scholarly journals Humectants as Post-Plant Soil Amendments: Effects on the Wilting Cycle of Drought-Stressed, Container-Grown Tree Seedlings

2010 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 275-280
Author(s):  
Bruce Roberts ◽  
R. Scott Linder

To test the potential effectiveness of humectant-containing compounds for improving soil moisture availability in the rhizosphere of newly transplanted trees, one-year-old Jiffy Plug™ and bare-root seedlings of red maple (Acer rubrum L.) and red oak (Quercus rubra L.) and one-year-old bare-root seedlings of yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.) were treated with Hydretain ES™ (HydES) and EcoSential™ (EcoS) in greenhouse studies. Both products were applied as a root drench to seedlings in 3.8 L plastic pots containing soilless substrate. Following treatment, water was withheld and days to wilt (DTW) recorded for each seedling. For red maple, HydES at the recommended rate (16 mL/L, X), as well as at 0.75X and 0.5X, was effective in increasing DTW, as was EcoS at 16 mL/L (the recommended rate, X) and at 0.75X. For red oak, the lowest concentration of HydES (0.5X) was ineffective, but the two higher levels (X and 0.75X) increased DTW significantly when compared to untreated controls. For yellow-poplar, DTW was consistently greater in treated than in untreated seedlings, but the differences were not always statistically significant. The data also indicate that for certain species (e.g. red maple), production type (Jiffy Plug or bare root) may influence the degree to which seedlings respond to humectant treatment.

2012 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-12
Author(s):  
Bruce Roberts ◽  
R. Scott Linder ◽  
Charles Krause ◽  
Ryan Harmanis

One-year-old seedlings of red maple (Acer rubrum L.) and yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.) were treated with Hydretain ES™(HydES) or EcoSential™(EcoS) applied as a soil drench. A progressive drought cycle was imposed after treatment, and as each seedling wilted, the leaves and roots were harvested. Foliar growth was unaffected by HydES or EcoS, but root growth (roots < 1 mm diameter) was significantly less for seedlings grown in the humectant-treated media. These data, along with measurements of substrate moisture content taken during a similar dry down period, suggest that drought-induced fine root growth in humectant-treated media was slower because there was less need for these roots to extend and proliferate in search of additional soil moisture supplies. In studies conducted the following year, HydES or EcoS were applied as a soil drench to one-year-old seedlings of red maple and river birch (Betula nigra L.) prior to withholding irrigation. In these studies, measurements of chlorophyll fluorescence, leaf gas exchange, and xylem water potential indicate that physiological activity was greater for drought-stressed seedlings grown in HydES-treated media compared to similar seedlings grown in EcoS-treated media, a condition attributed to lower levels of plant-water stress (higher xylem water potentials) in the HydES-treated seedlings.


Holzforschung ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 54 (6) ◽  
pp. 577-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Stevanovic Janezic ◽  
P.A. Cooper ◽  
Y.T. Ung

Summary We have examined chromated copper arsenate (CCA) wood preservative fixation at two selected temperatures in seven common North American hardwood species: red maple (Acer rubrum L.), white birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.), yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.), trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.), red oak (Quercus rubra L.), basswood (Tilia americana L.) and American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.). The softwood red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) was included for comparison. CCA component fixation was monitored by the expressate method at both 21°C and 50°C under non-drying conditions. Hexavalent chromium (CrVI) and total Cr, Cu and As contents of the expressate were determined at different times during fixation. Based on CCA fixation results it was possible to divide the examined hardwoods into a fast fixing group (beech, red oak and red maple), intermediate group (white birch and red pine) and slow fixing group (aspen, yellow poplar and basswood). The variable fixation rates for the different species could not be directly related to different anatomical and chemical attributes of the studied hardwoods, although there was an apparent relationship with density with more dense species fixing faster than low density species. However, the species differences appeared to be mainly influenced by types and amounts of extractives in the woods. In red maple, extraction resulted in a slowing of the fixation rate, while the opposite effect was seen in red oak.


Holzforschung ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Stevanovic-Janezic ◽  
P.A. Cooper ◽  
Y.T. Ung

Summary Seven North American hardwood species were vacuum or vacuum/pressure treated with 2% CCA-C solution and fixed at temperatures of 21°C and 50°C under conditions of high relative humidity (95%). The rates of fixation results are presented in Part 1 of this study. Red maple (Acer rubrum L.), red oak (Quercus rubra L.), American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh), white birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.), trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.), basswood (Tilia americana L.) and yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.) were evaluated. The softwood red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) was included for comparison. Adequately fixed wood blocks (99.9% chromium reduction) were exposed to leaching by the AWPA E11 procedure. All CCA components were leached in high quantities from oak wood, while from red maple and beech, high arsenic leaching occurred. Leaching losses from aspen, basswood and yellow poplar were low and comparable for both fixation temperatures. In most species, the amount of leaching was affected by the treating method, with lower leaching from pressure treated wood blocks than from vacuum treated blocks. Removal of extractives from maple and oak blocks before treatment affected the CCA leaching performance in these species. Extracted red oak had lower chromium and copper leaching, but higher arsenic leaching. In contrast, extracted red maple had reduced leaching of all CCA components compared to unextracted wood. The examined hardwoods can be classified into three groups according to their CCA fixing and leaching characteristics: fast fixing/high leaching group (beech, red oak and red maple), intermediate fixation rate and leaching group (white birch and red pine) and slow fixing and low leaching group (aspen, yellow poplar and basswood).


Fire ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Roger Williams ◽  
Haibin Wang

A wildfire occurred in Shawnee State Forest located in southern Ohio that consumed 1215 hectares. Based on earlier forest inventories it was known that paulownia (Paulownia tomentosa), a non-native invasive tree species, occurred in the forest. The objective of this study was to determine if paulownia heavily colonized areas two years after the fire where the burn occurred, and if its presence had a negative impact on the regeneration (<137 cm height) of native species—red and white oaks (Quercus sp.), red maple (Acer rubrum), and yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). Two years after the fire, paulownia had invaded the burned areas but not at significantly higher densities than occurred in the unburned areas. Fire significantly reduced the number of regenerating stems of white oak and red maple two years after the fire, whereas the number of regenerating stems of red oak increased slightly and that of yellow-poplar increased significantly. In areas where paulownia occurred that experienced wildfire, all species studied displayed a reduction in the number of regenerating stems compared to paulownia’s absence in the burn areas. Where paulownia occurred in areas not affected by the wildfire, all the native species studied displayed a reduction in the number of regenerating stems. The average heights of red oak, white oak, and red maple were significantly taller when growing in areas affected by the wildfire due to a more open canopy. However, there was no significant change in the average heights of yellow-poplar. The presence of paulownia in both the burned and unburned areas reduced the number of regenerating stems of the native species studied.


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darby McGrath ◽  
Jason Henry ◽  
Ryan Munroe ◽  
Erin Agro

Abstract This experiment investigated the effect of different plug-tray cell designs on root development of red maple (Acer rubrum), red oak (Quercus rubra), and quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) seedlings. In April of 2015, seeds of each species were sown into three plug trays with different substrate volumes and grown for 17 weeks. Two trays had permeable walls for air-pruning, one with vertical ribs and one without. The third tray had impermeable plastic cell walls. Harvested seedlings were analyzed for root dry weight, length, volume, surface area and number of deflected roots. Root length per volume was highest in the impermeable-walled tray for red maple and quaking aspen. The total numbers of deflected root systems were higher for all species in the impermeable-walled tray. Seedlings grown in the air-pruning trays had smaller proportions of deflected root masses. Greater substrate volume did not influence root deflection development. The air-pruning tray without vertical ribs had the lowest total number of root masses with misdirected roots and lower proportions of root masses with misdirected roots for all species. These results indicate that improved root architecture in root-air pruning tray designs is achievable in tree propagation; however, vertical plastic structures in air-pruning trays can still cause root deflections. Index words: Deflected roots, air-pruning, seedling, propagation, plugs, root architecture. Species used in the study: red maple (Acer rubrum L.); red oak (Quercus rubra L.); quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.).


1988 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil I. Lamson

Abstract In northern West Virginia, 7-year-old American basswood (Tilia americana L.) and 12-year-old red maple (Acer rubrum L.), black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.), and northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) stump sprout clumps received one of four treatments: unthinned control; thinned to the best one or two codominant sprouts per clump; branch pruned up to 75% of total height; or thinned plus pruned. Analysis of 10-year growth data showed that height growth was not affected by any of the treatments. For all species, pruning slightly increased the length of clear stem and decreased periodic diameter growth. Thinning increased survival of basswood, red oak, and red maple crop stems. Thinning increased the 10-year diameter growth by 0.1 to 0.8 in. Recommendations for thinning 10- to 20-year-old sprout clumps are presented. Pruning is not recommended. In order to maintain maximum diameter growth, thinning individual sprout clumps should be followed by stand crop tree release in about 10 years. South. J. Appl. For. 12(1):23-27.


1983 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil I. Lamson

Abstract In West Virginia crop trees were selected from 7- or 12-year-old yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.), basswood (Tilia americana L.), red maple (Acer rubrum L.), black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.), and northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) stump sprouts. Crop trees were dominant or codominant, well-formed sprouts that originated not more than 6 inches above groundline and did not fork in the lower 17 feet. Four treatments were evaluated: (1) control; (2) thinning; (3) pruning; and (4) thinning plus pruning. Five years after treatment the diameter (d.b.h.) growth of thinned sprouts was 1.5 times greater than that of control sprouts. Pruning did not cause a significant decrease in five-year d.b.h. growth. Height growth was not affected by the treatments. Most of the epicormic branches produced by pruning were dead five years after treatment. Natural pruning was reduced by thinning; the average clear bole length of thinned sprouts was about 2 feet shorter than that of the control sprouts. Survival was nearly 100 percent.


2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.A. Wheeler ◽  
N.M. Gonzalez ◽  
K.A. Stinson

Microhabitat environmental conditions are an important filter for seedling establishment, controlling the availability of optimal recruitment sites. Understanding how tree seedlings respond to warming soil temperature is critical for predicting population recruitment in the future hardwood forests of northeastern North America, particularly as environmental conditions and thus optimal microhabitat availabilities change. We examined the effect of soil warming of 5 °C during the first growing season on germination, survival, phenology, growth, and stem and root biomass allocation in Acer rubrum L. (red maple) seedlings. While there was no effect of soil warming on germination or survival, seedlings growing in warmer soils demonstrated significantly accelerated leaf expansion, delayed autumn leaf senescence, and an extended leaf production period. Further, seedlings growing in warmer soils showed larger leaf area and stem and root structures at the end of the first growing season, with no evidence of biomass allocation trade-offs. Results suggest that A. rubrum seedlings can capitalize on soil warming by adjusting leaf phenology and leaf production, resulting in a longer period of carbon uptake and leading to higher overall biomass. The absence of growth allocation trade-offs suggests that A. rubrum will respond positively to increasing soil temperatures in northeastern forests, at least in the early life stages.


2003 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 264-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Heitzman

Abstract Since 1999, widespread and locally severe oak decline and mortality have occurred throughout the Ozark Mountains of northern Arkansas and southern Missouri. A contributing factor in the decline and mortality is an outbreak of the red oak borer [Enaphalodes rufulus (Haldeman) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)]. In northern Arkansas, a 2,150 ac mature oak forest severely affected by decline was selected as a case study to describe changes in species composition and stand structure and to assess regeneration potential of oaks and non-oak species. Mortality reduced total overstory basal area from 105 to 57 ft2/ac, and overstory density decreased from 156 to 89 trees/ac. Most dead and dying trees were northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) and black oak (Q. velutina Lam.). Basal area and density of overstory red oaks were reduced from 51 to 11 ft2/ac and from 60 to 11 trees/ac, respectively. These trees died regardless of dbh class. Mortality was less common in white oak (Q. alba L.) and was generally limited to smaller trees. Understory trees and taller seedlings were predominantly red maple (Acer rubrum L.), flowering dogwood (Cornus florida L.), blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica Marsh.), and black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.). Oaks less than 3 ft tall were abundant, but taller oak seedlings and saplings were uncommon. Tree mortality increased the proportion of white oak and hickories (Carya spp.) in the overstory, and stimulated a regeneration response of mostly non-oak species. South. J. Appl. For. 27(4):264–268.


1990 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 199-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Miller

Abstract Six herbicides were compared as directed foliar sprays applied in May, July, and September on seven hardwood species and on loblolly pine. Equal-cost mixtures that met or exceeded minimum labeled rates were tested for Weedone 2,4- DP, Gadon 4, Garlon 3A, Arsenal Applicator Concentrate, Roundup, Escort, and Roundup + Escort. Test hardwoods were sweetgum, southern red oak, water oak, red maple, pignut hickory, dogwood, and yellow poplar. Crown volume reduction and rootstock reduction after one growing season were the main indicators of efficacy. Using directed sprays, yellow poplar was the easiest species to control, and pignut hickory was the most difficult. Control of sweetgum was most effective with Weedone, Arsenal, and Roundup. For control of oaks, the most effective applications were in July with Arsenal, Garlon 4 and 3A, and Roundup; but these and other hardwood species tended to refoliate 2 years after Arsenal treatment. Herbicide safety to loblolly pine was best with Arsenal and Escort, while injury was greatest with Roundup and Garlon 3A, which might have potential use in precommercial thinnings. South. J. Appl. For 14(4):199-206.


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