Hybrid poplar plantation establishment in Saskatchewan: first year results

Non-Peer ReviewedThe production of Short-Rotation Woody Crops (SRWC) has been growing steadily throughout North America. In Saskatchewan, interest is focused on developing hybrid poplar (var. ‘Walker’) plantations for an expanding fibre industry, and as a means to diversify farm income and possibly to increase sequestered carbon. Preliminary results from a small 6 year-old plantation suggest that there is good potential for operational-scale hybrid poplar production over a 15 to 20 year rotation period. Larger-scale field trials were established in the spring of 2002 on two sites in the Meadow Lake region, to assess and compare select silvicultural practices that are regarded to enhance the growth of hybrid poplars. After one growing season, both types of rooted stock (cuttings and plugs) showed superior survivability (~92 %) compared to non-rooted cuttings (~40 %), underscoring the reduced risk in planting rooted stock, especially during dry years. Measurements of tree growth (tree height, stem volume, total plant biomass and root production) all indicated a noticeable advantage of rooted versus non-rooted stock. Observational data pointed to the necessity of thorough site preparation, adherence to proper planting techniques, and mechanical or chemical weed control for successful plantation establishment

Understorey plant community and light availability in conifer plantations and natural hardwood forests in Taiwan

Questions: What are the effects of replacing mixed species natural forests with Cryptomeria japonica plantations on understorey plant functional and species diversity? What is the role of the understorey light environment in determining understorey diversity and community in the two types of forest? Location: Subtropical northeast Taiwan. Methods: We examined light environments using hemispherical photography, and diversity and composition of understorey plants of a 35‐yr C. japonica plantation and an adjacent natural hardwood forest. Results: Understorey plant species richness was similar in the two forests, but the communities were different; only 18 of the 91 recorded understorey plant species occurred in both forests. Relative abundance of plants among different functional groups differed between the two forests. Relative numbers of shade‐tolerant and shade‐intolerant seedling individuals were also different between the two forest types with only one shade‐intolerant seedling in the plantation compared to 23 seedlings belonging to two species in the natural forest. In the natural forest 11 species of tree seedling were found, while in the plantation only five were found, and the seedling density was only one third of that in the natural forest. Across plots in both forests, understorey plant richness and diversity were negatively correlated with direct sunlight but not indirect sunlight, possibly because direct light plays a more important role in understorey plant growth. Conclusions: We report lower species and functional diversity and higher light availability in a natural hardwood forest than an adjacent 30‐yr C. japonica plantation, possibly due to the increased dominance of shade‐intolerant species associated with higher light availability. To maintain plant diversity, management efforts must be made to prevent localized losses of shade‐adapted understorey plants

Future shock in forest yield forecasting : the need for a new approach

Meeting: World Commission on Environment and Development, Public Hearing, 26-27 May 1986, Ottawa, ON, CAReprinted from: Forestry chronicle, Dec. 1985, p. 503-512Related to DAP 87-4249 under which IDRC supported the WCED to acquire and duplicate original papers, submissions, tapes and transcripts, became the depository of all original archival materials and received the right to microfiche the collection for broader disseminatio

Forest Ecology : A Foundation for Sustainable Forest Management and Environment Ethics in Forestry

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