Assessing plant response to ambient ozone: growth of ozone-sensitive loblolly pine seedlings treated with ethylenediurea or sodium erythorbate

Abstract

One-year-old seedlings from an ozone-sensitive half-sib family of loblolly pine ( Pinus taeda L.) were transplanted into replicated plots in blocks in a large forest clearing near Nacogdoches, Texas. Seedlings were either non-treated (controls) or treated bi-weekly with foliar sprays of ethylenediurea (EDU), at 150, 300 or 450 ppm or sodium erythorbate (NaE), at 515, 1030, or 1545 ppm, for three growing seasons. Results from the final third year harvest indicated that both EDU and NaE increased all growth parameters, with significant differences only for EDU at 450 ppm. Both EDU and NaE would be useful for long-term studies on assessing the effects of ambient ozone on established native plants.