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.
2015
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No abstract has been registered
Authors
F. A. Aravanopoulos Mari Mette Tollefsrud Lars Graudal Jarkko Koskela R Kätzel A Soto Lazlo Nagy A Philipovic Peter Zehlev Gregor Boẑic Michele BozzanoAbstract
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Authors
Mari Mette Tollefsrud Malgorzata Latalowa W.O. van der Knaap Christian Brochmann Christoph SperisenAbstract
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Tor MykingAbstract
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Tor MykingAbstract
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Arne SteffenremAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
There have been intense discussions about reducing fossil energy dependence for many years, indeed there is a vision to have a carbon-neutral energy system in Scandinavia by the year 2050. One way to address this ambition is to increase the use of woody biomass. This places a focus on forest tree breeding, since it is considered to be one of the most effective and environmentally friendly options to increase sustainable biomass production in our forests. In this report we have summarised information about forest tree breeding in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, covering historic, current and future activities. It includes estimates of realised genetic gain in volume and dry matter production on a regional basis for regeneration materials of different improvement levels, which are available today and will be available in the year 2050. Genetic gains in economic terms are also discussed, and basic breeding and mass propagation principles are described. The report includes the most relevant commercial forest tree species in Scandinavia: Scots pine, Norway spruce, Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, grand fir, birch, poplars, alder, oak and beech. Intensive and long-term breeding is carried out continuously in Sweden and Finland for Scots pine, Norway spruce and to some extent birch, while other species are worked with intermittently. In Norway the interest in breeding has, after a break of some years, now resumed, resulting in the initiation of a new breeding cycle for Norway spruce. The present resources put into breeding in Denmark are small, due to a major change in silvicultural management towards natural regeneration in the State Forests. However, as in all the other Scandinavian countries, there is great potential to increase growth through breeding. Seed from seed orchards is, and will within coming decades, be the main way to supply the forestry with genetically improved plant material. The extra gain in yield that is obtained by using material from existing seed orchards varies among species, but in general it is, on average, 10–15% when compared to local unimproved material. In 2050 it is estimated that this gain will be 20–25% for many species, which is a substantial increase in productivity. The time elapsed from establishment of a seed orchard to the first seed harvest for many species is quite long (10–20 years) and delays the realisation of the genetic improvement efforts. An alternative is to use plants obtained from the vegetative propagation of genetically well-performing seed sources or individuals, which makes it possible to capture the progress from breeding immediately. Utilisation of clones is also a way to reduce the consequences of limited amounts of seed from seed orchards, which for instance, is the case for Norway spruce in southern Sweden. For Norway spruce, using clonal material can immediately deliver a gain of around 25–35% in yield, and it is estimated that by 2050 this figure will have increased to 40%. It should be noted, however, that the use of clonal material may be limited by forest regulations. Future climate change will probably alter the growing conditions in Scandinavia in a way that makes forestry with high productivity exotic species such as Douglas fir, grand fir, Sitka spruce and poplars more attractive. Using several species, instead of the few traditional ones, is a way to spread the risk of an unknown future. In Denmark, several exotic species have been an integrated part of forestry for more than 100 years. Limited breeding work has been performed for these species and the gain in yield is, for instance, estimated to amount to 40% for existing seed orchard material of Sitka spruce compared to unimproved material.
Authors
Tore SkrøppaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Tore SkrøppaAbstract
No abstract has been registered