The paper lists the forest publications of forest scientific research published in Finland in 1970 in five scientific series: Acta Forestalia Fennica, Silva Fennica, Communicationes Instituti Forestalis Fenniae, Folia Forestales, and Metsäteho Reports.
The aim of the present study was to increase the knowledge of the anaerobic conditions prevailing in virgin peat soils of different kinds, and on the fluctuation of the aerobic limit. Silver rod method was used to indicate anaerobic conditions and to locate the aerobic limit. The material included 18 peatland sample plots on treeless bogs, in pine bogs and in spruce swamps in Southern Finland. Observations of the discoloration of the silver rods and measurements of ground water level were made from 8 June to 13 August 1968.
The results show that the location of the aerobic limit is dependent of the depth of the ground water table, and usually lies 5–15 cm above the ground water table. Down to 10–20 cm below the aerobic limit, where it reaches maximum, the rate of decomposition of sulfurous organic matter is positively correlated with the distance from the aerobic limit. Deeper it gradually decreases, and in the depth of 25–35 cm no hydrogen sulphide seems to be released.
In the forested peatland types the volume of the growing stock and the increment were dependent on the depth of the aerobic limit only when nutrient content and pH of the peat was more or less constant. Where the aerobic limit was close to the ground surface but the nutrient contents were relatively high, the volume of the growing stock may be comparatively high. Birch (Betula sp.), better than the conifers, is able to stand conditions poor in oxygen. The growing stock was poor in sites where the aerobic limit was near the ground surface, but the nitrogen and phosphorus contents were high, or vice versa. Consequently, aerobic limit is of great importance as an indicator of site quality.
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The study was carried out in order to establish the possible influence of damage caused to the needles of Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. by the spruce spider mite, Oligonychus ununguis (Jacobi), and the growth of the damaged seedlings. The study was carried out in 1968–1970 by comparing growth of seedlings infected with spruce spider mite with that of seedlings where mites had been killed with acaricide (Eradex®). In the seedlings that had not been treated with acaricide, the number of wintering eggs were 60, 20 and 5 per shoot in the various years of the study. When the experiment was laid out, before planting and acaricide treatment, the seedlings were four years old, all seadlings were heavily infected, the number of wintering eggs being 100 per shoot. The growth of infected seedlings was 3, 20 and 15% smaller than that obtained for the seedlings which had been treated with acaricide.
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The aim of this study was to investigate how the weight loss and water content of cold stored plants depend on the storage conditions, and if there is a clear connection between these factors and the field survival of the planting stock. The experiments were carried out in a climate chamber at about +2°C and at three moisture levels (about 70, 85, and 95%) from November 1968 to May 1969. Three-year-old seedlings of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) average length 127 mm, diameter 3.5 mm and the top/root-ratio of fresh weight 1.93, were stored in open and sealed plastic bags. In addition, a transpiration retardant (Silvaplast) was used. The plastic bags (10 plants each) were weighted every 4. week. The remaining 270 seedlings were planted out and inspected after one growing season.
Although the experiment was made in a small scale, the results showed clearly that plant mortality, varying between 3 and 97%, was due to the storage conditions. The weight loss ranged between 2 and 50%, and the correlation between the weight loss and the mortality in the field was high. The water content of the seedlings was about 61%. The correlation between water content and survival was very high. Thus, the determination of weight loss or water content could be a useful method in observing the changes of water balance of the seedling stock during winter-storage. Further investigations are needed to show the tolerable rate of drying out for different sorts of plants. The Silvaplast-treatment had no visible effect either on the drying out or on the field survival.
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A review is made into the experiences and possibilities of willow breeding, with a particular consideration of their application under Finnish conditions.
In comparison with other tree genera, Salix has many advantages in breeding. The great number of species, large genetic variation between and within species and frequent crossability offer good possibilities for improvement by hybridization. The dioecious flowering, plentiful seed production and short generation cycle are valuable properties for breeding by controlled pollination. Individuals with desirable characteristics can be easily propagated vegetatively from cuttings. The propertied stated above are also characteristic of poplars, the breeding of which has resulted in great success. Corresponding results can be therefore expected from willow breeding, which has recently been initiated in several countries.
Today willows have no practical significance for forestry in Finland. There are, however, some suitable Salix species, both indigenous and exotic, for starting material for breeding, and plenty of favourable sites for willows. Therefore, the beginning of breeding research with willows should be well justified also in Finland.
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This paper reports spot sowing experiments of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). The seeds were either covered with coarse sand, tramped in the substrate or sowed without any covering, 30 seeds in each treatment in 70 replications. The site was of Vaccinium type with sandy soil. The germination percentage was 81 and 91 on the respective years. The development of seedlings was observed for 3–4 years.
The results indicate that both tramping and covering the seeds to some extent increased the number of seedlings and improved the early development. The highest numbers of seedlings were recorded in the first growing season, after which there was 23 seedlings/100 seeds in the uncovered spots, 27 seedlings in the covered spots and 31 seedlings in the tramped spots in the experiment sowed in 1965.
Mortality of the seedlings was highest between the first and second growing season, and empty spots increased with the time. There was no difference in mortality between the sowing methods, but the number of seedlings after first growing season affected the result. Under favourable conditions four seedlings per spot seemed enough to secure the survival of minimum one seedling per spot during the three first growing seasons. In poor conditions seven seedlings was needed.
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