Field experiments were conducted at the Elora Research Station, Elora, Ontario, in 1988 and 1989 to quantify the inherent competitive ability of three white bean cultivars: OAC Gryphon, OAC Sprint, and OAC Laser growing with a naturally occurring population of annual weeds. An attempt was made to increase the competitive ability of these cultivars by altering row spacing and seeding density. Uncontrolled populations of weeds reduced white bean yields by 70%. OAC Gryphon and OAC Laser reduced weed biomass by 10 to 35% compared to OAC Sprint. The ability of cultivars to reduce weed biomass was further enhanced in medium and narrow rows compared to traditional wide rows. Cultivar, row spacing, and seeding density combinations which maximized leaf area index when grown under weedy conditions also had significantly less weed biomass. However, cultivar selection, row spacing, and seeding density did not reduce weed density. A significant negative correlation was observed between weed biomass accumulation and final yield of white bean. For each kg ha−1increase in weed biomass the corresponding white bean yield loss averaged 0.380 kg ha−1. Season-long weed competition significantly reduced total number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, and 100-seed weight.
Nutrient-loaded and conventionally fertilized containerized black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) BSP) seedlings were planted on a boreal mixedwood site in the Greater Clay Belt of Ontario to study their growth and interaction with natural vegetation. At planting, nutrient-loaded seedlings were similar in height and biomass to conventionally fertilized seedlings, but contained 39, 69, and 22% more tissue N, P, and K content, respectively. After two field growing seasons, nutrient-loaded seedlings attained 15–18% more height and 16–39% more biomass, resulting in 15–27% reduction in the biomass of neighbouring vegetation. Aboveground biomasses of seedlings and neighbouring vegetation were inversely related. Interspecific competition was more intense in the second year than in the first year of outplanting. Nutrient loading prior to planting stimulated nutrient uptake and root growth after planting, and reduced soil N availability by 6–20% during the first season, suggesting greater preemption of belowground nutrient resources. The enhanced competitive ability of loaded seedlings over naturally occurring vegetation was probably due to the contrasting nutrient utilization traits induced by greenhouse fertilization. Nutrient-loaded seedlings translocated more nutrients to actively growing parts from reserves built up during the greenhouse preconditioning phase than did conventionally fertilized seedlings. First-season growth and nutrient responses in the field and in previous greenhouse trials were significantly correlated, demonstrating the effectiveness of using intact bioassays to simulate and predict short-term field responses to competition treatments.
Black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) seedlings were exponentially nutrient loaded by applying 3 or 6 times more fertilizer than recommended for conventional seedling production in the nursery. Loaded seedlings were similar in height and biomass to nonloaded seedlings after nursery culture, but their tissue N, P, and K content was almost twice as much as that of nonloaded seedlings. The seedlings were transplanted on intact potted substrates (bioassays) retrieved with natural vegetation from two boreal mixedwood sites and grown for one season in a greenhouse to study early-and late-season growth and nutrient dynamics, and nutrient loading and herbicide effects on N retranslocation processes. After transplanting, height and biomass growth of loaded seedlings were, respectively, 9-14% and 24-49% more than nonloaded seedlings in herbicide-treated plots, and 14-32% and 42-85% more in untreated plots, resulting in 32-39% biomass reduction in natural vegetation. The effect of nutrient loading on growth was attributed to earlier and greater biomass and N partitioning to current needles and roots that promoted N uptake (up to 20.9 ± 1.7 mg) compared with nonloaded seedlings (up to 11.8 ± 1.2 mg). Although both loading and herbicide treatments stimulated seedling growth and N uptake, N retranslocation from older to actively growing tissues was promoted by loading but reduced by herbicide treatment. The results demonstrate the high dependence of seedlings on internal nutrient reserves when planted in competitive environments, and that nutrient retranslocation is mainly driven by current growth, nutrient uptake, and internal nutrient reserves.Résumé : Des semis d'épinette noire (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) ont été soumis à une consommation de luxe exponentielle en appliquant 3 et 6 fois les doses de fertilisant recommandées pour la production conventionnelle de semis en pépinière. Les semis ainsi traités étaient semblables en hauteur et en biomasse à ceux soumis à un régime normal après la culture en pépinière, mais le contenu de leurs tissus en N, P et K était presque deux fois supérieur à ceux-ci. Les semis ont été transplantés dans des pots contenant des substrats intacts prélevés sur deux stations de forêt boréale mixte en conservant la végétation naturelle et placés en serre durant une saison de croissance en vue d'étudier la dynamique nutritionnelle et la croissance en début et en fin de saison, de même que les effets des herbicides et de la consommation de luxe sur la retranslocation de N. Après la transplantation, la croissance en hauteur et la croissance en biomasse des semis soumis à la consommation de luxe étaient supérieures de 9-14% et de 24-49%, respectivement, par rapport aux semis soumis à un régime normal dans les parcelles traitées avec herbicide, et supérieures de 14-32% et 42-85% dans les parcelles non traitées, conduisant ainsi à une baisse de 32-39% de la biomasse végétale naturelle. L'effet de la consommation de luxe sur la croissance a été attribué à une allocation supérieure et plus précoce de N e...
The interaction of newly planted, nutrient-loaded black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) B.S.P.) seedlings with naturally occurring vegetation was investigated for one growing season under greenhouse conditions using bioassays retrieved from a boreal mixedwood site. Nutrient-loaded seedlings were similar in height and biomass to conventionally fertilized seedlings at planting, but contained 43, 76, and 33% more tissue N, P, and K content due to higher nursery fertilization, which induced luxury consumption. Nutrient-loaded seedlings outperformed conventionally fertilized seedlings in respective height and biomass growth by 35 and 28% in herbicide-treated plots, and by 44 and 37% in untreated plots, resulting in a 27% reduction in neighbouring vegetation biomass by the end of the season. The loading treatments stimulated nutrient uptake after planting, although the depletion of preplant nutrient reserves was greater. A significant negative correlation was observed between tree and weed biomass accumulation. Slope differences indicated that loaded trees were less sensitive to neighbouring vegetation than conventionally fertilized trees. The enhanced competitive ability of loaded seedlings against naturally occurring vegetation was probably due to the translocation of more nutrients to actively growing parts from reserves built up during the nursery preconditioning phase.
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