The quality of seedlings of norway spruce in open-ground nurseries of the Baltic-Belozersky taiga forest district

The article presents an assessment of the quality of one-, two- and three-year-old seedlings of norway spruce grown in open-ground nurseries of the Baltic-Belozersky taiga forest area. The relevance of the study is due to the identification of the quality of planting material under various growing conditions for the formation of a database that contributes to the development of programs for the targeted cultivation of seedlings. The research was carried out in 2022 in a temporary nursery with sandy loam soils, in permanent nurseries with medium loamy soils with full and incomplete technology of work. Incomplete technology of work consisted primarily in the absence of systematic weed control, loosening. Biologically active substances were used with the full technology of work. Surveys were carried out according to standard methods in the second half of the growing season. Temporary forest nurseries are characterized by a higher density of seedlings with a high proportion of healthy specimens compared to permanent nurseries. Seedlings grown in a permanent forest nursery with full technology of work and the use of biologically active substances have the best growth and the best quality indicators. The implementation of a complete technology of work with the use of biologically active substances in the cultivation of seedlings contributes not only to the early achievement of standard sizes, but also increases the resistance of seedlings to adverse factors. The success of seedlings can be assessed by the number of branches in the crown. A high dependence of the number of branches in the crown on the height of seedlings and the mass of roots was revealed. The lack of systematic weed control in a permanent open-ground forest nursery leads to a critical reduction in the density and proportion of healthy seedlings, a decrease in the biometric indicators of seedlings compared to a temporary nursery. Temporary forest nurseries on sandy loam soils with a minimum of technological techniques have shown high efficiency of growing spruce seedlings. It is necessary to pay attention to the method of growing seedlings in temporary nurseries, which was popular in the Soviet period.

1. Ananyev E.M. The reasons for the low survival rate of forest crops created by ball-rooted seedlings. Aktual'nye problemy lesnogo kompleksa [Actual problems of the forest complex], 2017, no. 49, pp. 58–62. (In Russ.)

2. Bian Z., Liu L., Ding S. Analysis of forest landscape restoration based on landscape connectivity: A case study in the Yi river basin, China, during 2015–2020. Land, 2021, vol. 10 (9), pp. 904. DOI:10.3390/land10090904.

3. Davis A.S., Pinto J.R. The Scientific BASIS of the Target Plant Concept: An Overview. Forest, 2021, vol. 12, p. 1293. Doi: 10.3390/f12091293

4. Dumroese K.R., Landis T.D., Pinto J.R., Haase D.L., Wilkinson K.W., Davis A.S. Meeting forest restoration challenges: using the target plant concept. Reforesta, 2016, vol.1, pp. 37–52.

5. Gough A.A., Zhigulin E.V., Zalesov S.V. The reasons for the low survival rate of seedlings of scots pine with a closed root system in the ribbon forests of Altai. Uspekhi sovremennogo estestvoznaniya [Successes of modern natural science], 2019, no. 12, pp. 9–13. (In Russ.)

6. Grossnickle S.C., MacDonald J.E. Seedling quality: history, application, and plant attributes. Forests, 2018, vol. 9(5), pp. 283–305

7. Haase D.L., Davis A.S. Developing and supporting quality nursery facilities and staff are necessary to meet global forest and landscape restoration needs. Reforesta, 2017, vol. 4, pp. 69–93.

8. Ivetić V., Grossnickle S., Škorić M. Forecasting the field performance of Austrian pine seedlings using morphological attributes. iForest, 2016, vol. 10, pp. 99–107. DOI: 10.3832/ifor1722-009

9. Kalinichenko N.P., Pisarenko A.I., Smirnov N.A. Reforestation in cuttings. M.: Ecology, 1991. 384 p. (In Russ.)

10. Köster E., Pumpanen J., Palviainen M., Zhou X., Köster K. Effect of biochar amendment on the properties of growing media and growth of containerized Norway spruce, Scots pine, and silver birch seedlings. Can. J. For. Res., 2020, vol. 51, pp. 31–40. DOI:10.1139/cjfr-2019-0399.

11. Lin K.-H., Wu C.-W., Chang Y.-S. Applying Dickson quality index, chlorophyll fluorescence, and leaf area index for assessing plant quality of Pentas lanceolata. Notulae Botanicae Horti Agrobotanici Cluj-Napoca, 2018, vol. 47(1), pp. 169–176. Doi: 10.15835/nbha47111312.

12. Markova I.A., Zhigunov A.V. Forest crops: agrotechnics of planting material cultivation in forest nurseries. St. Petersburg: SYNEL: SPbGLTU, 2021. 134 p. (In Russ.)

13. Nakvasina E.N. Rhythmics of growth of pine and spruce seedlings. Bioecological justification of agrotechnics of cultivation. Arkhangelsk, 2016. 158 p. (In Russ.)

14. Novikov A.I., Rebko S.V., Novikova T.P., Petrishchev E.P. Dixon quality index: connection with technological impact on forest seeds. Lesotekhnicheskij zhurnal [Forestry engineering journal], 2023, vol. 13, no. 1 (49), pp. 23–36. DOI: 10.34220/issn.2222-7962/2023.1/2 (In Russ.)

15. Novikova T.P. Assessment of the quality of forest seed material on an experimental plot of scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) during adaptive restoration of forest landscapes. Lesotekhnicheskij zhurnal [Forestry engineering journal], 2023, vol. 13, no. 1 (49), pp. 112–128. DOI: 10.34220/issn.2222-7962/2023.1/8 (In Russ.)

16. Perumal M., Wasli M.E. Target Plant Concept (TPC): A Holistic Framework for Seedling Quality within a Forest Restoration Programme. Bulletin Institut Ekosains Borneo, 2023, vol.2, iss. 1, pp. 35–40.

17. Pinto J.R., Marshall J.D., Dumroese R.K., Davis A.S., Cobos D.R. Establishment and growth of container seedlings for reforestation: a function of stocktype and edaphic conditions. Forest Ecology and Management, 2011, vol. 261(11), pp. 1876–1884.

18. Silva L.N., Freer-Smith P., Madsen P. Production, restoration, mitigation: A new generation of plantations. New For., 2019, vol. 50, pp. 153–168.

19. Sungurova N.R., Drochkova A.A. Biometric characteristics of planting material as a test indicator of the success of Pinus silvestris L. cultures. Lesnoj zhurnal [Russian Forestry Journal], 2021, no. 4, pp. 107–116. DOI: 10.37482/0536-1036-2021-4-107-116 (In Russ.)

20. Tishkov A.S., Merzlenko M.D., Melnik P.G., Naumov E.G. Indicators of European spruce crops with different planting density. Hvojnye boreal'noj zony [Coniferous boreal zones], 2022, XL, no. 1, pp. 59–64. DOI: 10.53374/1993-0135-2022-1-59-64 (In Russ.)

21. Tyukavina O.N., Demina N.A., Fayzulin D.H. The effect of fallow in nursery rotation on the quality of seedlings. Resources and Technology, 2023, no. 20 (2), pp. 99–112. DOI: 10.15393/j2.art.2023.7003 (In Russ.)

22. Zakharenko A.V. Regulation of the relationship between cultivated and weed plants in agrophytocenoses. Ufa: BGAU, 2000. 400 p. (In Russ.)