Objective
THE OBJECTIVE OF THE PROPOSED RESEARCH IS :
TO ELUCIDATE THE PROCESSES THAT ENABLE NITROGEN AND OTHER NUTRIENTS TO CYCLE MORE RAPIDLY IN MIXED SPRUCE-LARC STANDS THAN IN PURE STANDS AND TO SUGGEST MEANS BY WHICH SUCH KNOWLEDGE MIGHT BE USED TO DEVELOP LOW INPUT BUT HIGH PRODUCTIVITY FORESTS; TO IDENTIFY THE DISTURBANCES TO NUTRIENT CYCLES AND TREE GROWTH THAT ARE ASCRIBABLE TO ACID RAIN.
TWO ASPECTS OF IMMEDIATE CONCERN TO SILVICULTURISTS IN ALL MEMBER COUNTRIES ARE :
- (I) THE HEAVY EXPENDITURE, PARTICULARLY ON FERTILISERS, NECESSARY TO ESTABLISH SUCCESSFULL PLANTATIONS ON POOR SOILS, AND,
- (II) A CURRENT SUGGESTION THAT THE ELEVATED ACIDITY IN RAIN RESULTING FROM ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION MAY BE INTERACTING WITH THE NITROGEN CYCLE TO ADVERSELY AFFECT ROOT GROWTH AND HENCE REDUCE NUTRIENT UPTAKE AND FOREST PRODUCTIVITY.
WITH RESPECT TO ENERGY SAVING, IT HAS BEEN SHOWN IN RECENT YEARS THAT SPRUCE PLANTED IN MIXTURE WITH LARCH OR PINE WILL, UNAIDED, ACHIEVE HIGH GROWTH RATES THAT CAN ONLY BE OBTAINED IN PURE SPRUCE STANDS BY HEAVY AND REPEATED APPLICATION OF NITROGEN FERTILISER. THE PRESENCE OF THE LARCH OR PINE THUS SEEMS TO MOBILISE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF SOIL NITROGEN RESERVE THAT IS UNAVAILABLE TO SPRUCE IN PURE STANDS. AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE MECHANISM INVOLVED SHOULD ENABLE THE DEVELOPMENT OF SILVICULTURAL SYSTEMS, NOT NECESSARILY BASED ON MIXTURES, THAT MAINTAIN HIGH PRODUCTIVITY FOR LOW ENERGY INPUTS.
INSTRUMENTATION TO MEASURE NUTRIENT CYCLING IN PURE SPRUCE, PURE LARCH AND LARCH/SPRUCE MIXTURES WILL BE SET UP IN AN 18 YEAR OLD FIELD EXPERIMENT. TOTAL BIOMASS AND NUTRIENT CONTENT OF THE 3 ECOSYSTEMS WILL BE DETERMINED AT THE BEGINNING AND AT THE END OF THE PROJECT. LITTERFALL, THROUGHFALL, STEMFLOW, RUNOFF AND THEIR NUTRIENT CONTENTS WILL BE DETERMINED ON A MONTHLY BASIS. THE RESULTS TOGETHER WITH THOSE FOR ATMOSPHERIC ACIDITY WILL BE COMPARED WITH THOSE FROM OTHER MEMBER COUNTRIES.
Programme(s)
Topic(s)
Data not availableCall for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
Data not availableCoordinator
DUBLIN 4
Ireland