by Claire Morin | 30 January 2019
Published in Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research 23: 137-147. https://doi.org/10.1080/02827580801968486
This study examined the impact of increased irrigation efficiency on the hardening and frost tolerance of 2-year-old containerized white spruce seedlings in the context of groundwater protection, irrigation management and the maintenance of seedling quality in northern climates. The seedlings were grown under three different irrigation regimes (IR = 30%, 40% and 55% v/v; cm3 H2O/cm3 substrate) and were hardened under conditions of natural photoperiod and temperature. After being subjected to artificial frost tests on four sampling dates during autumn, the seedlings were compared for bud development and frost tolerance. IR had no influence on frost tolerance as determined by measurements of physiological (electrolyte leakage, root water loss) and morphological (shoot damage, root initiation) variables. At the end of the second growing season, there was no significant difference between IRs in seedling height, root collar diameter, shoot dry mass and root dry mass. The results indicate that the amount of water applied to large-dimension 2-year-old white spruce seedlings during the growing season can be significantly decreased without prematurely impeding their growth or hindering their acquisition of frost tolerance.
by Claire Morin | 30 January 2019
Published in Canadian Journal of Soil Science 88: 315-325
Relationships between soil organic carbon (SOC), organic matter (SOM), and bulk density (BD) were established in acidic loamy to sandy loam fine fractions of forest soils in Québec (Canada). The interest of such relationships rests with the possibility of using simple and rapid techniques to estimate SOC and BD. It is also a crucial step in establishing the correspondence among several data bases when SOC data are obtained using different measurement techniques. In this study, SOC was measured by dry combustion (SOCDC) and wet digestion (SOCWD) methods, and organic matter by loss-on ignition (LOI). Our results suggest that, in these soils: (1) LOI can be used for estimating SOC (r2 = 0.95, RMSEP = 16%) and SOCDC/SOM significantly decreased with increasing depth from 0.49 to 0.27; (2) SOCDC and SOCWD were highly correlated. Even if SOCWD provided near complete recovery of SOCDC, dry combustion remains the preferred method for SOC analysis since SOCWD recovery decreased with increasing depth from 100 to 83%. (3) BD was also strongly related to SOM (r2 = 0.81). We recommend using the organic density approach to estimate BD from SOM because it allows BD to be predicted without significant bias and with a degree of accuracy of 14%.
by Marie-Claude Boileau | 30 January 2019
Published in Forest Ecology and Management 255: 3001-3012
Over the last few decades, several phenomena contributed to modify the structure and composition of the eastern North American forests. Along with forest management, disturbances such as insect defoliation, global environmental changes, acid deposition, and rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations, have been identified as phenomena that could affect forest structure and composition. Currently, there is very little quantitative information on the resulting effect of multiple disturbances on the main parameters of forest dynamics (growth, mortality, and recruitment). Using available data from the Québec permanent sample plots network, we analyzed the ecological response of tree species populations to the combined effect of contemporary global environmental changes, disturbance regimes, and forest management practices over the last 30 years in southern Québec. The results indicate that the main parameters of forest dynamics changed considerably over the last three decades. The last spruce budworm outbreak initiated a successional change in coniferous stands. The basal area of Abies balsamea and Picea glauca, the most abundant coniferous species, decreased by 29.7%, while pioneer species abundance increased. For late successional deciduous species, observed changes in forest dynamics appear to be mainly associated with global environmental changes rather than with natural disturbances or forest harvesting. The results indicate that inferring responses of tree population dynamics to global environmental changes can be very complex or even misleading considering the confounding effects of other disturbance agents. The results also suggest that the ecosystem-based management approach promoted by forest ecologists, aimed at maintaining landscape stand composition and structures similar to those characterizing natural environments, will not be easily achieved. Forest ecosystems are highly dynamic and disturbances other than tree harvesting appear to have been the major factors affecting their pattern of change over the last three decades. Forest managers should consider adaptive management approaches that will consider the contemporary evolution of forest ecosystems in a changing environment.
by Claire Morin | 30 January 2019
Published in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 39: 1138-1146
Many attempts have been made to reconstruct past soil chemistry from tree rings’ total element concentrations. However, a few recent studies have shown that some elements are highly mobile within some tree species’ sapwood, which may complicate the interpretation of temporal trends. To investigate element mobility in xylem of balsam fir (BF) and white spruce (WS), a dendrogeochemical method was utilized, which consists in sequentially extracting tree ring samples with water and diluted hydrochloric acid (HCl; 0.05 M) followed by a complete digestion in nitric acid (residual). The results show that, within the sapwood of BF and WS, potassium (K) and phosphorus (P) are found mostly in the water extract whereas divalent cations [calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), strontium (Sr), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), and barium (Ba)] are mainly present as soluble or exchangeable forms. Total xylem concentration generally decreased in the following order for both tree species: Ca > Mg > Mn > Zn, Ba > Sr. At the opposite, the vast majority of aluminum (Al) (>99%) and iron (Fe) (>95%) is found in the residual fraction, suggesting that these elements are not affected by radial reequilibration during circulation of the sap. Because Al soil availability is known to increase with decreasing pH, this element can potentially be used for past reconstruction of soil pH.
by Marie-Claude Boileau | 30 January 2019
Published in Canadian Journal of Forest Research 38: 2274-2286
In this study, a diameter increment model was calibrated for individual trees in hardwood stands in Québec, Canada. Two random effects, a first one for the plot and a second one for the time interval nested in the plot, and a covariance structure were included in the model to account for spatial and serial correlations. The diameter at breast height, species group, vigor and product classes, and basal area were the explanatory variables that were tested in this analysis. The adequacy of the covariance features (random effects and covariance structure) were tested through empirical correlations calculated from normalized residuals. A cross-validation was also carried out to evaluate the model. The normalized residuals showed no departure from the assumption of independently and normally distributed error terms with homogeneous variances. Consequently, the statistical inferences could be considered as valid. The results showed that the average diameter increment pattern differs among the species. Although tree product and vigor were significant explanatory variables, their effects were relatively small. On the other hand, basal area had a large and significant negative effect on diameter increment. Our study demonstrates that empirical correlations calculated from normalized residuals can be used as an additional tool to test the adequacy of the covariance features in a mixed-effects model.
