fiber width varied from 21.0 to 25.5 μm and double wall thickness varied from 5.0 to 6.6 μm. Average cellulose, lignin and hemicellulose contents in the samples were 48.9%, 25.4%, and 18.8%, respectively. MFA was higher in the first two growth rings (20–25°), and then decreased rapidly to 12° close to the bark. The average air-dry density at breast height was 401 kg/m3 while the average MOE at breast height was 9.3 GPa. The trees showed large growth rates in both height and stem diameter during the growing season. However, wood properties of the juvenile poplar appeared to be similar to those of poplars with a slower growth rate.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirzeta Memišević Hodžić ◽  
Dalibor Ballian

This research aims to determine the interaction of the effects of provenance and habitat conditions on provenance tests on the growth of Scots pine on two experimental plots in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Provenance tests are located on plots with different ecological conditions and altitudes: Romanija Glasinac, 1000 m, and Gostović Zavidovići, 480 m. Both tests include 11 provenances and two clonal seed plantations with 10 families in each, and five repetitions. Tree heights and diameters at breast height were measured at the age of 21 years. Interactions were determined using multivariate analysis for measured traits. The highest average heights on the provenance test Glasinac had provenances Bugojno, Romanija Glasinac, and Šipovo (8.8 m), and on the Gostović provenance Rogatica (11.0 m). The highest average diameter at breast height on the Glasinac test had Šipovo provenance (13.9 cm) and on the Gostović test Bosanski Petrovac provenance (12.3 cm). Variance analysis showed statistically significant differences among provenances in terms of diameter at breast height and height values. Multivariate analysis showed the presence of interactions of effects of provenances and habitat conditions on provenance tests. For provenances that did not show interaction, it is recommended to use provenances that performed better in the given ecological conditions, and for those that showed interaction, it is necessary to choose those provenances which are expected to show better results in given conditions later in life. The obtained results are very important for the conservation activities of this species.


Author(s):  
Mirella Basileu de Oliveira Lima ◽  
Mauro Eloi Nappo ◽  
Kálita Luis Soares ◽  
Renato Vinícius Oliveira Castro ◽  
Eder Pereira Miguel ◽  
...  

We evaluated the effect of initial spacing on the distribution of Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus urophylla tree diameters in a Nelder wheel design. The study area was in west-central Brazil. A Nelder wheel design with three repetitions was used. This design provides 432 planting spots per plot/repetition. Planting density varied from 0.50 m² to 41.25 m². The diameter at breast height was measured for all plants every four months until 36 months of age, totaling eight measurements. The description of the diameter distribution was developed by fitting probability density functions for each spacing and age. The quality of fit was evaluated using the root mean square error percentage, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (α < 0.05). The spacings up to 1.17 m² must be harvested in less than two years, since it is noted that in the third year the increment in diameter is static and the mortality rate increases. The spacing highly affects the diameter structure of the population, impelling the forester to consider different uses for the wood. For wood requiring larger diameters, spacing above 8.69 m² per tree is recommended


2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (7) ◽  
pp. 624-635
Author(s):  
Patrick J. Curtin ◽  
Benjamin O. Knapp ◽  
Steven B. Jack ◽  
Lance A. Vickers ◽  
David R. Larsen ◽  
...  

Recent interest in continuous cover forest management of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) ecosystems raises questions of long-term sustainability because of uncertainty in rates of canopy recruitment of longleaf pine trees. We destructively sampled 130 naturally regenerated, midstory longleaf pines across an 11 300 ha, second-growth longleaf pine landscape in southwestern Georgia, United States, to reconstruct individual tree height growth patterns. We tested effects of stand density (using a competition index) and site quality (based on two site classifications: mesic and xeric) on height growth and demographics of midstory trees. We also compared height growth of paired midstory and overstory trees to infer stand regeneration and recruitment dynamics. In low-density stands, midstory trees were younger and grew at greater rates than trees within high-density stands. Midstory trees in low-density stands were mostly from a younger regeneration cohort than their paired overstory trees, whereas midstory–overstory pairs in high-density stands were mostly of the same cohort. Our results highlight the importance of releasing midstory longleaf pine trees from local competition for sustained height growth in partial-harvesting management systems. They also demonstrate patterns of long-term persistence in high-density stands, indicating flexibility in the canopy recruitment process of this shade-intolerant tree species.


1989 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew M. Gordon ◽  
Peter A. Williams ◽  
Edward P. Taylor

Abstract Four dominant or codominant Norway spruce trees from each of 55 sites were destructively sampled and the annual height growth determined by stem analysis. The sampled sites were stratified by soil textural class (coarse, medium, and fine) and depth to distinct mottling (0-16, 16-40, and 40 in.). Two sets of an-amorphic site index curves were constructed using a total age of 30 years (SI30), and breast height age of 25 years (SIBH25) as base ages. The mean SI30 from Ontario (53 ft) was found to be 17.8% higher than the mean values published from Vermont (45 ft) and currently used in Ontario. SIBH25 values had a range of 34.6 to 74.8 ft with a mean of 55.3 ft. Analysis of variance showed significant differences in SIBH25 due to soil texture and drainage class, and in years to breast height (BH) due to drainage class. SIBH25 was highest on sites with loamy soils and distinct mottling at 16-40 in. It took an average of 6.5 years for seedlings to reach BH with a range of 3 to 12 years. Years to BH was lowest on sites with sandy soils and those with distinct mottling below 40 in. North. J. Appl. For. 6(1):23-26, March 1989.


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