Effects of the amount and composition of forest floor on emergence and early establishment of loblolly pine seedlings
1995
Shelton, M.G. (USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Monticello, AR.)
Five forest floor weights (0, 10, 20, 30, and 40 Mg/ha), three forest floor compositions (pine, pine-hardwood, and hardwood), and two seed placements (forest floor and soil surface) were tested in a three-factorial, split-plot design with four incomplete, randomized blocks. The experiment was conducted in a nursery setting and used wooden frames to define 0.145-m2 subplots. Forest floor composition had no significant effect on emergence or establishment of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) seedlings. Numbers of emerging and established seedlings displayed a negative exponential relationship with forest floor weight (fit indices of 0.62 and 0.62, respectively). Seed placement significantly affected the number of emerging seedlings (forest floor soil surface) and their survival (forest floor soil surface). However, seed placement had no overall significant effect on the number of established seedlings because effects on emergence and survival essentially canceled out. Germination of herbaceous seeds in the soil bank also displayed a negative exponential trend with forest floor weight (fit indices of 0.46 and 0.50 for the weight of grasses and forbs, respectively) and was not significantly affected by forest floor composition. Results indicate that forest floor composition is not a factor in the natural regeneration of the pine component of mixed pine-hardwood stands and suggest that when pine seed production is adequate, moderate amounts of forest floor material will improve pine seedling development because of suppression of herbaceous vegetation
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