The objectives for this research were to determine: 1) the rate of Micromax which will produce maximum growth of pin oak (Quercus palustris Munchh.), a landscape tree which has shown a previous growth response to the addition of Micromax at the manufacturer's recommended rate, 2) which micronutrient(s) is most associated with maximum growth, and 3) the rate of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn required to produce maximum growth of Quercus palustris. Q. palustris seedlings were container-grown in pine bark amended with the following rates of Micromax: 0, 0.15, 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.8, or 2.7 kg(m-3 in 2000, 2001, and 2002. For all three years, the maximum growth was obtained at rates near the manufacturer's recommended rate of 0.9 kg(m-3. A micronutrient mix was formulated by increasing the levels of Zn, Mn, Fe, and Cu individually while holding the other micronutrients constant based on the grams of each micronutrient contained in Micromax at 0, 0.15, 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.8, or 2.7 kg(m-3 for 2001 and 0, 0.45, 0.9, or 1.8 kg(m-3 for 2002. In addition, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn were also applied alone to pine bark at rates of 0, 0.45, 0.9, or 1.8 kg(m-3 without the addition of any other micronutrients. Holding all other micronutrients constant and increasing the rate of one micronutrient did not increase growth. However, when Cu, Fe, Mn, or Zn was added to pine bark alone at increasing rates, growth increased. For Cu and Zn, the growth increased was linear suggesting that a higher rate of Cu and Zn than that provided by Micromax at the manufacturer's recommended rate might be advantageous. / Master of Science

Growing landscape trees in containers is a common practice in the nursery industry. In the southeastern United States, pine bark is often used as a container substrate, and two common amendments to pine bark are lime and micronutrients. In this study, three experiments were conducted to determine the effect of these amendments on the growth of a wide range of landscape tree species grown in pine bark. In the first experiment, nine species of landscape trees [Acer palmatum (Japanese maple), Acer saccharum (sugar maple), Cercis canadensis (redbud), Cornus florida (flowering dogwood), Cornus kousa (kousa dogwood), Koelreuteria paniculata (golden-rain tree), Magnolia x soulangiana (magnolia), Nyssa sylvatica (blackgum), and Quercus palustris (pin oak)] were grown from seed in two pine barks: pH 4.7 (low) and 5.1 (high). Preplant amendment treatments to each pine bark (Pinus taeda) were: with or without dolomitic limestone (3.57 kg.m-3) and with or without micronutrients (0.9 kg.m-3, Micromax™). The same experiment was repeated using Koelreuteria paniculata and Quercus palustris, the same lime and micronutrient treatments, and two pine barks: pH 5.1 (low) and 5.8 (high). In both experiments, micronutrients increased shoot dry mass and height for all species, while lime decreased shoot dry mass and height for all species. Effect of bark type in the first experiment was variable, while shoot dry mass and height were highest in the low pH bark when the experiment was repeated. Substrate solution element concentrations increased when micronutrients were added, decreased when lime was added, and in general, concentrations were higher in low pH bark than in high pH bark. In the third experiment, Koelreuteria paniculata was grown from seed in pine bark amended with 0, 1.2, 2.4, or 3.6 kg.m-3 dolomitic limestone and 0 or 0.9 kg.m-3 micronutrients (Micromax™). Initial pH for each lime rate was 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, and 5.5, respectively. Adding micronutrients increased shoot dry mass and height. Lime increased growth only at the 1.2 kg.m-3 rate. In general, substrate solution element concentrations increased when micronutrients were added and decreased when lime was added. In all three experiments, adding micronutrients was necessary regardless of pine bark pH, while adding lime was not necessary. / Master of Science

Revised; Originally Published: 2000 / 8 pp. / Whether you are beginning a new landscape or renovating an existing one, planning ahead can prevent many problems. The majority of maintenance requirements and plant problems result from either selecting the wrong kind of plant for a location or planting an inferior specimen of the selected plant type. In other words, there are two decisions to be made: ▪ What species, or kind, of tree are you going to buy — an oak, pine, mesquite, or acacia? ▪ Assuming you decide on an oak, which one in the row of oaks at the nursery are you going to buy? The first decision is called Plant Selection and the second is Selecting Plants. Our goal is to install the right plant in the right place. This publication will cover the factors involved in making good decisions to achieve this goal.

The objective of this work was to determine if summer dormancy of boxwood could be removed either through nutritional or hormonal means. Buxus sempervirens L. "Suffruticosa", B. sempervirens "Vardar Valley", and B sinica var. insularis (Nakai) "Justin Brouwers" were used for these studies. In the nutrition study, experiments were conducted to examine the effects of various levels of Osmocote 15-9-12 and liquid 10-4-6 on growth of boxwood. Optimal shoot dry weight was achieved at applications of 12 to 16 g Osmocote and 100 – 150 ppm N liquid fertilizer. Leachate EC corresponding to optimal shoot dry weight ranged from 0.5 to 0.7 dS/m for Osmocote and from 0.7 to 1.5 dS/m for liquid fertilizer. While the fertilizer requirements for boxwood optimal dry weight accumulation were determined, additional flushes of growth subsequent to the initial spring flush did not occur for "Vardar Valley" and English boxwood. In the phytohormone study, experiments were conducted that examined the effects of pruning, Promalin (GA4+7 and BA), and defoliation on the growth of three boxwood species. While Promalin applied alone or in conjunction with pruning shows promise of increasing new shoot growth, its response was not consistent from experiment to experiment. In fact, when it was applied in conjunction with defoliation, it dramatically decreased number of new shoots and actually resulted in some shoot mortality. Pruning was also erratic in its promotion of new shoots. Defoliation increased new shoot number dramatically and shows the most promise in overcoming summer dormancy. / Master of Science

Detta arbeta har utförts för att undersöka hur höstplantering av täckrotsodlad gran (Picea abies) och tall (Pinus sylvestris) överlever och utvecklas jämfört med vårplanterad. Detta i ett led för att se om man kan utöka planteringssäsongen för att få en jämnare arbetsbelastning över säsongen både i plantskolorna och ute i fält. Man har undersökt hur en planteringstidpunkt på sensommaren och hösten påverkar granplantors överlevnad jämfört med plantering på våren. Studien är utförd som en survey studie i södra Sverige på täckrotsplantor av gran som planterats på medelboniteter 2007-2009 och inventerats 2010. Höst och vårplanterade granplantor är jämförda parvis med samma planttyp, ålder, proveniens och geografiskt område. Följande saker har jämförts; plantor per hektar, höjdtillväxt, toppskottstillväxt, rothalsdiametern, frostskador, viltskador samt snytbaggeskador. Höstplantering av täckrotsodlad gran (Picea abies) ger ett lika bra resultat som vårplantering vad gäller överlevnad hos plantor. Höjdtillväxt och diametertillväxt blev något bättre på de höstplanterade plantorna jämfört med vårplanterade efterföljande vår. Höstplanterade plantor skadades något mer av frost än de vårplanterade gjorde, speciellt första säsongen. Vårplanterade plantor fick något mer viltskador än höstplanterade vilket kan bero på färre frostskador. Vårplanterade plantor skadades något mer av snytbagge än de höstplanterade. Snytbaggeskadorna var störst på de torra jordarna i östra området. Höstplantering av täckrotsodlad tall (Pinus sylvestris) gav ett lika bra resultat när det gäller överlevande plantor som gran. / This work has been performed in order to investigate if Norway spruce (Picea abies) and pine (Pinus sylvestris) container-grown seedlings planted in autumn gives the same quality as planting in spring in terms of surviving plants. This is in part to see if one can extend the planting season to get a more even workload over the season, both in nurseries and in the field. The study is designed as a survey study in Southern Sweden on container-grown seedlings of Norway spruce and pine planted 2007-2009 and inventoried 2010. The following things have been compared; plants per hectare, height growth, leading shoot growth, stem diameter, frost damage, damage by wild animals and pine weevil damage. Planting of Norway spruce (Picea abies) container-grown seedlings in autumn gives the same quality as planting in spring in terms of surviving plants. Height growth and diameter growth were slightly better the following season for seedlings planted in autumn compared to seedlings planted in spring. Seedlings planted in autumn were damaged by frost more than seedlings planted the spring, especially the first season. Seedlings planted in spring were slightly more damaged by wild animals than seedlings planted in autumn which may be because of less frost damage. Seedlings planted in spring were slightly a little more damaged by pine weevil than seedlings planted in autumn. Pine weevil damage was greatest in the arid soils in the eastern area. Container-grown seedlings of pine (Pinus sylvestris) planted in autumn gave equally good results as seedlings planted of Norway spruce.

A range of Proteaceous shrubs and other nursery plants were grown in containers with soilless media and various N levels. Plants demonstrated a range of responsiveness. Supplying soilless media with Osmocote (26% N) and other short term fertilisers proved to be a satisfactory method of studying the comparative nutrition of a wide range of container grown nursery plants using factorial experiments incorporating N, P, K and lime. Nutrient response surfaces were obtained using a central composite incomplete block design. Most Proteaceous shrubs were intolerant of high P levels due to excessive luxury consumption resulting in toxic foliar nutrient levels, especially in the presence of high N. Phosphorus sensitivity in plants appeared to correspond with the soil nutrient levels in their native habitat. This applied to species studied in the 2 main sub-families in the Proteaceae while similar findings were indicated for other Australian genera. A range of optimum N requirements in the Proteaceae was found – lowest needs for Protea which also had the greatest tolerance of very low fertiliser additions, compared to Grevillea robusta with much higher N requirements and strong foliage growth inhibition if nutrient levels are very low. Proteoid root growth on Grevillea rosmarinifolia only occurred at low nutrient levels and was not required for satisfactory foliage growth of container grown plants. Pot plants and seedlings, especially tomato, responded strongly to N and often there were positive NK interactions influencing foliage growth. Lime requirements were studied and in erica increasing lime rates depressed foliage growth. Comparative nutrition studies indicate that general or broad spectrum container media may be unsuitable for some groups of nursery plants and that they could be replaced by potting mixes designed to meet the widely differing needs of the species often grown. The number of specialist mixes would depend on the range of plants and be governed by management considerations.