Abstract
This study was carried out to determine the effects of different planting time from June to October on survival, height growth and root collar diameter of the Picea orientalis L. Link. seedlings and to investigate how to extend the planting period in Artvin, Turkey. In general, autumn and spring plantings are the most preferable methods for the oriental spruce reforestations. The nursery where the oriental spruce seedlings were propagated is near the sea level while afforestation areas are between 1200 m and 1800 m altitudes, and there is not a cold storage possibility in the nursery to store seedlings until planting time. When the seedlings have bud burst in the nursery, there is snow on the reforestation sites in the spring season, and while the seedlings are growing actively in the nursery it can snow early on the plantation areas, causing planting difficulties. Thus, to overcome this issue, extending the planting period of the oriental spruce can be a solution in the region. To evaluate the possibilities to extend the planting period, the experiment was established using actively growing and dormant seedlings in 2007. The container seedlings were planted regularly at the end of June (cold stored and actively growing seedlings), July (actively growing), August (actively growing) and October (dormant). The statistical approach was a randomized complete block design with three replications and 30 seedlings were planted for each replication. The height growth, root collar diameter and survival rate of the seedlings were defined during four growing seasons. The survival of actively growing seedlings planted at the end of July (84.4%) and August (91.1%) did not differ planting date from the end of October (92.2%) after the fourth growing period, in 2010. The seedlings which were planted at the end of June both cold stored (66.7%) and actively growing (70.0%) had the lowest survival rates. The highest seedling height (39.4 cm) was obtained from the seedlings planted at the end of August. The results showed that with actively growing seedlings, the planting period can be extended from late July to late August without increasing mortality.
Highlights
The survival of seedlings varied considerably and the results indicated that the planting date had an impact on this variation
After the fourth growing season (2010 estimations), analyses showed that the best survival rates were obtained from the seedlings planted end of July (84.4%), August (91.1%) and October (92.2%)
There were not any differences in survival rates of actively growing seedlings between the July and August plantings and with the survival rate of dormant seedlings planted at the end of October as well
Summary
There is about 160000 ha oriental spruce forest in Artvin alone and this equals to 41.5% of whole forest area in Artvin region. 31.6% of the whole oriental spruce forests in Artvin is classified as unproductive and considered necessary to be planted immediately (Albayrak et al, 2005). It is impossible to regenerate these unproductive forests via natural regeneration methods due to lack of seed trees. There is an intensive bark beetle damage caused mainly by Dendroctonus micans (Kug.) and Ips typographus (L.) in the oriental spruce forests in 1990s and 2000s, resulting cutting of a lot of trees and degrading natural regeneration conditions (Eroğlu et al, 2005; Sunar Erbek et al, 2005; Sariyildiz et al, 2008)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
