Soil chemical changes and plant succession following experimental burning in immature jack pine

1998 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. J. Lynham ◽  
G. M. Wickware ◽  
J. A. Mason
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Organic Soil ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Plant Succession ◽  
Chemical Changes ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Rate Of Increase

In 1975 and 1976, an experimental burning program was conducted in an immature stand of boreal jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) growing on level, granitic outwash sands in northern Ontario. Nine 0.4-ha plots were burned under a range of fire weather conditions and sampling was conducted to examine the effect of fire on soil chemical changes and revegetation. Results indicated that depth of burn (DOB) affected both soil chemical changes and plant succession on these pine sites. Vaccinium angustifolium Ait., Oryzopsis spp,. Waldsteinia fragarioides (Michx.) Tratt, Salix spp. and Viola adunca Sm. increased in cover at two levels of DOB but the increase was greatest at the lower DOB and decreased to pre-burn levels after 10 yr. Comptonia peregrina (L.) Coult., Epilobium angustifolium L., Polytrichum commune Hedw. and Amelanchier sanguinea (Pursh) DC. were not found in the pre-burn surveys but appeared after burning. Vegetation cover for these species was always higher at the deeper DOB but decreased almost to zero after 10 yr. Other species such as Pleurozium schreberi (Brid.) Mitt., Linnaea borealis L., Corylus cornuta Marsh., Cladina rangiferina (L.) Nyl. and Aralia nudicaulis L. were eliminated from the site and did not recover even after 10 yr. Soil pH increased 0.3 to 1.0 pH units in the organic and mineral soil layers. The rate of increase in pH was always steeper at the higher DOB and pH returned to pre-burn levels in the mineral soil layers after 10 yr. Immediately after burning, exchangeable Ca in the mineral soil layers doubled but 10 yr later, Ca returned to pre-burn levels. Phosphorus and K increased in the mineral soil, leveled off and were still elevated after 10 yr. Total Kjeldahl N was reduced by 50% in the organic soil while N in all mineral soils increased, and was still increasing after 10 yr. Except for immediate post-fire increases in pH, Ca and N, soil chemical changes were small or they rebounded to pre-burn levels 10 yr after burning. Therefore it is unlikely that these changes were the cause of the plant cover changes that persisted to 10 yr. Key words: Soil nutrients, plant succession, fire, depth of burn, jack pine

Soil Seed Bank of a Jack Pine (Pinus Banksiana) Ecosystem

1998 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
CA Whittle ◽  
LC Duchesne ◽  
T Needham
Keyword(s):  
Seed Bank ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Soil Seed Bank ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Plant Succession ◽  
Pteridium Aquilinum ◽  
Soil Cores

The soil seed bank (seed and vegetative propagules) of a jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) ecosystem was investigated using direct propagule emergence from soil cores in greenhouse experiments, and visual examination of rhizome/rooting systems in situ. Of the 985 emergents observed from soil cores 643 (65%) originated from seeds whereas 342 (35%) arose from rhizomes. Grasses and sedge comprised 89% of the seed emergents while shrubs comprised 75% of the vegetative emergents. In situ examination of root systems revealed that Linnaea borealis L., Carex houghtonii Torr., Gaultheria procumbens L., and Maianthemum canadense Desf. had rhizomes buried at or above the duff/mineral interface while Lycopodium obscurum L., Lycopodium complanatum L. and Pteridium aquilinum L. (Kuhn) were predominately buried within the upper- layers of mineral soil. All other vegetatively reproducing species examined, with the exception of Rubus alleghaniensis Porter, had rhizomes buried deeper than 25 cm into mineral soil. Rubus allegheniensis (reproductive roots) had no discrete area of burial and were located in duff, upper mineral, and deep mineral soil. Depth of burial of reproductive material is used to explain plant succession after disturbance.

Viable seed populations by soil depth and potential site recolonization after disturbance

1977 ◽  
Vol 55 (18) ◽  
pp. 2408-2412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janice M. Moore ◽  
Ross W. Wein
Keyword(s):  
Soil Depth ◽  
Seedling Emergence ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Organic Soil ◽  
Viable Seed ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Forest Experiment Station ◽  
Viable Seeds ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Germination Experiment

Seedling emergence from organic and mineral soil layers was measured for nine study sites at the Acadia Forest Experiment Station near Fredericton, New Brunswick. The number of viable seeds showed a decrease from deciduous-dominated forest, to conifer-dominated forest, to organic soil study sites. Viable seed number varied from 3400/m2 for a deciduous-dominated forest study site to zero for a bog study site. Most seeds germinated from the upper organic soil layers of all study sites and were predominantly Rubus strigosus Michx. After the germination experiment, ungerminated seeds, which showed no viability by the tetrazolium test, were separated from the soil. These seeds were almost entirely Betula spp. and seed numbers were as high as 4200–9400/m2 for a deciduous-dominated forest. The applicability of the results to differing types of postdisturbance revegetation is discussed.

Roles of clay layers in rainfall-runoff processes in a serpentinite headwater catchment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takahiko Yoshino ◽  
Shin'ya Katsura
Keyword(s):  
Water Flow ◽  
Groundwater Level ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
High Water ◽  
Organic Soil ◽  
Rainfall Runoff ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Clay Layers ◽  
Headwater Catchment

<p>Rainfall-runoff processes in a headwater catchment have been typically explained by water flow in permeable soil layers (comprised of organic soil layers and mineral soil layers produced by weathering of bedrock) overlying less permeable layers (i.e., bedrock). In a catchment where mineral soils are characterized by clayey materials (e.g., mudstone, slate, and serpentine catchment), it is possible that mineral soil layers function substantially as less permeable layers because of a low permeability of clayey materials. However, roles of clay layers in rainfall-runoff processes in such a headwater catchment are not fully understood. In this study, we conducted detailed hydrological, hydrochemical, and thermal observations in a serpentinite headwater catchment (2.12 ha) in Hokkaido, Northern Japan, where mineral soil layers consisting of thick clay layers (thickness: approximately 1.5 m) produced by weathering of the serpentinite bedrock underlies organic soil layers (thickness: approximately 0.4 m). Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and water retention curve of these two layers were also measured in a laboratory. The observation results demonstrated that groundwater was formed perennially in the organic soil layers and clay layers. The groundwater level within the organic soil layers and specific discharge of the catchment showed rapid and flashy change in response to rainfall. In contrast, the groundwater level within the clay layers showed slow and small change. Temperature of the groundwater and stream water suggested that water from the depth of the organic soil layers contributed to streamflow. The electric conductivity (EC) of the groundwater in the clay layers was very high, ranging from 321 to 380 µS cmˉ¹. On the other hand, the EC of soil water (unsaturated water stored in the organic soil layers) was relatively low, ranging from 98 to 214 µS cmˉ¹. Hydrograph separation using EC showed that contribution of water emerging from the clay layers to the total streamflow ranged from 31 to 76% in low to high flow periods. Temporal variation in the total head, measured using tensiometers installed at four depths at the ridge of the catchment, indicated that in wet periods when the groundwater level in the organic soil layers was high, water flow from the organic soil layers to the clay layers occurred, whereas, in dry periods, water flow from the clay layers into the organic soil layers occurred. The laboratory measurements showed that the organic soil layers had high Ks (10ˉ² cm sˉ¹) and low water-holding capacity, whereas the clay layers had low Ks (10ˉ⁴ cm sˉ¹) and high water-holding capacity. It can be concluded from these results that clay layers play two roles: (1) forming perched groundwater table and lateral flow on the clay layers (the role of less permeable layers) and (2) supplying water into the organic soil layers in the dry periods (the role of water supplier).</p>

scholarly journals Generalized models to estimate carbon and nitrogen stocks of organic soil layers in Interior Alaska

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Manies ◽  
Mark Waldrop ◽  
Jennifer Harden
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Organic Soil ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Carbon And Nitrogen ◽  
Interior Alaska ◽  
C Stocks ◽  
Global Soil

Abstract. Boreal ecosystems comprise about one tenth of the world's land surface and contain over 20 % of the global soil carbon (C) stocks. Boreal soils are unique in that the mineral soil is covered by what can be quite thick layers of organic soil. These organic soil layers, or horizons, can differ in their state of decomposition, source vegetation, and disturbance history. These differences result in varying soil properties (bulk density, C content, and nitrogen (N) content) among soil horizons. Here we summarize these soil properties, as represented by over 3000 samples from Interior Alaska, and examine how soil drainage and stand age affect these attributes. The summary values presented here can be used to gap-fill large datasets when important soil properties were not measured, provide data to initialize process-based models, and validate model results. These data are available at https://doi.org/10.5066/P960N1F9 (Manies, 2019).

Interactions between deadwood and soil characteristics in a natural boreal trembling aspen – jack pine stand1This article is one of a selection of papers from the International Symposium on Dynamics and Ecological Services of Deadwood in Forest Ecosystems.

2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (8) ◽  
pp. 1456-1466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Brais ◽  
Pascal Drouin
Keyword(s):  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Wood Decay ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Nutrient Concentrations ◽  
Trembling Aspen

Decaying wood contribution to the heterogeneity of forest soils could depend on tree species and wood decay stage. The study was conducted in an 85-year-old trembling aspen ( Populus tremuloides Michx.) – jack pine ( Pinus banksiana Lamb.) forest in northwestern Quebec, Canada. Trees, snags, logs, and forest floor originating from wood buried within the forest floor (lignic FF) and from fine litter (alignic FF) were inventoried in fifteen 400 m2 plots (nine jack pine and six trembling aspen). Chemical properties of alignic and lignic FF and logs were measured and relative nutrient availability in the mineral soil assessed under logs and under lignic and alignic FF using PRS probes. No significant differences between forest covers were found for the proportion of C and nutrients contained in deadwood (snags, logs, and lignic FF) relative to tree biomass plus necromass (deadwood plus alignic FF) content. Lignic FF was characterized by a higher C/N ratio and exchangeable acidity than alignic FF and its nutrient concentrations were between those of alignic FF and logs. Differences in wood characteristics may explain some of the differences in forest floor properties observed between trembling aspen and jack pine. Nutrient availability in the mineral soil was affected by the overlaying materials and could reflect differences in the dynamics of individual nutrients.

Are mineral soils exposed by severe wildfire better seedbeds for conifer regeneration?

2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 1943-1950 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J Kemball ◽  
G. Geoff Wang ◽  
A Richard Westwood
Keyword(s):  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Picea Glauca ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Conifer Regeneration ◽  
Mineral Soils

We examined jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.), black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP), and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) seed germination and seedling recruitment in aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) and conifer mixedwood stands following the 1999 Black River fire in southeastern Manitoba, Canada. Three postfire seedbed types were tested: scorched (surface litter only partially consumed), lightly burned (surface litter consumed with little or no duff consumption), and severely burned (complete consumption of litter and duff exposing mineral soil). Seeds were sown in 1999, 2000, and 2001, and each cohort was monitored for 3 years. In 1999, severely burned seedbeds had poor germination, while scorched seedbeds had the highest germination. The reverse was true in 2001. After the first growing season, continued survival of seedlings was greater on severely burned seedbeds for all three cohorts. However, better survival on severely burned seedbeds was not sufficient to overcome poor germination in 1999 and 2000. When using artificial seeding to promote conifer regeneration, we recommend a delay of one full year after a severe spring fire for jack pine and two full years for black spruce and white spruce on boreal aspen and conifer mixedwood sites.

Post-wildfire seedbeds and tree establishment in the southern mixedwood boreal forest

2002 ◽  
Vol 32 (9) ◽  
pp. 1607-1615 ◽  
Author(s):  
I Charron ◽  
D F Greene
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Picea Glauca ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Permanent Plots ◽  
First Year ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Mixedwood Boreal Forest

We studied the post-wildfire establishment of jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.), black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP), and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) in the southern mixedwood boreal forest of Saskatchewan, Canada. The major objective of the study was to determine the influence of post-wildfire seedbed types on the juvenile survivorship of trees. Through a combination of permanent plots and sowing experiments, we demonstrated that mineral soil, thin Polytrichum Hedw. moss, and humus are much more favorable than the organic fermentation (Of) and litter seedbeds. We also show that differences among seedbeds are significantly more important than differences among species. In addition, the first year of a cohort has the highest rate of mortality, about 85% on mineral and humus seedbeds and 98% on Of seedbeds; differences in age-specific survivorship between seedbeds become muted by the end of the second year, and survivorship rates approach 1 by the end of the third summer. Finally, age structures showed that germination rates of black spruce and jack pine were very low the initial summer of the fire; that there was a peak in recruitment in the first post-fire summer; and that by the fourth year the recruitment declined to nearly zero.

Selected Parameters of Fire Behavior and Pinus banksiana Lamb. Regeneration in Eastern Ontario

1987 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
pp. 340-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Weber ◽  
C. E. Van Wagner ◽  
Monte Hummel
Keyword(s):  
Forest Floor ◽  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Fire Behavior ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Fire Intensity ◽  
Seedling Height ◽  
Ecological Requirements ◽  
Eastern Ontario

Fire behavior variables were quantified in eastern Ontario jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) ecosystems and used to interpret observed fire impacts and effects. A series of seven fires, ranging in frontal fire intensity from 70 to 17 000 W/m, were documented. Forest floor moisture content prior to burning was negatively correlated with weight of forest floor consumed per unit area (r2 = 0.97) and per cent mineral soil bared (r2 = 0.95). Frontal fire intensity was positively correlated with per cent tree mortality (r2 = 0.98) and mean height of char (r2 = 0.76). Frontal fire intensities of 17 000 kW/m resulted in seedling numbers of 30 000 to over 50 000 ha−1 considered to be more than adequate for establishing the next generation of crop trees. Jack pine mean seedling height, 13 to 16 years after fire, was also positively correlated with frontal fire intensity (r2 = 0.82), ranging from 0.5 to 3.8 m on lowest and highest intensity burns, respectively. Similar relationships were found when seedling height was regressed against per cent tree mortality (r2 = 0.62) and forest floor consumption (r2 = 0.79).Results are discussed in terms of ecological requirements of the species, particularly during the regeneration phase, and it is concluded that quantification of fire behavior observations is mandatory if burning conditions are to be understood and/or duplicated by the land manager for the attainment of a given forest management objective.

scholarly journals Jack pine establishment in Ontario: 5-year comparison of stock types ± bracke scarification, mounding, and chemical site preparation

1993 ◽  
Vol 69 (5) ◽  
pp. 545-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. F. Sutton ◽  
T. P. Weldon
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Banksiana ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Site Preparation ◽  
Stem Volume ◽  
Relative Growth Rates ◽  
Mechanical Site Preparation ◽  
Total Height ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Rate Of Increase ◽  
Stock Types

Field experimentation was begun in 1984 to assess performance of jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) (2 + 0 bareroot and FH408 Japanese paperpot) in relation to mechanical site preparation, including Bracke scarification with and without supplementary mounding, and site preparation using Roundup® herbicide. Twenty treatments encompassed 4480 trees in 40-tree plots split equally between bareroot and paperpot stock. The study site, about 200 km north of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, had deep silt loam soil. After 3 growing seasons, survival was significantly higher among bareroot than among paperpot stock, but survival no longer differed significantly (P < 0.05) between stock types 2 years later. In years 4 and 5, the rate of increase in mean total height of bareroot stock was 11% less than that of paperpot stock, though bareroot stock was 40 and 4.7 cm greater in mean total 5th-year height and 5th-year height increment, respectively. Paperpot stock needed mechanical site preparation more than did bareroot stock. By the end of year 5, positive responses of survival and growth to mounding had become clear in both stock types; however, although mound size had little or no effect on survival or total height, mean stem volume was significantly (P < 0.01) greater on 20-L vs. 10-L mounds. Fifth-year mean stem volume was also significantly (P < 0.01) greater on mineral-on-organic (M/O) than on mineral-on-mineral (M/M) mounds. Chemical site preparation had no effect on relative growth rates beyond year 3. Indices that combined survival with total height or stem volume after 5 years show the significant (P < 0.01) superiority of: 20-L vs. 10-L mounds, M/O vs. M/M mounds, and chemical vs. no-chemical site preparation.

Soil acidity in 1970 and 1989 in a coniferous forest in southwest Finland

1998 ◽  
Vol 78 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. J. Westman ◽  
S. Jauhiainen
Keyword(s):  
Key Words ◽  
Soil Ph ◽  
Soil Acidity ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Water Suspension ◽  
Ph Values ◽  
Humus Layer ◽  
Repeated Sampling

Forest soil pH in southwest Finland was measured with identical sampling and analysing methods in 1970 and 1989. The acidity of the organic humus layer increased significantly as pH values measured on water and on salt suspensions decreased between the two sampling dates. For the mineral soil layers, no unambiguous trend was found. pH values measured on salt suspension tended to be unchanged or lower, while pH on water suspension in some soil layers were even higher in 1989 than in 1970. Key words: pH, repeated sampling

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