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Douglass F. Jacobs Anthony S. Davis

Performance of northern red oak on former surface coal mines: influence of stocktype, controlled-release fertilizer, and mycorrhizal inoculation. Douglass F. Jacobs Anthony S. Davis.

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Douglass F. Jacobs Anthony S. Davis

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  1. Performance of northern red oak on former surface coal mines: influence of stocktype, controlled-release fertilizer, and mycorrhizal inoculation Douglass F. Jacobs Anthony S. Davis Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration CenterDepartment of Forestry and Natural ResourcesPurdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

  2. Overview • Introduction • Forest plantations & forestry in Indiana • Mined land reclamation • Improving seedling establishment • Materials and methods • Results • Conclusions and future directions • Acknowledgements

  3. Plantations • ~ 5 % of the world’s forest cover • Increasing % of forest products • Used to restore degraded lands • Erosion control • Provide benefits associated with forests

  4. Forestry in Indiana • Central Hardwood Forest Region (CHFR) • Change in forest cover • 200 years ago: ~ 85 % • 100 years ago: ~ 8 % • presently: ~ 19 % • Increasing since 1950s • Conversion of marginal ag land • ~ 5 million bareroot seedlings planted/year • 20 % for mined land reclamation

  5. Forestry in Indiana • Landowners plant hardwood seedlings • provide forestland for future generations • maintain wildlife habitat • conserve the environment • timber production

  6. Mined land reclamation • Coal producing region ~ 17,000 km2 • ~ 40 % exploited • Predicted future increase in coal consumption = increased exploitation • 1977 Surface Mining Control & Reclamation Act • Graded to the original contour • Replacement of topsoil • Altered soil properties • Erosion • Low seedling survival • Poor performance • Low land value → conversion

  7. Mined land reclamation • Reclamation of these sites • Returns to heavily disturbed lands some components of natural ecosystems • Hydrological processes • Forest cover • Erosion control • Wildlife habitat • Carbon sequestration • Aesthetically appealing • Increases land value

  8. Mined land reclamation • Reclaimed surface coal mines • Hardwood seedlings • First-year survival ~ 80 % • Subsequent years ~ 25 % • Erosion • Low land value • Forest conversion

  9. Northern red oak • Able to survive a wide range of conditions • Success in mine reclamation • High commercial value • Historical and cultural significance • Commonly planted throughout Indiana

  10. Stocktype – bareroot seedlings • Common • ~ 98% of plantations established • Low cost • ~ $0.25/seedling • Readily available • Perform moderately well on former agricultural land • Root system modification weakens drought stress resistance

  11. Stocktype – containerized seedlings • Uniform crop • More efficient planting • Extended planting window • Fall planting • Entire root system • Minimal use in CHFR • Large (> 4L), expensive (> $5) seedlings produced • Drought resistance • Variable site conditions

  12. Controlled-release fertilizer • Polymer coating releases fertilizer over an extended period • Increase plant growth rate after outplanting • Improve seedling nutrition on poor sites

  13. Mycorrhizal inoculation • Naturally occur in undisturbed conditions • Mycorrhizae are known to • Increase water and nutrient uptake • Buffer against pH • Buffer against nutrient toxicity • Can improve survival and growth • Operational use with conifers

  14. Objectives • Compare the effect of 4 stocktypes… • Assess the influence of controlled-release fertilizer (CRF) and mycorrhizal inoculation (MI)… ...on survival and performance of northern red oak on reclaimed mined lands

  15. Map from: http://www.usgs.gov Materials and methods - sites • Two sites, Clay County, Indiana • Privately owned • Mined 1930s • Graded to original contour in 1980s • Mined late 1980s • Planted 2000 • Poor survival Soil pH = 4.09 Soil pH = 6.55 Topsoil depth ~ 30 cm

  16. Bareroot Standard-density (75 seedlings/m2) Low-density (21 seedlings/m2) Containerized (650 cm3) June-sown (2002) January-sown (2003) Stocktypes

  17. Controlled-release fertilizer • Osmocote® ExactTM Lo-Start 15-8-10 + micros • 16 - 18 month release (at media temperature of 21°C) • ~ 9 g/seedling • Containerized seedlings - in the media • Bareroot seedlings at the base of the planting hole

  18. Mycorrhizal inoculation • Inoculum consisted of: • Pisolithus tinctorius • 1 Rhizopogon sp. • 4 Scleroderma spp. • Field inoculated (2500 spores/seedling) • Immediately after planting • August • Syringe application • 5 mL solution

  19. Plantation establishment • 17 April 2003 • Tractor-hauled coulter with trencher and packing wheels • 10 seedlings/row • 1.5 m × 2.4 m spacing • OustTM and GlyproPlusTM • 2.29 m fence • 1120 seedlings planted

  20. Measurements and analyses • Survival • Height • Root-collar diameter • Leaf water potential • Analysis of variance (ANOVA) to identify differences between treatments • Significant differences (α = 0.05) were separated using Tukey’s mean separation test

  21. Methods – leaf water potential • Remove leaf at base of petiole • Place leaf inside chamber • Petiole remains visible • Increase chamber pressure • Record pressure • Exudation from xylem

  22. Standard-density Low-density June-sown January-sown Results – survival

  23. Largest initial height Results – height growth

  24. Results – height growth

  25. Results – diameter growth

  26. Standard-density Low-density June-sown January-sown Results – leaf water potential

  27. Results – leaf water potential

  28. Summary • Bareroot seedlings had higher survival • Containerized seedlings without CRF survival equaled bareroot • June-sown containers had greater % root-collar diameter growth than bareroot seedlings • January-sown containerized seedlings had less negative leaf water potential • Better able to mitigate moisture stress • MI and CRF did not benefit establishment

  29. Conclusions • Seedling establishment under adverse conditions may be improved • First year results indicate that standard-density bareroot seedlings may be most effective • % growth of containerized seedlings better • Seedling stocktypes should be developed to target specific issues • Site conditions • Cost • Ownership objectives • Silvicultural practices

  30. Future directions • 2nd year assessment • Determine how initial size/shape of containerized seedlings influences field performance relative to bareroot seedlings • Continue to examine application of controlled-release fertilizer at planting • Tailor fertilization during nursery culture to specific site conditions • Nutrient loading

  31. Hansford Mann & family Robert Pickett & family Stu Haney I-DNR Vallonia Nursery Staff of the HTIRC Acknowledgements • Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Reclamation • Ray Brumfiel and Steve Herbert • Purdue University, Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration Center and Department of Forestry and Natural Resources • Dr. Bill Chaney • Dr. Phil Pope • Rob Eddy • Amy Ross-Davis • Don Carlson • Zach Lowe

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