Effects of liming on the nutrition, vigor, and growth of sugar maple at the Lake Clair Watershed, Québec, Canada

Abstract

In the 1980s, sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) dieback was observed across its range in Quebec. In spite of the recovery of the majority of stands during recent years, some have continued to show signs of dieback progression. At the Lake Clair Watershed experimental station, a study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of liming on the nutrition, vigor, and growth of sugar maple in an acid soil, poor in available Ca and Mg. A completely randomized experiment was established and selected sugar maples were treated in 1994 with dolomitic lime in amounts of 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, or 50 t·ha -1 . Four years after the lime application, improvements in foliar concentrations of N, P, Ca, and Mg were noted. Liming increased the radial growth of sugar maple by 45% for rates from 1 to 10 t·ha -1 and by 90% for rates of 20 t·ha -1 , compared with the control trees. The beneficial effects of lime on dieback appeared only very slightly at the third and fourth years after treatment. The negative impact of liming on sugar maple K nutrition could be mitigated by application of potassium sulphate.Résumé : Au cours des années 1980, le dépérissement de l'érable à sucre (Acer saccharum Marsh.) a été observé à la grandeur de sa répartition géographique au Québec. Malgré une amélioration de la santé de la plupart de ces érablières au cours des dernières années, certaines ont continué à montrer des signes de progression du dépérissement. À la station expérimentale du bassin versant du lac Clair, une étude a été entreprise afin d'évaluer l'effet du chaulage sur la nutrition, la vigueur et la croissance de l'érable à sucre sur un sol acide, pauvre en Ca et Mg échangeables. Un dispositif complètement aléatoire a été établi et les érables à sucre sélectionnés ont été traités avec une quantité de 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, ou 50 t·ha -1 de chaux dolomitique. Quatre ans après le traitement de chaux dolomitique, une amélioration de la nutrition en N, P, Ca et Mg a été notée. Le chaulage a engendré des augmentations de croissance radiale de l'ordre de 45% pour les doses de 1 à 10 t·ha -1 et de 90% pour la dose de 20 t·ha -1 , comparativement aux arbres témoins. Les effets bénéfiques de la chaux sur le dépérissement ne sont apparus que très faiblement la troisième et quatrième année après traitement. L'effet négatif du chaulage sur la nutrition en K de l'érable à sucre a pu être compensé partiellement par l'addition de sulfate de potassium. Moore et al. 732

Assessment of sugar maple tree growth in relation to the partitioning of elements in xylem along a soil acidity gradient

“…In the present study, total xylem concentrations of Ca were positively correlated to growth (Table 4), in accordance to its important role in tree health often acknowledged in the literature (Likens et al, 1996;Long et al, 1997;DeHayes et al, 1999;Moore et al, 2000;Watmough, 2002;Moore and Ouimet, 2006). This relationship was mirrored by some base cation xylem fractions, namely the water-soluble fraction of Ca and K, the acid-soluble fraction of Ca, and the residual fraction of Mg.…”

“…It is in accordance with Duchesne et al (2002) who investigated sugar maple growth and similarly inferred that it was impaired by soil acidification, as well as with the various studies initially mentioned that related the decline of sugar maple forests with acidic depositions (McLaughlin et al, 1992;Ryan et al, 1994;Ouimet and Camiré, 1995;Ouimet et al, 1996;Watmough, 2002). It is also in agreement with the results from liming experiments (Long et al, 1997;Burke and Raynal, 1998;Moore et al, 2000;Wargo et al, 2002;Moore and Ouimet, 2006), or liming plus base cations fertilization (Wilmot et al, 1996), that resulted in improved maple growth and health.…”

“…Additionally, several studies reported inhibition of Ca uptake by mobilized soil Al (Ulrich et al, 1980;Cronan, 1991;Lawrence et al, 1995). The negative impact of Ca-deficiency on tree growth and health is also well documented (Likens et al, 1996;Long et al, 1997;DeHayes et al, 1999;Moore et al, 2000;Watmough, 2002). As a result, the ratio of Ca-to-Al in soil, wood and leaves was often used as an indicator of soil acidification (Bondietti et al, 1989;Rustad and Cronan, 1995;Berger et al, 2004) as well as of tree health (Matzner et al, 1986;Shortle and Smith, 1988).…”

Soil and leaf analysis of fertilized sugar maple stands after ice storm damage

“…Soil amelioration treatments, such as fertilization and liming, have been used to counter stress from sugar maple decline effectively in northeastern North America (Ouimet and Fortin 1992;Long et al 1997Long et al , 1999. Mature stands species have been reported to respond positively in growth to additions of mixed fertilizers (P, K and lime) (Fyles et al 1994, Côté et al 1995, Wilmot et al 1996, Long et al 1997, Moore et al 2000, but not to N fertilization (Hutchinson et al 1998, Stone 1986. Since many sugar maple woodlots were adversely affected by the ice storm, soil amelioration practices offer a viable management option to speed recovery and restore productivity of active maple syrup production areas.…”

“…The focus is on whether short-term (three years) soil fertility and tree nutrient status was influenced by soil remedial practices; specifically standardized fertilization with phosphorous (P) and potassium (K) and/or liming with dolomite containing calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg). These nutrients may limit productivity of sugar maple (Fyles et al 1994, Côté et al 1995, Wilmot et al 1996, Long et al 1997, Moore et al 2000 hence need appropriate calibration. The aim is to link this work to companion studies examining maple tree growth and syrup production on these same study plots.…”