Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2013
Authors
Jan Čermák Pavel Cudlin Roman Gebauer Isabella Børja Milena Martinková Zdeněk Stanĕk Jan Koller Jindřich Neruda Nadezhda NadezhdinaAbstract
Estimates of root absorption magnitude are needed for the balanced management of forest ecosystems, but no methods able to work on the whole tree and stand level were available. Modified earth impedance method was developed recently and here it was tested, by comparing the results with those obtained by combination of several classical methods. Methods We used direct (soil cores, scanning and microscopy) and indirect (sap flow patterns and modified earth impedance) methods in an attempt to estimate the absorptive root area indexes (RAI) at two sites of about 25 and 40-years-old Norway spruce. We considered the geometric surfaces of all scanned fine roots to be equal to the fine root absorptive area (RAIscan). To estimate the potentially physically permeable area of fine roots, we microscopically evaluated the point of secondary xylem appearance and calculated the geometric area of root portions with primary structure (RAImicro). We termed the area of electrically conductive root surface as the active (ion) absorptive area (RAImei) and measured its extent by the modified earth impedance (MEI) method. Results The highest values for absorptive root areas at the two experimental sites we obtained with the scanning method (RAIscan was considered to be 100%), followed by the RAImicro (51%) and RAImei (32%). RAImei reached about 2/3 of RAImicro. The surface area of the ectomycorrhizal hyphae was an order of magnitude larger than that of all fine roots, but the MEI did not measure such increase. Conclusions We showed that the absorptive root area, indirectly estimated by the MEI, provides consistent results that approach the values obtained for fine roots with a primary structure estimated by traditional direct methods. The similar range of the values for the absorptive root surface area obtained by microscopy and by the MEI method indicates that this method is feasible and that it could be used to determine the extent of active absorptive root surface areas in forests.
Abstract
Top-dieback of Norway spruce (Picea abies) trees has been observed in SE Norway. Trees usually die within 1-4 years after the first symptoms become visible and the dieback cause is unknown. The aim of our study was to establish when the irreversible spiral to tree death occurs. We assumed that hydraulic dysfunction, exemplified here by the sap flow reduction, was the final trigger of tree decline. We used the non-destructive heat field deformation method (HFD) to monitor the sap flow density (SFD) in non-symptomatic trees. After felling the trees we used the modified differential translucence method (MDT) to evaluate the sapwood translucence as an additional indicator of its functionality. In this study we show three examples of non-symptomatic trees with widely different sap flow densities detected by the HFD; tree A with unchanged sap flow throughout the monitoring period, tree B with decreasing sap flow in the last formed annual rings and minimal sap flow detected in tree C, which also started to show the first visible signs of dieback. In contrast, the MDT method detected in all cases functional (translucent) sapwood. In conclusion, we show that the sap flow reduction may occur during a relatively short period, prior to occurrence of any visual symptoms. Also, dysfunctions in sap flow could not be detected by the MDT method, as the sapwood still looked translucent and thus functional, although minimal sap flow was detected in that area by HFD method. Here we demonstrate the sensitivity of the HFD method in detecting the quantity of sap flow and thus a suitable diagnostic tool to evaluate the vitality in Norway spruce trees before the onset of visible disease symptoms.
Authors
Isabella BørjaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Claudio Ioriatti F. Özlem Altindisli Jorunn Børve Lucia Adriana Escudero-Colomar Andrea Lucchi Fabio MolinariAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Guro BrodalAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Guro BrodalAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Halvor SolheimAbstract
Common juniper (Juniperus communis) hosts not many pests or pathogens, but recently increasing needle blight has been observed in Norway. During a survey the needle blight was recorded in many parts of southern Norway but not above 550 m a.s.l., and it has been found both in forests, pastures and gardens. Trees are affected differently; some trees seem to be unaffected, while other trees may be killed. The cause of the disease is a fungus in the family Mycosphaerellaceae hitherto not reported from Norway. In forest pathology literature it has been named Stigmina juniperina, but also Asperisporium juniperinum. However, based on results of molecular sequence analyses it is proposed here that a more appropriate name should be Passalora juniperina (Georgescu & Badea) H. Solheim comb. Nov.
Authors
Halvor SolheimAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
A survey to identify ophiostomatoid fungi that infect wounds on native Norwegian and Swedish broadleaved trees was undertaken during summer 2004. A fungus resembling a species of Sporendocladia was commonly isolated from the exposed cambium and inner bark of wounds. Morphological examination and comparisons of DNA sequence data for the ITS and 5.8S regions of the rRNA gene region led to its identification as Sporendocladia bactrospora. Pathogenicity trials on young Populus tremula and Betula pubescens trees showed that S. bactrospora is capable of causing lesions on these trees. There have been few previous reports of S. bactrospora, and in most cases, these have been as saprophytes on wood. In contrast, results of this study show that it is a common inhabitant of freshly made wounds on native broadleaved trees in Scandinavia, and it appears to contribute to staining of wood.