Long-shoot bud development, shoot growth, and foliage production in provenances of lodgepole pine

Abstract

Long-shoot bud development, shoot growth, and foliage production were studied in seven provenances of Pinuscontorta Dougl. ssp. latifolia Engelm. from the major sites in British Columbia and one Yukon source growing in a provenance trial at Prince George, B.C. Branch terminal apical mitotic activity began in early March and continued until late September. Initiation of axillary buds began in May, about 2 weeks after the initiation of the subtending cataphyll. Differentiation of dwarf shoots began in early July to mid-August and continued until late October in some sources. Distal axillary buds had not always differentiated by late October in the southern sources. The duration of the period of apical growth and apical size during activity were related to final cataphyll numbers. Provenances with the widest, flattest, dormant apices produced the most cataphylls. The two northern provenances had more terminal sterile cataphylls but fewer sterile cataphylls lower in the long-shoot bud and shorter mean stem unit lengths than the others. Differences among provenances in shoot length were due mostly to variation in stem unit numbers. The large proportion of polycyclic long shoots in some provenances contributed to variation in dwarf shoot numbers.