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Comparing large containerized and bareroot conifer stock on sites of contrasting vegetation composition in a non-herbicide scenario

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Abstract

Planting stock selection is an integral part of plantation management, as forest nursery practices influence the physiological status of the seedlings and their capacity to cope with resource availability on different planting sites. We thus compared the 11th-year dimensions and survival of large white spruce (Picea glauca) and black spruce (P. mariana) seedlings produced as 2 + 2 bareroot or 2 + 0 container stock (cell volume of 350 cm3), used to reduce the need for competition control. Using complete split-block designs, we evaluated the seedling competitive potential and response to mechanical release on two sites of contrasting ecological fertility and vegetation dominance in Quebec, Canada. We found that large spruce seedlings can be successfully established on high-competition sites in a context where chemical herbicides cannot be used. These stock types had a limited impact on survival and growth, and both stock responded similarly to mechanical vegetation control. In this context, the choice of stock type should prioritize the highest quality large seedling based on operational considerations such as availability and ease of transportation. Mechanical site preparation was not necessary to promote seedling growth and survival on these sub-boreal sites.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Jacques Carignan, Réjean Poliquin, Steve Lemay, Evelyne Gaillard, Dominic Létourneau, and several summer students for their technical help over the course of this project. We acknowledge the contribution of David Emond, Marie-Pier Labrie and Adréanne Moisan-Roy who conducted some of the statistical analyses. We are indebted to the staff of the Laboratoire de chimie organique et inorganique of the Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs du Québec (MFFPQ) for performing the chemical analyses. We also thank the Associate Editor and two anonymous reviewers who provided constructive comments on earlier versions of the manuscript. This study is part of project 112310031 of the Direction de la recherche forestière, MFFPQ.

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  1. Direction de la recherche forestière, Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs du Québec, 2700 rue Einstein, Québec, QC, G1P 3W8, Canada

    Nelson Thiffault & Robert Jobidon

  2. Centre d’étude de la forêt, Faculté de foresterie, de géographie et de géomatique, Université Laval, 2405 rue de la Terrasse, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada

    Nelson Thiffault & Alison D. Munson

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  1. Nelson Thiffault
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  3. Alison D. Munson
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Correspondence to Nelson Thiffault.

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Thiffault, N., Jobidon, R. & Munson, A.D. Comparing large containerized and bareroot conifer stock on sites of contrasting vegetation composition in a non-herbicide scenario. New Forests 45, 875–891 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-014-9443-7

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