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.
2023
Abstract
Planting healthy seedlings with optimal growth potential is essential for proper growth and survival in forest regeneration. Assessing the seedling quality prior to planting is therefore important. In this Icelandic study, effects of root damage induced with artificial freezing in young Russian larch seedlings were examined using the root growth capacity method (RGC). Frost tolerance of roots varied during the winter, and root growth in undamaged seedlings fluctuated, indicating seasonal variations in growth rhythm. The LT50 value for root frost tolerance was −13.9°C in late January, but already at −10.6°C (LT10) root damages were severe. After one growing season, shoot elongation was significantly lower in seedlings frozen to −9°C, −13.5°C, and −15.5°C by 23%, 54%, and 72%, respectively, compared with undamaged seedlings. Control seedlings and seedlings frozen to −9°C achieved 100% survival after the first growing season. Survival in seedlings frozen to −13.5°C and −15.5°C was 85% and 27%, respectively. After the second growing season, survival decreased in all frost-damaged seedlings. The ongoing mortality demonstrates the long-lasting effects of planting seedlings with damaged root systems, and the fluctuation in root frost tolerance of young Russian larch seedlings during winter emphasises the need for care when seedlings are moved to outdoor storage.
Abstract
Purpose of Review Forestry in northern temperate and boreal regions relies heavily on conifers. Rapid climate change and associated increases in adverse growing conditions predispose conifers to pathogens and pests. The much longer generation time and presumably, therefore, lower adaptive capacity of conifers relative to their native or non-native biotic stressors may have devastating consequences. We provide an updated overview of conifer defences underlying pathogen and pest resistance and discuss how defence traits can be used in tree breeding and forest management to improve resistance. Recent Findings Breeding of more resilient and stress-resistant trees will benefit from new genomic tools, such as genotyping arrays with increased genomic coverage, which will aid in genomic and relationship-based selection strategies. However, to successfully increase the resilience of conifer forests, improved genetic materials from breeding programs must be combined with more flexible and site-specific adaptive forest management. Summary Successful breeding programs to improve conifer resistance to pathogens and pests provide hope as well as valuable lessons: with a coordinated and sustained effort, increased resistance can be achieved. However, mechanisms underlying resistance against one stressor, even if involving many genes, may not provide any protection against other sympatric stressors. To maintain the adaptive capacity of conifer forests, it is important to keep high genetic diversity in the tree breeding programs. Choosing forest management options that include diversification of tree-species and forest structure and are coupled with the use of genetically improved plants and assisted migration is a proactive measure to increase forest resistance and resilience to foreseen and unanticipated biotic stressors in a changing climate.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
2022
Authors
Ishita Ahuja Inger Sundheim Fløistad Per Grande Øyvind Meland Edvardsen Adam O’Toole Arne SteffenremAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Mateusz Liziniewicz Mats Berlin Thomas Solvin Henrik R. Hallingbäck Matti Haapanen Seppo Ruotsalainen Arne SteffenremAbstract
Norway spruce is a major industrial tree species in Fennoscandia and future productivity of the species must be secured by matching the variation in adaptation of the species with suitable sites for optimized performance. An appropriate transfer model for forest reproductive material (FRM) is crucial for regeneration of productive forests in the changing climatic conditions that are predicted to occur in Fennoscandia. We have developed a transfer model for prediction of height of Norway spruce in Norway, Sweden, and Finland, using data acquired from 438 progeny and provenance trials with 1919 genetic entries of local and transferred origins. Transfer of genetic material at a given site was expressed in terms of the difference in daylength (photoperiod) between the site and its origin. This variable best reflected the nonlinear response to transfer that has been commonly reported in previous studies. Apart from the transfer variable, the height prediction model included the age of material when height measurements were acquired, annual temperature sum over 5 °C, precipitation during the vegetation period, and interaction terms between test site and transfer variables. The results show that long northward transfers (4-5° latitude) seem to be optimal for relatively mild sites in southern parts of the countries where growing season is longer, and shorter northward transfers (2-4° latitude) for harsher northern sites with shorter growing seasons. The transfer model also predicts that southward transfers of Norway spruce would result in height growth reductions. The developed model provides foundations for development of common or national recommendations for genetically improving Norway spruce material in Fennoscandia.
Abstract
Norway spruce parents selected from results in progeny trials for testing Svenneby Seed Orchard clones were crossed in a factorial crossing design, and full-sib families were planted in short-term and field trials in southern Norway. Artificial freezing tests with the same families were made the first growing season and at ages 10 and 12 years. Offspring of parents selected for superior growth were taller in the field tests than those from parents with heights lower than the mean in the progeny test. However, the correlations between half-sib family performance in the initial progeny test and in the offspring field tests were only moderate. The variation among families in injury scores in the freezing tests was large, but the relationships with field trial performance were weak, indicating that frost hardiness testing at a young age is not valuable for predicting later field performance. Families with a late timing of bud flush had the highest frequency of injuries after a frost event at mid-summer. These families were also the tallest in the field tests. The families from crosses among Svenneby Seed Orchard clones had better height growth than commercial provenances. Foreldretrær av gran, valgt ut fra resultater i avkomforsøk for å teste kloner i Svenneby frøplantasje, ble krysset etter en faktoriell krysningsplan, og full-søsken familiene ble plantet i kortidsforsøk og i langsiktige feltforsøk. Fryseforsøk med familiene ble gjort etter første vekstsesong og ved alder 10 og 12 år. Avkom fra foreldre valgt ut for god høydevekst var høyere i feltforsøkene enn de fra foreldre som ble valgt ut med midlere høyde. Det var bare moderate korrelasjoner mellom høyder til halv-søsken i de første avkomforsøkene og i feltforsøkene. Det var betydelig variasjon mellom familiene i skader etter frysforsøkene, men sammenhengene var svake mellom frostskader og vekst og skader i feltforsøkene. Dette indikerer at resultater fra testing av frostherdighet i ung alder sier lite om hvordan trær fra familiene senere vokser i felt. Familier med sen skuddskyting fikk mest skader etter frostnetter 22.-23. juni. De sent skytende familiene hadde best høydevekst i feltforsøkene. Trærne fra familiene fra Svenneby frøplantasje var høyere enn de fra hadde handelsprovenienser.
Abstract
Fishbones contain significant amounts of plant nutrients. Fish residues may be preserved by acidification to pH < 4, which may affect the chemical extractability, and the plant availability of nutrients when applied as fertilisers. Grinded bone material from cod (Gadus morhua) heads was mixed with formic acid to investigate if this would increase the concentrations of ammonium lactate–acetate (AL)-extractable nutrients. Two degrees of fineness of fishbones (coarse 2–4 mm; fine < 0.71 mm) were compared at pH 3.0 and 4.0 plus a water control in a laboratory study over 55 days. Samples for measurement of AL-extractable P, Ca, Mg and K were taken on day 2, 15, 34 and 55. Whereas more formic acid and thereby lower pH clearly increased the concentrations of AL-extractable calcium (Ca-AL) and magnesium (Mg-AL), AL-extractable phosphorus (P-AL) was only significantly increased in finely grinded bones at pH 3. After 34 days at pH 3, 6% of the total content of P was extracted by AL in fine fishbones. In the water control, about 1% of the P was extracted, possibly from phospholipids. This P-AL concentration was well above P-AL extracted from acidified coarse fishbones (pH 3 and 4) and from fine fishbones acidified to pH 4. With acidification, about 30% of total Ca and 100% of total Mg were extracted by AL, and the Ca-AL and Mg-AL concentrations were closely correlated. A possible reason for lower P-AL in coarse fishbones at pH 3 and 4, and in fine fishbones at pH 4 than in water controls may be a precipitation of apatite from phospholipids and dissolved calcium.
Authors
Thomas Wohlgemuth Martin M. Gossner Thomas Campagnaro Hélia Marchante Marcela van Loo Giorgio Vacchiano Pilar Castro-Díez Dorota Dobrowolska Anna Gazda Srdjan Keren Zsolt Keserű Marcin Koprowski Nicola La Porta Vitas Marozas Per Holm Nygaard Vilém Podrázský Radosław Puchałka Orna Reisman-Berman Lina Straigytė Tiina Ylioja Elisabeth Pötzelsberger Joaquim S. SilvaAbstract
In the context of global change, the integration of non-native tree (NNT) species into European forestry is increasingly being discussed. The ecological consequences of increasing use or spread of NNTs in European forests are highly uncertain, as the scientific evidence is either constraint to results from case studies with limited spatial extent, or concerns global assessments that lack focus on European NNTs. For either case, generalisations on European NNTs are challenging to draw. Here we compile data on the impacts of seven important NNTs (Acacia dealbata, Ailanthus altissima, Eucalyptus globulus, Prunus serotina, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Quercus rubra, Robinia pseudoacacia) on physical and chemical soil properties and diversity attributes in Europe, and summarise commonalities and differences. From a total of 103 publications considered, studies on diversity attributes were overall more frequent than studies on soil properties. The effects on soil properties varied greatly among tree species and depended on the respective soil property. Overall, increasing (45%) and decreasing (45%) impacts on soil occurred with similar frequency. In contrast, decreasing impacts on biodiversity were much more frequent (66%) than increasing ones (24%). Species phylogenetically distant from European tree species, such as Acacia dealbata, Eucalyptus globulus and Ailanthus altissima, showed the strongest decreasing impacts on biodiversity. Our results suggest that forest managers should be cautious in using NNTs, as a majority of NNT stands host fewer species when compared with native tree species or ecosystems, likely reflected in changes in biotic interactions and ecosystem functions. The high variability of impacts suggests that individual NNTs should be assessed separately, but NNTs that lack European relatives should be used with particular caution.