Effects of soil preparation methods and plant types on the establishment of poplars on forest land

Abstract

& Key message The success of poplar plantations on forest land was affected by soil preparation, plant type, site, and clone. Mounding in combination with large plant types (rooted plants or long cuttings) of site-adapted clones achieved the highest survival and growth. & Context Poplars (Populus species and hybrids) are fastgrowing trees used to make various products. In north European countries, they are mainly grown on agricultural land, but interest in planting poplars on forest land has increased. & Aims Plant damage and mortality problems occur on forest land, probably due to soil conditions and competing vegetation. It is therefore of interest to investigate whether combinations of soil preparation methods and plant materials can improve establishment. & Methods At three sites in southern Sweden, the effects of four soil preparation treatments (no soil preparation, patch scarification, mounding, soil inversion) in combination with three plant types (short cuttings, long cuttings, rooted plants) were studied. & Results Survival and growth were significantly influenced by site, soil preparation method, plant type, and their interactions. Mounding resulted in the best overall performance on all sites. Interactions between site and plant type revealed differences in growth dependent on site conditions, but rooted plants and long cuttings were in general most successful. Patch scarification and short cuttings were associated with lower survival and growth. & Conclusion Soil preparation is needed to support survival and early growth, but the combination of method and plant type must be adapted to site conditions. The choice of clones should also be considered.

The demand of hybrid aspen (<i>Populus tremula</i> × <i>P. tremuloides</i>) on site conditions for a successful establishment on forest land

“…The other study investigated the effect of different site preparation methods on establishment success on forest land. Similar studies have previously been carried out and published for poplars (Hjelm and Rytter 2016;Mc Carthy et al 2017).…”

“…Mounding, on the other hand, was one of the best methods. The result is probably a combined effect of higher soil temperature (Örlander et al 1990;Vapaavuori et al 1992), less risk for waterlogged conditions (Mc Carthy et al 2017) and reduced competition from vegetation (Nilsson and Örlander 1995;Bilodeau-Gauthier et al 2011;Johansson et al 2013). The low growth in the patch scarification was considered an effect of planting spots below soil surface.…”

“…Mounding consisted of elevated planting spots with the soil turned upside-down and soil inversion was planting spots with an inverted humus layer at the same level as the surrounding ground. For more information about the site preparation methods used, see Mc Carthy et al (2017).…”

Establishment strategies for poplars, including mulch and plant types, on agricultural land in Sweden

“…Phillips et al ( 2014 ) found that 3 m poles produced more biomass and had the best root spread and root length compared to 1 m wands and 0.5 m stakes of poplar and willow. Mc Carthy et al ( 2017 ) found that rooted plants and long cuttings (50 cm) of poplar performed better than short cuttings (20 cm) on forest land, and especially in combination with mounding. In the present study, the same plant material was used, but on agricultural land that is different from forest land both regarding soil characteristics and the methods that could be used for site preparation.…”

Effect of land preparation methods on restoration success of degraded oak forest ecosystems

“…A lot of research deals with different land preparation methods in the world. Most of them come from northern Europe and North America (Makitalo, 1999;Archibold et al, 1999;McCarthy et al, 2017), where the climatic and edaphic conditions greatly differ from the conditions existing in Mediterranean areas (e.g. very low temperatures, wet soil conditions).…”