Plant Community Diversity and Tree Growth Following Single and Repeated Glyphosate Herbicide Applications to a White Spruce Plantation

Comeau, Philip G.; Fraser, Erin

doi:10.3390/f9030107

Cited by 11 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…These results indicate that the effects of FVM on the vegetation community tend to disappear over time. The recovery of vegetation abundance and diversity following FVM has also been observed by others [29][30][31][32]. Further analysis of region-wide datasets may permit plot-level species abundance to be expanded to the landscape scale.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

Interactive Effects of Stock Type and Forest Vegetation Management Treatments on Douglas-Fir Seedling Growth and Survival—Ten-Year Results

Wightman

Gonzalez‐Benecke

Dinger

2019

Forests

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In the Pacific Northwest, the use of forest vegetation management (FVM) and seedling stock type selection are important tools to ensure seedling establishment according to organizational objectives and state laws. Individually, these two reforestation decisions have been shown to increase growth and survival of Douglas-fir seedlings, however, the interaction between seedling stock type and level of vegetation control represents economic and ecologic tradeoffs that are less well understood. This study was designed to test the combined effects of three FVM regimes and three containerized stock types, one of which was experimental at the time, on Douglas-fir growth during the initial ten years of establishment on a site near Belfair, Washington (USA). When compared to the no-action control, FVM treatments reduced competitive plant cover below 20% during the year of application, and differences in vegetation cover persisted through the fifth growing season. Vegetation species diversity recovered quickly after FVM and there were no differences among the treatments by the third growing season. After ten growing seasons, trees in plots treated with FVM were 1.1 m taller with a mean diameter at breast height (DBH) 2.2 cm larger than those in the no-action control. Larger seedlings at the time of planting (styro-60) were 0.6 m taller with a mean DBH 1.1 cm larger than smaller seedlings (styro-8 and styro-15). The only significant stock type by FVM interaction in the experiment occurred with the survival of styro-60 seedlings growing in the no action control which had lower survival than all other treatment combinations (67% vs 91%). The long-term competitive impact of shrub cover was demonstrated by a strong non-linear relationship. Increasing cumulative shrub cover from 10% to 30% during the first two years of establishment reduced stand volume at year 10 by 79%.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

Interactive Effects of Stock Type and Forest Vegetation Management Treatments on Douglas-Fir Seedling Growth and Survival—Ten-Year Results

Wightman

Gonzalez‐Benecke

Dinger

2019

Forests

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“…at age 90 with MAI of 4.2 m 3 ha −1 y −1 and merchantable volume of 375 m 3 ha −1 y −1 [14]. Treatment "1000" had greater spruce volume than all other treatments which is consistent with MGM predictions of 345 m 3 ha −1 at age 90 in a mixture of 2000 stems ha −1 aspen and 1300 stems ha −1 spruce [14], and to a spruce volume of 326 m 3 ha −1 following repeated aerial herbicide treatments [42].…”

Section: Thinning Effects On Growth and Yieldsupporting

confidence: 80%

Precommercial Thinning Increases Spruce Yields in Boreal Mixedwoods in Alberta, Canada

Bjelanovic

Comeau

Meredith³

et al. 2021

Forests

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A few studies in young mixedwood stands demonstrate that precommercial thinning of aspen at early ages can improve the growth of spruce and increase stand resilience to drought. However, information on tree and stand responses to thinning in older mixedwood stands is lacking. To address this need, a study was initiated in 2008 in Alberta, Canada in 14 boreal mixedwood stands (seven each at ages 17 and 22). This study investigated growth responses following thinning of aspen to five densities (0, 1000, 2500, 5000 stems ha−1 and unthinned (control)). Measurements were collected in the year of establishment, and three and eight years later. Mortality of aspen in the unthinned plots was greater than in the thinned plots which were not significantly different amongst each other. Eight years following treatment, aspen diameter was positively influenced by thinning, while there was no effect on aspen height. The density of aspen had no significant effect on the survival of planted spruce. Spruce height and diameter growth increased with both aspen thinning intensity and time since treatment. Differentiation among treatments in spruce diameter growth was evident three years from treatment, while differentiation in height was not significant until eight years following treatment. Yield projections using two growth models (Mixedwood Growth Model (MGM) and Growth and Yield Projection System (GYPSY)) were initialized using data from the year eight re-measurements. Results indicate that heavy precommercial aspen thinning (to ~1000 aspen crop trees ha−1) can result in an increase in conifer merchantable volume without reducing aspen volume at the time of harvest. However, light to moderate thinning (to ~2500 aspen stems ha−1 or higher), is unlikely to result in gains in either deciduous or conifer merchantable harvest volume over those of unthinned stands.

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“…Both the broadcast complete (BC) and broadcast woody (BW) control treatments resulted in complete removal of deciduous trees due to combined effects of initial and follow up treatments. This contrasts to aerial applications of glyphosate which may result in post treatment aspen densities in excess of 700 stem ha -1 (Pitt et al 2004;Comeau and Fraser 2018;Kabzems et al 2022). Control of understory vegetation (BH) resulted in a 44% increase in aspen top height, and a 33% (although non-significant) increase in aspen top DBH at age 15.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using spot treatments to regenerate an intimate mixture of trembling aspen and white spruce in Alberta: Results at age 15

Comeau

Hoepting

Mihajlovich³

2023

The Forestry Chronicle

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Mixedwood stands, dominated by trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), are an important fibre source in Canada’s boreal forest and provide a range of ecological services. We present results from a study established in 2002 to test a strategy for growing intimate, single cohort mixtures of these two species involving controlling woody and herbaceous vegetation within 2-m radius spots centered on the spruce planted at 5-m spacing. After 15 growing seasons spruce survival was high (74–90%) in the radial treatments with spruce DBH and height being intermediate between untreated spruce growing under a dense aspen canopy and spruce growing without aspen in the broadcast complete control treatment. Repeated browsing by snowshoe hare, associated with reduced height of spruce, lead to severe reductions in spruce survival and size in the untreated stand, which had an average of 24 500 stems/hectare of aspen at age 15. While spot treatment alone did not significantly affect aspen height or diameter at age 15, thinning of the aspen matrix at age 10 in spot treated stands resulted in increases in diameter growth of both aspen and spruce. Results indicate that radial spot herbicide treatments can effectively improve early survival and growth of white spruce through control of aspen, shrubs, herbs, and grasses and that adding precommercial thinning leads to additional increases in growth of both trembling aspen and white spruce.

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Plant Community Diversity and Tree Growth Following Single and Repeated Glyphosate Herbicide Applications to a White Spruce Plantation

Cited by 11 publications

References 28 publications

Interactive Effects of Stock Type and Forest Vegetation Management Treatments on Douglas-Fir Seedling Growth and Survival—Ten-Year Results

Interactive Effects of Stock Type and Forest Vegetation Management Treatments on Douglas-Fir Seedling Growth and Survival—Ten-Year Results

Precommercial Thinning Increases Spruce Yields in Boreal Mixedwoods in Alberta, Canada

Using spot treatments to regenerate an intimate mixture of trembling aspen and white spruce in Alberta: Results at age 15

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