No description available.

Shoot dieback of lodgepole pine in the British Isles has been a long standing problem, but it was not known whether or not a pathogen was involved. During 1980--1982, a shoot dieback disease of lodgepole, similar to those previously observed at different places, was studied at the Glengarry and Eilanreach forests in the northwest of Scotland. Dieback symptoms and stages in their development were investigated. A thorough review of the literature on dieback disease of lodgepole pine indicated that different disease symptoms were involved in the present outbreaks. A hitherto undescribed fungus, Ramichloridium pini de Hoog & Rahman was found to be closely associated with the early stages of discolouration of the buds and shoots of lodgepole pine while Sclerophoma pythiophila (Cda.) Hohn was most prevalent on healthy and dead tissues. A new modified Czapek Dox Agar medium has been found to suppress S. pythiophila significantly while allowing normal growth of R. pini at about 15°C, which is the optimum temperature for the latter. A method of mass production of inoculum was devised. For germination of the conidia of R. pini free water is not essential. Good germination of conidia and elongation of germ tubes occurred on undetached flushing needle sheaths and bud scales. Extensive artificial inoculations have firmly established that R. pini is the primary pathogen of the present shoot dieback disease of lodgepole pine. Most successful infections were obtained from inoculations carried out in May and June. By October, shoots became resistant to infection. Plants of the Central Nass River provenance were more resistant to R. pini than those from Long Beach, Washington. It has been shown that conidia produced on needle fascicle scars could provide natural inoculum. The infection period lay between mid April to mid May or up to early June at Eilanreach in 1981.

The study examined the damage caused to naturally regenerated Scots Hue by red deer and certain other mammals and birds, and its effect on the development of natural woodland. Investigations were concentrated in three areas, which carried high, moderate and low stockings of red deer, in the upper Dee valley in Aberdeenshire. Most marked trees, above 2-3 inches in height, suffered some degree of browsing during the study period. Simulated browsing experiments, supported by data from study plots, showed that survival and growth of trees decreased with increased browsing severity. Severe browsing had less serious effects on large trees than on small ones. In response to browsing, new shoots were produced from large overwintering buds in larch and birch but, in pine, shoots were normally produced from dormant buds, which required a growing season in which to develop before vigorous growth was possible. Where browsing pressure was high, the deciduous species generally survived longer than pine because they were not subjected to severe winter damage and they probably suffered less interruption to their photosynthetic activity as a result of their more rapid response to browsing. Tree browsing records and observations in study plots confirmed that numerous mammals and birds browsed pine. Most species, however, had relatively little effect on woodland development. Densities of rabbits and mice were very low, and pine material was probably only a minor constituent in the diet of mountain hares and red grouse. Browsing by jred and roe deer could not be distinguished consistently, but the satisfactory development of natural regeneration in exclosures, where red deer were largely excluded but roe were common, suggests that roe densities of up to approximately 1*24 acres are too low to exert a serious effect on woodland development. Sheep commonly browsed pine in winter, but most animals were nonnally taken off the hill from November to May. Browsing on young regeneration by capercaillie was apparently restricted to pine of .4-30 inches high, which were few where capercaillie were numerous. Disbudding by black grouse was widespread but, in these areas, their browsing never affected tree survival and rarely prevented the addition of some increment during the year of damage. Browsing by red deer had the most serious effects on the survival and development of pine. Browsing had relatively little effect on tree development where red deer densities were approximately 1*150 acres in winter (Cambus O'May); but it caused mortalities in trees below 30 inches high and reduced growth in trees below 60 inches, in areas where winter densities approximated to 1:60 acres (Bush Lawsie). Densities of It10 acres (Meall Alvie) totally prevented the development of woodland. A comparison of tree browsing incidence with indices of red deer abundance in study plots, and a detailed examination of the conditions under which these trees were browsed, showed that whilst intensity of pine browsing is related to deer density, the two are not directly proportional to each other. The relationship is modified by environmental factors of climate and the habitat, notably the choice and availability of tree material and of the alternative vegetation which comprises the deer*a diet. Observations on feeding, rumen content analyses and comparisons of browsing intensity on trees of different origin and appearance showed that red deer browsed certain species of vegetation, and trees of certain sizes and condition, selectively. Habitats which contained large quantities of preferred vegetation and low quantities of acceptable tree material, therefore, suffered less pine browsing proportional to their use by deer than habitats in which these conditions were reversed. Deer abundance was invariably a significant factor in the amount of tree browsing which a habitat sustained, however, because increased browsing intensity removed more preferred vegetation and acceptable tree material and forced the deer to browse more heavily on less acceptable trees. Tree mortality from trampling had little effect on woodland development because damage was confined to very small trees in areas where regeneration was profuse. Relatively few trees were affected by antler damage, but these injuries could be locally significant where tree densities are low. On grouse moors, regular heather burning was principally responsible for the absence of natural woodland. Tree mortality from insects and fungi was negligible. Deaths from climatic agencies, notably drought and frost lift, were fairly few and were largely confined to very small trees. Snowbreak might have locally serious effects on the development of larger trees in winters of exceptional snowfall.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 1971. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.S.)--Montana State University--Bozeman, 2006. / Typescript. Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Lisa J. Graumlich. Includes bibliographical references.

The influence of nitrogen supply on relationships of relative growth rate (RGR) to leaf physiology, structural and non-structural carbon partitioning, and nitrogen- and water-use efficiencies were examined in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) clonal lines differing in growth potential. Nine 18-month-old loblolly pine clones were grown in a climate-controlled greenhouse for 20 weeks under two contrasting nitrogen (N) regimes (50 and 250 ppm) and a growth analysis was carried out. Higher nitrogen increased plant RGR and largely resulted in proportional shifts in biomass from roots and stems to needles. The RGR of plants receiving higher nitrogen was increased primarily through increased leaf area ratio (LAR), which was increased through higher leaf mass fraction (LMF) and not through changes in needle morphology. Although concentrations of needle glucose in plants receiving 250 ppm N were 22 percent higher than plants receiving lower N, total non-structural carbohydrate concentrations in needles of plants receiving 50 ppm N were nearly double that of clones receiving 250 pm N, primarily due to starch accumulation of the nitrogen-deficient plants. Plants receiving 250 ppm N also had 39 and 18 percent lower starch in the coarse and fine roots, respectively. Plants receiving higher nitrogen were also more water-use efficient, but had lower photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency. LAR, net assimilation rate (NAR), specific leaf area (SLA), and LMF were all positively correlated with RGR, but the main influence on RGR differences among clones was LAR. In addition, leaf-level rates of photosynthesis and respiration were positively correlated with RGR; however, faster-growing clones did not exhibit greater carbon economy at the leaf level. Both instantaneous water-use efficiency (A/E) and δ13C were positively correlated with RGR and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency was negatively correlated with RGR. The identification of physiological and morphological traits underpinning differences in RGR among clones and how these traits are affected by nitrogen supply provides new information on trait correlations within species and parallels broader patterns observed among species.

No description available.

The USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Protection, is responsible for maintaining an ORACLE database named the Southern Pine Beetle Information System (SPBIS). SPBIS was designed to store survey data for Southern Pine Beetle (SPB) infestations on federal land across the southern United States. The main purpose of this project is to improve the SPBIS database to aid in management of SPB infestations to reduce losses, to harvest compromised timber while it still has value, and to assist resource managers in preventing further infestations from becoming established. The SPBIS mobile mapping system addresses current problems with the database and offers viable solutions to each. Mobile mapping technology is a versatile tool, which is used to collect field data, with unique geospatial time tags and attributes, for integrating into or updating a GIS (Rasher 2001). The ability to efficiently collect data is essential to developing a useable database. The time required to manually enter data into the database is substantial. Ranger district personnel often do not have the time or the desire to enter data. Currently, the database is lacking years of survey and infestation data due to these negligent data entry practices, limiting the usefulness database. Currently, SPBIS data is recorded on a paper survey form. This system introduces a digital version of this form. A time study conducted to define the efficiency of each survey showed that the digital form to be more efficient with a Mann-Whitney p- value of 0.004. A comparative study was conducted to define the difference between currently estimated SPB infestation acreage and those measured using GPS. A Mann-Whitney pvalue of 0.000 shows the significant difference between the two acreage values. GPS measured acreage proved to be more accurate thus promoting the use of GPS for measuring acreage. Navigation us ing GPS coordinates was successful and will greatly decrease the time required to locate a SPB infestation on the ground. This thesis describes a mobile mapping system designed specifically to remedy the problems associated with SPBIS. This system eliminates the need for manual entry of field-collected data, while improving field data collection in terms of efficiency and accuracy.

The influence of nitrogen supply on relationships of relative growth rate (RGR) to leaf physiology, structural and non-structural carbon partitioning, and nitrogen- and water-use efficiencies were examined in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) clonal lines differing in growth potential. Nine 18-month-old loblolly pine clones were grown in a climate-controlled greenhouse for 20 weeks under two contrasting nitrogen (N) regimes (50 and 250 ppm) and a growth analysis was carried out. Higher nitrogen increased plant RGR and largely resulted in proportional shifts in biomass from roots and stems to needles. The RGR of plants receiving higher nitrogen was increased primarily through increased leaf area ratio (LAR), which was increased through higher leaf mass fraction (LMF) and not through changes in needle morphology. Although concentrations of needle glucose in plants receiving 250 ppm N were 22 percent higher than plants receiving lower N, total non-structural carbohydrate concentrations in needles of plants receiving 50 ppm N were nearly double that of clones receiving 250 pm N, primarily due to starch accumulation of the nitrogen-deficient plants. Plants receiving 250 ppm N also had 39 and 18 percent lower starch in the coarse and fine roots, respectively. Plants receiving higher nitrogen were also more water-use efficient, but had lower photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency. LAR, net assimilation rate (NAR), specific leaf area (SLA), and LMF were all positively correlated with RGR, but the main influence on RGR differences among clones was LAR. In addition, leaf-level rates of photosynthesis and respiration were positively correlated with RGR; however, faster-growing clones did not exhibit greater carbon economy at the leaf level. Both instantaneous water-use efficiency (A/E) and δ13C were positively correlated with RGR and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency was negatively correlated with RGR. The identification of physiological and morphological traits underpinning differences in RGR among clones and how these traits are affected by nitrogen supply provides new information on trait correlations within species and parallels broader patterns observed among species.

These (Ph. D.)--University of Queensland, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.