Per-Ola Hedwall, Harald Grip, Sune Linder, Lars Lövdahl, Urban Nilsson, Johan Bergh. (2013). Effects of clear-cutting and slash removal on soil water chemistry and forest-floor vegetation in a nutrient optimised Norway spruce stand. Silva Fennica vol. 47 no. 2 article id 933. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.933

Keywords: Picea abies; logging residues; forest fertilisation; forest undergrowth; N-retention; nutrient leakage; whole-tree harvest

Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info

Fertilisation with nutrient optimisation has in Sweden resulted in large increases in volume growth in young stands of Norway spruce. There are, however, environmental concerns about repeated fertilisation and one is the risk of nutrient leakage to ground water resources and aquatic ecosystems after clear-cutting of such forests. The present study followed soil-water chemistry in optimised fertilised stands after clear-cutting, as well as effects of harvest of slash on nutrient leakage. Parts of a 30-year-old stand of Norway spruce, which had been subject to a nutrient optimisation experiment for 17 years, were clear-cut. A split-plot design with whole-tree harvesting as the sub-plot treatment was applied. Lysimeters were installed and soil-water sampled at nine occasions during the following four years. No significant effects of fertilisation on nitrate leaching were found, while harvest of slash reduced the concentration of Ca, DOC, DON, K, Mg, ammonium and nitrate, as well as pH in the soil solution. While no effects of fertilisation could be seen on the soil water concentration of N, the results indicate an interaction between fertilisation and harvest of slash on the concentration of nitrate in the soil solution. The results indicate that forest-floor vegetation plays an important role in the retention of N after clear-cutting of fertilised forests.

Hedwall, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: per-ola.hedwall@slu.se
Grip, Department of Forest Ecology and Management, SLU, SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden E-mail: harald@grip2.se
Linder, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: sune.linder@slu.se
Lövdahl, Department of Forest Ecology and Management, SLU, SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden E-mail: ll@nn.se
Nilsson, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: urban.nilsson@slu.se
Bergh, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: johan.bergh@slu.se

article id 214, category Research article

Michelle de Chantal, Hannu Rita, Urban Bergsten, Mikaell Ottosson Löfvenius, Harald Grip. (2009). Frost heaving of Picea abies seedlings as influenced by soil preparation, planting technique, and location along gap-shelterwood gradients. Silva Fennica vol. 43 no. 1 article id 214. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.214

Keywords: deep planting; normal planting; mobile container; fixed container; HuMinMix; soil horizon

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The effects of soil preparation, planting technique and location along gap-shelterwood gradients (position and orientation) on frost heaving damage to seedlings were studied in Vindeln Experimental Forests, northern Sweden. The forest was harvested in a grid pattern in winter 2004–2005, forming gaps and shelterwood areas of 30 x 40 m each. Gap-shelterwood gradients were delimited in four orientations and subdivided into five positions: 7 m and 15 m into the gap and shelterwood, and at the gap edge. At each position, three replicates of three soil preparations were made: exposed E and B horizons and HuMinMix (milled vegetation and humus layers mixed with surface mineral soil). In early October 2005, one-year-old containerized Picea abies (L.) Karst. seedlings were planted using four techniques: normal and deep planting, and mobile and fixed experimental containers. After one winter, frost heaving damage was highest for seedlings on B horizon combined with the mobile container (51 ± 6%) and normal planting (43±6%). Normal- or deep-planted seedlings in HuMinMix had the least damage (5–6.6 ± 2.5%). Compared to normal planting, deep planting reduced frost heaving damage only on B horizon. When considering the orientation, seedlings in the experimental containers had more or similar frost heaving damage than normal- or deep-planted seedlings. Along the eastern gradient, seedlings incurred more frost heaving damage in the center of the gap than under the canopy.

Chantal, University of Helsinki, Dept of Forest Ecology & Dept of Forest Resource Management, Helsinki, Finland E-mail: michelle.dechantal@helsinki.fi
Rita, University of Helsinki, Dept of Forest Ecology & Dept of Forest Resource Management, Helsinki, Finland E-mail: hr@nn.fi
Bergsten, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept of Forest Ecology and Management, Umeå, Sweden E-mail: ub@nn.se
Löfvenius, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept of Forest Ecology and Management, Umeå, Sweden E-mail: mol@nn.se
Grip, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept of Forest Ecology and Management, Umeå, Sweden E-mail: hg@nn.se

article id 225, category Research article

Johan Bergh, Urban Nilsson, Harald Grip, Per-Ola Hedwall, Tomas Lundmark. (2008). Effects of frequency of fertilisation on production, foliar chemistry and nutrient leaching in young Norway spruce stands in Sweden. Silva Fennica vol. 42 no. 5 article id 225. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.225

Keywords: boreal; sludge; wood-ash; N; P; K

Abstract | View details | Full text in PDF | Author Info

There is a great need to increase the production in Swedish forests to meet future demand from the forest industry and the bio-energy sector. One option to increase the production is to supply nutrients to young stands of Norway spruce. For the practical application it is important to develop and optimise fertilisation regimes in terms of production, economy and leaching of nutrients. The frequency of fertilisation is one important variable in the fertilisation regime, and this study aimed to study effects of different fertilisation frequencies on production and leaching of nitrogen. In 2001, five field experiments were established in southern, central and northern Sweden. Young stands of Norway spruce were fertilised every year, every second year and every third year. In addition, fertilisation with sludge pellets and wood-ash combined with nitrogen was investigated. The current annual increment after five years of treatment was significantly larger in fertilised than in unfertilised treatments. The difference in production between fertilisation every year and every second year was insignificant, while fertilisation every third year resulted in lower production. Sludge pellets and wood-ash fertilisation gave significantly lower production than fertilisation every second year even though approximately the same amount of nitrogen was applied. There was relatively little leaching of nitrate to ground water in all treatments; 0.6–1 kg N ha^–1 a^–1 from plots with fertilisation every year or every second year; and 2.7 kg N ha^–1 a^–1 from plots with fertilisation every third year. Most of the leaching was after the first fertilisation, in all treatments at all sites.

Bergh, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: johan.bergh@ess.slu.se
Nilsson, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: un@nn.se
Grip, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: hg@nn.se
Hedwall, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: poh@nn.se
Lundmark, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, P.O. Box 49, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden E-mail: tl@nn.se

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