Do Birch Trees (Betula pendula) Grow Better if Foraged by Wood Ants?

10.2307/5486 ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Mahdi ◽  
J.B. Whittaker
Keyword(s):  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Wood Ants ◽  
Birch Trees

scholarly journals Towards Silviculture Guidelines to Produce Large-Sized Silver Birch (Betula pendula Roth) Logs in Western Europe

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 599
Author(s):  
Héloïse Dubois ◽  
Hugues Claessens ◽  
Gauthier Ligot
Keyword(s):  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Forest Health ◽  
Silver Birch ◽  
Growth Potential ◽  
Betula Pendula Roth ◽  
Crown Diameter ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Timber Tree ◽  
Northeastern France

Forest health problems arising from climate change, pests and pathogens are a threat to the main timber tree species. As a result, silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) has become a precious asset for meeting oncoming forestry challenges in western Europe. However, silviculture guidelines to produce high-value birch logs in this region are lacking. Producing large-sized birch trunks requires crown release, i.e., removing crown competitors around selected target trees. These interventions are currently seldom carried out or else too late when the growth potential of the trees has already diminished. This study set out to ascertain the diameter at breast height (dbh) that could be reached by crown-released birch, determine dbh-associated crown diameters, and further characterize the gain obtained from early crown release on birch dbh growth. We measured 704 birch trees that had undergone crown release in 38 naturally regenerated pure birch stands in southern Belgium and in northeastern France. We then evaluated the variation in stem and crown diameter, and analyzed increments in response to the earliness of the interventions in three subsamples, also compared with control target birch. We found that trees with a dbh of 50 cm could be grown within 60 years. Based on crown diameter, to produce 40, 50 and 60 cm dbh trunk, the distance required between target birch trees at the end of the rotation was around 8, 10 and 12 m. With no intervention and in ordinary dense birch regenerations, the dbh increment was found to decline once the stand reached age 4–7 years. Starting crown release in stands aged 4–5 years can double the dbh increment of target trees and provide a continual gain that may last up to 20 years. When birch crowns are released after 9–12 years, it may already be too late for them to recover their best growth rate. Our contribution should help complete emerging guidelines in support of birch silviculture development.

scholarly journals Surfaces of Silver Birch (<i>Betula pendula</i>) are Sources of Biological Ice Nuclei: <i>In-vivo</i> and <i>In-situ</i> Investigations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa M. Seifried ◽  
Paul Bieber ◽  
Laura Felgitsch ◽  
Julian Vlasich ◽  
Florian Reyzek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Silver Birch ◽  
Rainfall Events ◽  
Alpine Valley ◽  
Ice Nuclei ◽  
Terrestrial Source ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Secondary Wood

Abstract. Silver birch (Betula pendula) are known to contain ice-nucleating macromolecules (INMs) to survive in harsh environments. However, little is known about the release and transport of INMs from birch trees into the atmosphere. In this study, we conducted in-situ and in-vivo investigations on INM from nine birches growing in an alpine valley (Ötztal, Austria). A detailed analysis of drill cores shows that INM concentration increases towards outer layers, reaching its maximum near the surface. Aqueous extracts from the surfaces of leaves, bark, primary wood and secondary wood contained INMs (34/36) with concentrations ranging from 9.9·105 to 1.8·109 INM cm−2. In a field study, we analysed the effect of precipitation on the release of these INMs attached to the surface of the trees. These experiments showed that INMs are splashed and aerosolized into the environment during rainfall events, at concentrations and freezing temperatures similar to in-vivo samples. Our work sheds new light on the release and transport of INMs from birch surfaces into the troposphere. Birches growing in boreal and alpine forests should be considered as an important terrestrial source of INMs.

scholarly journals Detection of phytopathogenic bacteria damaging weeping birch (Betula Pendula) by molecular identification method and сreation of phylogenetic genealogy

2020 ◽  
Vol 100 (4) ◽  
pp. 8-15
Author(s):  
Sardarbek Abiуev ◽  
◽  
Aizhan Baubekova ◽  
Roza Аsilкhanova ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Identification ◽  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Morphological Changes ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Gene Bank ◽  
Molecular Characteristics ◽  
Bacterial Strains ◽  
Dickeya Dadantii ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Typical Strain

The article discusses the morphological changes of birch trees (Betula pendula Roth.) due to bacterial cancer that grow in the artificial forest «Green Belt» surrounding the city of Nur — Sultan. Kernel samples were taken from diseased tree trunks, isolated bacterial cultures were grown in nutrient medium and given cultural and morphological characteristics. Extraction of cores from diseased birch trunks, isolation of pure strains of the pathogen, molecular identification of ribosomal RNA 16S nucleotide chains and comparison of these results with relevant data from the international database Gene Bank are carried out using modern methods in the field of bacteriology and botany. The molecular characteristics of the isolated bacterial strains corresponded to 96.72 % of the typical strain Dickeya dadantii based on the international Gene Bank.

The influence of neighbours on the growth of trees. I. The demography of buds in Betula pendula

1987 ◽  
Vol 232 (1266) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Silver Birch ◽  
The Third ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
One Year ◽  
Lateral Branches ◽  
Branch Size

The growth of primary branches of four-year-old silver birch trees grow­ing close to neighbours was followed over a period of three years. Branches were divided into three groups: those entering closely into each other’s canopy, those growing into zones with no neighbour, and an intermediate category. On each branch the following variables were measured: total number of buds, number of living buds, number of lateral branches, gross and net bud production, and bud mortality. Before the start of the study the trees had been growing without neighbours. There were no significant effects of neighbours after one year of the experiment but by the third year all variables were showing some response. Fewer buds were ‘born’ and a greater proportion died in the areas of the crown most subject to interference from the branches of neighbouring trees and this was reflected in smaller mean branch size in these areas. The age of a branch was also an important factor affecting performance. Significant interactions between branch age and interference zone for the number of living buds, gross and net bud production and bud mortality indicated that the effect of neighbours varied with branch age. The behaviour and fate of a bud appear to be conditioned more by its local environment than by its position on the tree of which it is a part.

scholarly journals Early Landscape Performance of 20 Field-Grown Birch Genotypes at Two Locations in Arkansas, U.S. and Response to Irrigation

2007 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 275-282
Author(s):  
Mengmeng Gu ◽  
James Robbins ◽  
Curt Rom
Keyword(s):  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
The Other ◽  
Annual Change ◽  
Trunk Diameter ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Landscape Performance ◽  
Tree Survival ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Survival And Growth

Twenty birch genotypes were planted in the field in April 2002 to evaluate their survival and growth at Fayetteville and Hope, Arkansas, U.S., and to evaluate their response to two irrigation regimes at Fayetteville. After four growing seasons, the overall tree survival was 62% and 30% at Fayetteville and Hope, respectively. Betula pendula ‘Trost’s Dwarf’, B. ermanii, and B. albosinensis were among genotypes with the lowest survival at both locations. Betula populifolia, B. nigra ‘BNMTF’, B. nigra ‘Cully’, and B. × ‘Royal Frost’ had greater survival after four growing seasons than the other birch genotypes investigated. Betula nigra ‘BNMTF’ and B. nigra ‘Cully’ were taller and had greater trunk diameter than the other surviving birch genotypes at both locations after four growing seasons. At the end of 2005, B. utilis var. jacquemontii was the shortest and had the smallest trunk diameter among the 18 surviving genotypes at Fayetteville, and B. papyrifera ‘Uenci’, B. populifolia ‘Whitespire’, B. maximowicziana, and B. lenta were the shortest and had the smallest trunk diameter among the 13 surviving genotypes at Hope. At Fayetteville, B. nigra and B. davurica had the greatest annual change in tree height in both 2004 and 2005, and B. davurica was among genotypes having the greatest annual change in trunk diameter in 2002, 2004, and 2005. At Hope, B. papyrifera had the greatest annual change in tree height in both 2004 and 2005, and B. davurica had the greatest annual change in trunk diameter in 2004. In 2005, annual change was not significant among birch genotypes at Hope. At Fayetteville, water-stress treatment reduced final tree height and trunk diameter in birch trees.

scholarly journals Chemical analysis of birch tree (Betula pendula Roth) degraded by fungus

BioResources ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 4353-4361
Author(s):  
Osman Camlibel
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Analysis ◽  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Hot Water ◽  
Betula Pendula Roth ◽  
Birch Tree ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Density Analysis ◽  
Alcohol Benzene

The aim of this study was to investigate degraded birch trees (Betula pendula Roth) that suffered from a harmful fungus called Piptoporus betulinus. The main chemical analysis of B. pendula degraded by the fungus, included the holocellulose, alpha-cellulose, and lignin contents and was determined in cold and hot water and alcohol-benzene solubility in 1% NaOH mixtures. This fungus caused B. pendula to lose mass and chemical properties. The declining amount of holocellulose mass loss was 6.7% according to the holocellulose test. This decrement caused the quality of the birch holocellulose to decline. The total loss difference was 9.8% according to the alkaline solubility analysis of the 1% NaOH test and 14.3% according to the density analysis of the test. The loss difference was 4.2% according to the alcohol-benzene analysis of the test.

scholarly journals Determining the age of young birch (Betula pendula Roth) trees growing on former agricultural

2013 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-363
Author(s):  
Miłosz Tkaczyk ◽  
Robert Tomusiak
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Journal Article ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Standing Trees ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract In Poland, according to the law (amendment of the act of 21st May 2010) – on the provision of information on the environment and its protection, public participation in environmental protection and environmental impact assessments etc. (Official Law Journal article 08.199.1227, as amended) – the owner can cut down trees without permission, if they do not exceed the age of 10 years old. However, if an owner happens to cuts down a tree on his property without knowing the age of the tree, he is liable to prosecution under this act. The aim of this study is to verify whether there is a possibility to calculate the actual age of silver birch trees growing on farmer agricultural lands using features that enable age of standing trees to be identified. Using these criteria, owners would be able to calculate the age of trees on their own. The research used 183 sample trees located on three research plots. For each tree, the dbh, height and prepared samples of wood from the trees base were used to give the age of the tree. The relationship between age and dbh, as well as between the age and the height was examined. The strength of correlation was compared and the strongest was used in the proposed model. Using these correlations two types of charts were constructed to estimate the age of young birches on the basis of dbh and height.

scholarly journals MORPHOLOGICAL VARIABILITY OF LEAVES AS AN INDICATOR OF BETULA PENDULA ROTH ADAPTABILITY TO EXTREME FOREST CONDITIONS

ÈKOBIOTEH ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 680-689
Author(s):  
O.V. Tagirova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Fluctuating Asymmetry ◽  
Seasonal Dynamics ◽  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Leaf Shape ◽  
Morphological Variability ◽  
Dispersion Analysis ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
State Of The Environment ◽  
Forest Conditions

The results of research in 2019, which were performed on the territory of the Ufa industrial centre in contrasting forest conditions, are presented. On the same sample area, the same plant species may have a similar leaf shape, but different sizes (large-leaved trees and small-leaved trees). This paper presents the results of research on large-leaved trees. We determined the integral parameters of asymmetry of birch leaf plates and performed a dispersion analysis based on five characteristics. We determined that July is the most informative month. It was during this period that the Fisher test revealed differences in three features: the 1st feature (width of the leaf halves), the 3rd feature (distance between the bases of the first and second veins of the second order), and the 4th feature (distance between the ends of the first and second veins of the second-order). The obtained results indicate the seasonal dynamics of indicators of fluctuating asymmetry of leaves of hanging birch trees. This results should be taken into account when monitoring the state of the environment.

scholarly journals VARIATIONS OF THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF EXTRACTIVE KIDNEYS OF THE KIDNEYS BERES OF ST. PETERSBURG AND THE LENINGRAD REGION

2018 ◽  
pp. 123-130
Author(s):  
Дмитрий (Dmitrij) Николаевич (Nikolaevich) Ведерников (Vedernikov) ◽  
Игорь (Igor') Александрович (Aleksandrovich) Казарцев (Kazartsev)
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Betula Pendula ◽  
Retention Indices ◽  
Betula Pubescens ◽  
Leningrad Region ◽  
Spectrometry Method ◽  
State Register ◽  
Birch Trees ◽  
Extractive Substances ◽  
Betula Pubescens Ehrh

The article is devoted to the differences in the composition of extractive substances of vegetative buds of birch trees in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region and its change. Buds of birch (Betulae gemmae) are a medicinal product and are included in the state register of medicines. The substances soluble in acetone were studied by chromatography-mass spectrometry method after preliminary methylation with diazomethane. The retention indices of the identified compounds are given. Earlier, the structure of compounds was established by methods of NMR spectroscopy.Birch buds from the surveyed areas contain sesquiterpenoids and flavonoids. These components correspond to the classical notions of the composition of the buds. However, specimens of birch trees were found containing only triterpenoids and fatty acids in the buds, and also a combination of all the listed compounds - the intermediate composition. This tendency was observed in the Betula pendula Roth. birch, Betula pubescens Ehrh., Betula pendula var. carelica Merckl., Betula krylovii G.V.Krylov in the arboretum of the St. Petersburg Forestry University and observed on the Betula pendula and, Betula pubescens in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region. Presumably one type of chemical composition can be replaced by another in time. The change in the composition was recorded for several years on specimens of birches.Various reasons for this phenomenon are discussed.

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