Towards practices favourable to plant diversity in hybrid poplar plantations

Much research effort is being devoted to developing forest management practices with limited impacts on biodiversity. While the impact of poplar Populus sp. plantations on biodiversity is relatively well-known at the landscape scale, the impact of alternative management practices at the plantation scale has received much less attention. Yet biodiversity is likely to be impacted by the choice of the poplar clone, stem density at plantation, type and duration of the understory control, and age at which the poplars are harvested. In this study, we investigated the impact of these factors on herbaceous plant communities with data from plant surveys conducted in 85 young (2–5 years) and 96 mature (11–17 years) hybrid poplar high-forest plantations in northern France. On average, ruderal or generalist plants contributed to 40.5% of the plot species richness; tall herbs (60.2%), forest (26%) and meadow plants (13.8%) contributed to the remaining 59.5% more specialised species. Soil moisture and soil nitrogen were major determinants of plant communities: wet soils were favourable to tall herbs, while meadow and forest species preferred moist soils; a significantly lower diversity of the three species groups was reported in the nutrient richer soils (in mature plantations only for forest plants). Mean species richness decreased with plantation age except for forest species. Plant communities in young plantations showed little differences in composition according to the type of understory control (chemical, mechanical or both). The development of a shrubby layer in mature plantations was restricted to the drier soils and was detrimental to both meadow plants and tall herb species. Effects of previous land use on forest and tall herb species were found only in young plantations, suggesting a rapid reset of plant communities for these two groups. This may not be the case for meadow species as the influence of previous land use was significant in mature plantations only. Finally, clone type and stem density at plantation had no significant impact on plant communities. Adjusting age at which the poplars are harvested seems the only effective way to drive plant communities in high-forest poplar plantations: delaying poplar harvest (probably beyond 15–20 years) would benefit forest plants, while advancing poplar harvest (about 10 years) would benefit tall herbs, especially in wet soil conditions.     

Weed cover in hybrid poplar (Populus) plantations on Quebec forest soils under different lime treatments

Fast-growing trees such as hybrid poplars (Populus) have the potential to decrease rotation length (time to harvest) and thus produce wood products more quickly from smaller areas of land. Several forest companies in Quebec currently plant hybrid poplar on formerly logged forest sites, rather than on agricultural land as is more common elsewhere. The forest sites often have acidic soils, and lime addition has been proposed to improve hybrid poplar growth. In addition, forest sites present challenges with regard to control of competitive vegetation, particularly in jurisdictions such as Quebec where use of herbicides in forests is banned or restricted.     

间伐对杨树人工林凋落物及养分归还量的影响

为了了解间伐对杨树大径材生长的影响,按人工林不同间伐方式和强度设计了4种间伐处理,分别为对照、30％强度的下层伐(下层30％)、50％强度的下层伐(下层50％)、50％强度的机械伐(机械50％),探讨了不同间伐处理对杨树人工林凋落物及其养分归还量的影响.结果表明,不同间伐强度显著影响林分凋落物及其养分归还量,凋落物及养分归还量均随间伐强度的增大而降低;凋落物中5种营养元素含量及归还量大小为Ca＞K＞N＞Mg＞P;4种处理的凋落物及养分归还月动态变化趋势均为8-11月最多,分别占年归还总量的76.48％ ～79.68％和80.35％～90.46％.该研究结果为杨树人工林的林分结构调控提供参考.     

Hybrid poplar plantations in a floodplain have balanced impacts on farmland and woodland birds

Hybrid poplar plantations are increasing worldwide and are often accused of impoverishing bird communities. We conducted 124 bird point counts in a landscape where plantations, semi-natural forests and farmland occupied similar surface areas. As expected, birds occurred at higher densities in areas dominated by forests than dominated by plantations, mostly due to the scarcity of late-successional forest birds in plantations. Contrary to expectations, bird communities were the poorest in farmland dominated areas and the most specialised in areas dominated by young plantations. Indeed, many grassland species, including some of conservation concern in Europe, frequently used young plantations. However, plantations have probably depleted grassland bird communities by fragmenting open areas, while playing a limited positive role on forest species. Total length of unpaved roads had a positive effect on community specialisation index, while total length of paved roads and mean forest/plantation patch size played no role. Bird density increased with the development of the understory vegetation in mature poplar plantations. We conclude that poplar should not be planted at the expense of areas of high conservation value; in other cases, they may increase the overall diversity of bird communities. At the plantation scale, we advocate stopping understory removal as soon as possible and maintaining old trees and hedgerows alongside or within plantations to provide suitable breeding habitats for bird species that may be foraging in the plantations.     

滩地钉螺种群消长与杨树人工林关系的研究

在南洞庭湖和西洞庭湖的滩地杨树人工林内采取定位观测为主的研究方法，对滩地的地下水位、土壤含水率、螺情的变化规律及其与滩地杨树人工林的相关关系进行了定量研究，揭示了杨树人工林内钉螺种群消长的内在规律和环境因子的偶发效应，显示出滩地杨树人工林生态系统抑螺机制的有效性和持续性，体现了滩地杨树抑螺林的血防安全意义。     

Impact of seedling type on early growth of poplar plantations on forest and agricultural land

Today, most poplar plantations in the temperate region are established on abandoned marginal agricultural land, but there is great potential for planting poplars on forest land as the available area is large and does not compete with food production. The objective of this study was to examine how different planting types (un-rooted cuttings, bare-rooted and containerized plants) affect the establishment and early growth of poplar plants on forest and agricultural sites. Our results suggest that on the agricultural site, survival and growth during the first two years are not influenced by plant type. However, at the forest sites, survival of rooted plants was superior compared to un-rooted cuttings. The height and biomass (stem and root) increment of bare-rooted plants was low; greater height and biomass growth was found for containerized plants. Container sizes had no effect on height growth, but leaf and stem biomasses were higher if the largest containers were used. When using the largest containers, concentrations of macronutrients (N, P) were increased compared to bare-rooted plants. Thus, these results suggest that practices for establishing poplar plantations of agricultural land include planting of un-rooted cutting, but on forest land, a plant grown in a container of 470?ml should be used. Together, this can reduce the cost of establishment, increase the available area for poplar plantations and have an impact on poplar plantation economics in Sweden.     

东北西部主要杨树品种对盐碱胁迫的生长反应

本文以东北西部的主要杨树为试验材料,研究了盐碱胁迫条件下各品种的生长反应,并以此为依据,对其抗盐碱性进行了初步排序。     

Broad-leaf species composition in Cryptomeria japonica plantations with respect to distance from natural forest

To address the pressing need to evaluate how conifer plantations can serve biodiversity functions in addition to other economic and social roles they play, we assessed the diversity of broad-leaf seedlings and saplings in Cryptomeria japonica plantations in Ogawa, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan at increasing distances (0–1000 m) from old growth natural forest edge. For saplings, there was no overall significant trend in the frequency, species richness, and Shannon index with respect to distance. Seedlings on the other hand showed a decrease in frequency and species richness with increasing distance from the old growth forest, implying that should recruitment limitation occur in the plantations, it will be stronger at the seed-to-seedling transition than at the seedling-to-sapling transition. Assigning species into groups based on functional traits that are associated with recruitment and regeneration was more revealing. Relative frequency of species that are moderately shade-tolerant, are shrubs, have small seeds, and are frugivore-dispersed increased in the plantations. In comparison, species that are tall trees, have large seeds and are gravity-dispersed decreased in the plantations. Multi-trait analysis showed that propagule size was the trait that could best explain the difference in the distribution of broad-leaf species in the plantations. Based on our results, we suggest to policy-makers that plantation sizes be kept to within a few hundred meters wide, and should ideally be within dispersal distance of species from natural forests that could potentially be seed sources of broad-leaf species. Otherwise, steps must be taken to drive succession such that potentially recruitment-limited species may be able to overcome barriers to regeneration.     

山东杨树主要品种对溃疡病抗性的研究

在山东营建杨树主要品种抗溃疡病 Dothiorella gregaira Sacc试验林 ,田间测定自然发病率和感病程度 ,同时室内测定杨树树皮含水量、两种同功酶活性和主要酚类化合物含量 ,探讨上述三项指标与溃疡病发生的关系 ,明确主要杨树品种的抗病性。结果表明 ,杨树树皮含水量、过氧化物酶和酯酶同功酶活性、对羟基苯甲酸和邻苯二酚含量与杨树对溃疡病的抗性有着密切关系。田间表现抗病的品种 ,如 I-69/5 5、I-72 /5 8和毛白杨 ,其上述三项指标高 ;感病品种 80 3杨 ,三项指标低 ;中林 2 3、2 8、46杨和 2 88-3 79杨的上述指标介于两种情况之间 ,属于中抗品种。田间和室内测定结果基本吻合。     

Vegetation community responses to different establishment regimes in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plantations in southern MS,USA

Management treatments involving multiple herbicide applications are standard procedure on most industrial pine plantation sites in the southern USA, raising concerns about biodiversity impairment. Management decisions impact not only plant communities but also the habitat potential they create for wildlife. We tested the effects of five intensities of stand establishment treatments on vegetation communities in loblolly pine plantations (n = 4) to age 5 in the Middle Coastal Plain (MCP) of Mississippi. Measurements were species richness, diversity, coverage, and community composition. Treatments were combinations of mechanical site preparation (MSP), chemical site preparation (CSP), and herbaceous weed control (HWC) both banded or broadcast for 1 or 2 years using the same herbicide mixtures. Tree richness and diversity were reduced by increasing treatment intensity; tree coverage, which included crop and non-crop trees, was less in moderate-intensity treatments. Vine richness and coverage were less in more intensive treatments, but 2 diversity indices differed on whether vine diversity was likewise affected. Richness and coverage of forbs and graminoids was lessened by broadcast HWC, with effects mostly limited to the year of application. Plant communities differed in all 5 years, with CSP acting as the primary factor for years 2–5. Early seral communities were favored by CSP, but broadcast HWC suppressed resulting herbaceous plants. Though CSP may somewhat reduce stand-level plant diversity, it may increase overall biodiversity within plantation-dominated landscapes by creating early succession plant communities that enhance wildlife habitat.     

Susceptibility of Eucalyptus grandis and Acacia mearnsii seedlings to five Phytophthora species common in South African plantations

Eucalyptus grandis and its hybrids, as well as Acacia mearnsii, are important non‐native trees commonly propagated for forestry purposes in South Africa. In this study, we conducted pathogenicity trials to assess the relative importance of five commonly isolated Phytophthora spp. (Phytophthora alticola, P. cinnamomi, P. frigida, P. multivora and P. nicotianae) from the plantation environment on E. grandis and A. mearnsii seedlings. Overall E. grandis was more susceptible to the tested Phytophthora spp. than A. mearnsii. Phytophthora cinnamomi was the only pathogen that had a significant negative effect on both the host tree species, leading to a reduction in root and shoot weight as well as to death in the case of E. grandis. Phytophthora alticola and P. nicotianae exclusively affected E. grandis and A. mearnsii, respectively. This study updated the current knowledge on the pathogenicity of Phytophthora spp. on two important non‐native commercially propagated tree species from South Africa.     

Species diversity of broad-leaved trees in Cryptomeria japonica plantations in relation to the distance from adjacent broad-leaved forests

The species diversity of broad-leaved trees in relation to the distance from a broad-leaved forest was investigated in Cryptomeria japonica plantations with crown snow damage near the Japan Sea in central Japan. The number and diversity of species and stem density decreased with distance from the broad-leaved forest in maturing gap stands (51–58 years old; >10 years after crown snow damage), but not in recent gap stands (34–42 years old; <10 years after crown snow damage), and increased with improved light conditions in the interior of recent gap stands, but not in that of maturing gap stands. The stem densities of tall and small tree species and woody lianas were greater in the interior of recent gap stands than in maturing gap stands. Woody lianas, which are characteristically shade intolerant, had a high stem density in the interior of recent gap stands. In contrast, the stem density of shrubs was greater in maturing gap stands than in recent gap stands, irrespective of distance. Shade-tolerant shrubs had a high stem density in maturing gap stands. Wind-dispersed and frugivore-dispersed species were concentrated at the edges of maturing gap stands, but some frugivore-dispersed species, which may persist in soil seed banks, occurred in the interior of recent gap stands. Gravity-dispersed species tended to occur both at the plantation edge and in the interior. The differences in the occurrence patterns of broad-leaved trees in the two types of stands reflected the difference in the effect of both the distance from the adjacent broad-leaved forest and the light conditions related to canopy gaps, with the time since gap formation in a region where crown snow damage often occurs.     

剔除林下灌草及添加固氮植物对华南地区4种人工林土壤甲烷(CH4)通量的影响

CH4是重要的温室气体之一,其主要排放源是森林土壤。本研究采用静态箱法对华南地区尾叶桉林（Eucalyptusurophylla）（B1）,厚荚相思林（Acacia crassicarpa）（B2）,10个树种的混交林（B3）和30个树种的混交林（B4）4种林型土壤CH4通量进行了原位测定,研究剔除林下灌草和添加翅荚决明（Cassia alata）对土壤CH4通量的影响。4个处理包括：（1）剔除林下灌草并添加翅荚决明（UR＋CA）;（2）仅剔除林下灌草（UR）;（3）仅添加翅荚决明（CA）;（4）对照（CK）。研究结果表明：林型变化对土壤CH4通量有重要影响,B1和B2表现为CH4的汇,而B3和B4为CH4的源,剔除林下灌草能改善土壤微生物活性,加快土壤矿化速度,促进CH4的吸收;而林下添加翅荚决明,由于翅荚决明根系的固氮作用,能加快土壤CH4的排放,表层土壤温度和湿度与土壤CH4通量具有强相关性;土壤有机碳（SOC）和可溶性N也是影响CH4通量的重要因子。本研究对探寻人工林管理措施对土壤CH4捧放影响机制具有重要的意义。