Growth of radiata pine families in nursery and two years after field establishment

Pinus radiata D. Don is the most widely planted exotic species in Australia, Chile, New Zealand and Spain. In this study, growth and survival of P. radiata were compared in 30 open pollinated families grown under two contrasting watering regimes in nursery (well-watered cf. water-stress conditions) and planted on a drought-prone site with Mediterranean climate in central Chile. This study assessed phenotypic plasticity in growth and survival at nursery stage and two years after establishment in the field. Family plasticity at nursery stage was estimated by the angular phenotypic change index (APCI), while the relationship between nursery and field traits was estimated by genetic correlations (rg ) and the Pearson coefficient of correlation (rxy). Families presented high plasticity in diameter, height, and survival at nursery stage. Out of 30 families, eight exhibited over 80 % survival in the well-watered treatment, but less than 20 % survival in the water-stress treatment. As expected, growth traits and survival were positively correlated (rg and rxy > 0.65) between both nursery environments. However, for growth, most genetic and phenotypic correlations between combinations of nursery treatments versus the field test were negative or not significant. As there was no detectable pattern of nursery–field correlations regarding to combinations of nursery treatments and test site, the need to include more stable families and genotypes to an appropriate developmental stage at nursery is discussed

Risk management as a tool for the conservation of the forests of Nothofagus Alessandrii, an endangered species of central Chile

El cambio climático es una amenaza global que está afectando diversas formaciones boscosas, con la consiguiente pérdida de servicios ecosistémicos y perjuicio en la calidad de vida de los habitantes. Ante la presencia recurrente de desastres naturales, es deseable contar con políticas para enfrentar las consecuencias de ello, siendo la gestión de riesgo una herramienta para tales efectos. Ante la amenaza que significa el cambio climático en la pérdida de servicios ecosistémicos, en este trabajo se analiza la información disponible y las necesidades y prioridades de investigación para de estar preparados y capacitados para mitigar los efectos de la pérdida y fragmentación de los bosques de Nothofagus alessandrii Espinosa (ruil), una especie en peligro de extinción y con altos niveles de endogamia. A fin de lograr la conservación de los bosques remanentes y los recursos genéticos de esta especie, se propone una gestión de riesgo en tres áreas: 1) planificación territorial a fin de reducir la ocurrencia y propagación de incendios forestales, 2) incremento del conocimiento sobre los factores que moldean la diversidad genética y adaptativa de la especie, y algunos aspectos de su biología reproductiva y 3) evaluación más detallada de los actuales niveles de diversidad y diferenciación genética de las poblaciones de ruil. El conocimiento de estos y otros factores permitiría gestionar y anticiparse a las amenazas que podría experimentar la especie en el futuro.Climate change is a global threat affecting diverse forest formations, with the consequent loss of ecosystem services and quality of life of the inhabitants. Given the recurrent presence of natural disasters, having policies to deal with their consequences is desirable, risk management being a tool to such effects. In the face of climate change threats over the loss of ecosystem services, this paper aims to analyze the available information and research needs and priorities in order to be prepared and trained to mitigate the effects of fragmentation and loss of forests of Nothofagus alessandrii Espinosa (Ruil), an en-dangered and highly inbred species. To achieve the conservation of the remaining forests and the genetic resources of this species, a risk management program is proposed in three areas: 1) territorial planning for fire reduction and propagation, 2) increased knowledge about factors that shape the genetic and adaptive diversity of the species, and some aspects of its reproductive biology, and 3) thorough analysis of genetic diversity and differentiation of the ruil populations over time. The knowledge of these and other factors will allow managing and anticipating future threats of the species

Risk management as a tool for the conservation of the forests of nothofagus alessandrii, an endangered species of central Chile GestiÓn de riesgo como herramienta para la conservaciÓn de los bosques de nothofagus alessandrii, una especie en peligro de ext

Climate change is a global threat affecting diverse forest formations, with the consequent loss of ecosystem services and quality of life of the inhabitants. Given the recurrent presence of natural disasters, having policies to deal with their consequences is desirable, risk management being a tool to such effects. In the face of climate change threats over the loss of ecosystem services, this paper aims to analyze the available information and research needs and priorities in order to be prepared and trained to mitigate the effects of fragmentation and loss of forests of Nothofagus alessandrii Espinosa (Ruil), an endangered and highly inbred species. To achieve the conservation of the remaining forests and the genetic resources of this species, a risk management program is proposed in three areas: 1) territorial planning for fire reduction and propagation, 2) increased knowledge about factors that shape the genetic and adaptive diversity of the species, and some aspects of its reprod

Efectos combinados de la restricción hídrica, el tamaño de contenedor y la dosis de fertilizante en la supervivencia, intercambio gaseoso y atributos morfológicos en plantas de Quillaja saponaria

Quillaja saponaria is a valuable commercial and ecological Chilean native species that has suffered considerably degradation countrywide; however, the determination of the optimum characteristics of the planting stock, an important aspect in restoration projects, has receive little attention. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of container size and dose of fertilizer on morphological and physiological responses of Q. saponaria seedlings cultivated in a nursery under well-watered and water restricted conditions. After 27 days growing under contrasting watering regimes, growth, biomass allocation, and gas exchange were measured in 6-month-old seedlings. We found that survival, height and diameter increment, and root dry weight were higher in the water stressed seedlings cultivated in large containers. The water stressed seedlings cultivated in large containers also had superior stomatal conductance, however when the fertilizer dose was decreased, this trait decreased considerably. Thus, a superior performance in a water-restricted environment could be expected in those seedlings cultivated in larger containers with low fertilizer.Quillaja saponaria es una especie nativa del bosque nativo chileno valiosa por sus cualidades económicas y ecológicas y que ha sufrido una importante degradación a lo largo del país; sin embargo, la determinación de las características óptimas del material de plantación, un aspecto importante en proyectos de restauración, ha recibido poca atención. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar el efecto del tamaño de contenedor y la dosis de fertilizante en la respuesta morfológica y fisiológica de plantas de Q. saponaria cultivadas bajo dos regímenes de riego en vivero (riego normal vs. restricción hídrica). Después de 27 días de crecimiento bajo condiciones de riego contrastantes, se evaluó el crecimiento, la asignación de biomasa y variables de intercambio gaseoso en plantas de seis meses de edad. Los resultados indican que en el tratamiento de restricción hídrica las plantas cultivadas en contenedores grandes mostraron la mayor supervivencia, incremento en diámetro y altura y biomasa radical. Las plantas del tratamiento de restricción hídrica cultivadas en contenedores grandes también mostraron tasas superiores de conductancia estomática, sin embargo, cuando se disminuyó la dosis de fertilizante, esta variable disminuyó considerablemente. Se podría esperar que, aquellas plantas cultivadas en contenedores de mayor volumen y con dosis baja de fertilizante, tuvieran un mejor desempeño en ambientes con restricción hídrica.CONICYT 79150013 CONAF 067-201

Outplanting performance of three provenances of Quillaja saponaria Mol. established in a mediterranean drought-prone site and grown in different container size

In degraded environments with restricted seed availability, like those burned by wildfires in central Chile during 2017, the use of plant material from outside its area of origin for restoration purposes needs to be accurately investigated. We assessed the early development of three Chilean provenances of Quillaja saponaria grown in different container sizes (140 vs. 280 mL) in the nursery and then outplanted in a common field trial at a site severely affected by fire under Mediterranean-type climate. We analyzed growth, biomass, and leaf-level physiological traits. In the nursery, there was a significant provenance by container type interaction for the biomass traits (P < 0.05). Seedlings from the Maule provenance cultivated in larger containers had the highest biomass, while the lowest biomass was observed for the Metropolitan provenance cultivated in small containers. Two years after outplanting, the provenance by container size interaction was significant for stomatal conductance and chlorophyll density. Seedlings from the Metropolitan provenance cultivated in larger containers exhibited a higher stomatal conductance, while those from the Maule provenance cultivated in small containers exhibited the highest chlorophyll density. Seedling height showed significant variation for provenance and container size. The tallest seedlings were those grown in larger containers from the Maule provenance; however, no differences in survival and height increment were found. Gas exchange parameters differed among provenances, the Metropolitan provenance had a low performance and the opposite was found for the Biobio and Maule provenances. This study demonstrated that different provenances of Q. saponaria have stable performances in a Mediterranean site, which support their use for restoration purposes outside their home area with no detrimental effects on outplanting performance.Comision Nacional de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica (CONICYT): 79150013 Universidad Catolica del Maul

Variability in seed germination and seedling growth at the intra- and inter-provenance levels of Nothofagus glauca (Lophozonia glauca), an endemic species of Central Chile

Abstract Background Patterns of seed germination and subsequent seedling growth of the endemic species Nothofagus glauca (Phil.) Krasser (Lophozonia glauca) (Hualo) were studied in two provenances from Mediterranean Central Chile (pre-Andean mountain range provenance and coastal range provenance). The main aim of the study was to determine differences in seed germination and seedling growth at the intra- and inter-provenance levels. Methods The experiment was carried out with seeds from two provenances and four to five different sites from each provenance. Seed germination tests were conducted in 10 × 1 m beds in a greenhouse. Germinated seeds were sown in 140-mL containers and cultivated under nursery conditions for 8 months. After that period, growth and survival were measured. Results Germination, growth and survival were highly variable at the intra-provenance level. Sites from the pre-Andean mountain range provenance exhibited lower germination capacity (33.1%) and seedling survival (76.3%) than sites from the Coastal range provenance (40.2 and 91.3%, respectively). Conclusions Provenance variability was important for seed mass and germination, and seedling survival, while intra-provenance variability was systematically higher, whatever the functional trait considered, indicating a high potential capacity of the species to adapt to climate change. This intra-provenance variability must be conserved with the use of local seed. In our case, pre-Andean sites must be established in high-elevation environments, while coastal provenances must be restricted to more lowland and coastal environments

Field performance of various Pinus radiata breeding families established on a drought-prone site in central Chile

Background: Pinus radiata D. Don is in its third generation of selective breeding on contrasting site types in central Chile, creating interest in its responses to selection and any differential adaptation to site types. We studied the phenotypic variability of growth traits, survival and six ecophysiological traits in 30 open- and control-pollinated families, representing two breeding regions and three breeding generations, in a 2-year-old P. radiata field trial on a sandy soil in the Mediterranean drylands of Central Chile. Findings: Growth, survival and the ecophysiological traits did not differ between the regional origin of the breeding populations. However, breeding-generation effects were significant for height and diameter. As expected, growth traits showed progressive improvement with successive generations. Individual-family effects were evident for all traits except one ecophysiological trait. Conclusions: Breeding has evidently improved early growth performance in the field, despite no clear effect of regional breeding population, but no such effects were observed for the ecophysiological traits. Despite the current study demonstrating considerable family variation at age 2 years, it is unclear how these results relate to performance of mature trees in the field.CONICYT, 11121484, 7915001

Effect of crop management intensity on energy and carbon dioxide balance of two bioenergy Sorghum bicolor hybrids

Although bioenergy sorghum has many traits that make it ideal for biofuel production, management conditions that can affect the productivity and sustainability of these systems are still poorly understood. This paper estimated the energy and CO2 balance of two bioenergy sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench.) hybrids (H128 and H133) cultivated during two growing seasons and under two different levels of crop management, high and low input. At the end of both growing season, sorghum was harvested for biomass yield determination. Calorific value and net energy production were also estimated. Crop management had important effects on sorghum CO2 and energy balance. The energy produced varied between 126 and 365 GJ ha–1 depending on crop management, hybrid and growing season. Regarding of the CO2 balance, the high level of crop management had a superior CO2 emission. However, the energy produced per kg of CO2 emitted was higher (>300%) than the energy produced with the use of fossil fuels. The use of bioenergy sorghum can contribute to better energy sustainability and reduced CO2 emission in Mediterranean ecosystems

Growth of provenances of Cryptocarya alba during water stress and after re–watering in the nursery

Intensification of drought in Mediterranean–type climates has limited seedling establishment. The knowledge of the ecology of selected species and its intraspecific variation to water stress at the seedling stage should be considered in order to overcome limitations. We investigated variations in growth, survival, and leaf–level physiology in four provenances of the endemic Cryptocarya alba (Mol.) during water stress and after re–watering. Seedlings were cultured in the nursery during 23 months and then subjected to two watering treatments based on soil water content (well–watered and water restriction, 0.38 and 0.17 cm3 cm–3, respectively) for 45 days. At the end of the watering treatments, seedling growth, above– and belowground biomass, survival, and leaf gas exchange were measured. Right after the watering treatments, the surviving seedlings were submitted to a recovery period of 21 days, in which all seedlings were re–watered at 0.38 cm3 cm–3 of soil water content and measured for leaf gas exchange. Provenances differed in growth and biomass allocation. Unlike growth and biomass, interaction between provenance and watering treatments was found for photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, transpiration, and water use efficiency of northern provenances, exhibiting the highest performance under water restriction. However, most variations observed occurred before the re–watering period and only a few occurred after this period. The four provenances under study exhibited similar photosynthesis and stomatal conductance after re–watering. Our study demonstrated phenotypic variation of C. alba and the capability of the species to withstand and recover from water stress