Sexual regeneration traits linked to black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.) invasiveness (original) (raw)
Related papers
Forest Ecology and Management, 2005
The relation between invasion success of Prunus serotina and type of recipient habitat was studied in a large forest in central Belgium. The major emphasis in this study was the determination of factors controlling the abundance of P. serotina in understory strata. Environmental variables measured in 34 sample plots were slope, aspect, litter depth, soil type, pH, soil compaction, soil moisture, air humidity, soil temperature and light intensity in spring and late summer. Site conditions were also expressed indirectly for 210 sample plots using Ellenberg indicator values (soil nutrients, acidity, moisture, light conditions). Plots with P. serotina had lower mean indicator values for soil moisture, reaction (pH) and nitrogen, compared to plots without P. serotina. Twenty indicator species were identified for plots in which P. serotina occurs. The species richness of the herb layer was negatively correlated with the percentage cover of black cherry in the shrub layer. The percentage cover of P. serotina saplings in different overstory types was ranked as follows: Quercus > Pinus > Fagus > logging areas. Only three variables explained significant amounts of variation in Prunus abundance: slope, light intensity at 120 cm in April and light intensity at ground level in September. We found a positive response of black cherry seedlings to light intensity between 58 and 80% of full light (April measurements at 120 cm), while saplings showed a negative response within this range. Between 21 and 47% of full light (April measurements at 120 cm), seedlings were poorly represented whereas saplings showed a quite high cover. Between 0.3 and 1.8% light (September measurements at ground level), seedlings were almost absent while saplings maintained a high abundance. The results suggest that P. serotina shows a differential response to light intensity in relation to its development stage, i.e. the species is heliophilous at the seedling stage and becomes a shade plant at the sapling stage. #
Forest Ecology and Management, 2005
The relation between invasion success of Prunus serotina and type of recipient habitat was studied in a large forest in central Belgium. The major emphasis in this study was the determination of factors controlling the abundance of P. serotina in understory strata. Environmental variables measured in 34 sample plots were slope, aspect, litter depth, soil type, pH, soil compaction, soil moisture, air humidity, soil temperature and light intensity in spring and late summer. Site conditions were also expressed indirectly for 210 sample plots using Ellenberg indicator values (soil nutrients, acidity, moisture, light conditions). Plots with P. serotina had lower mean indicator values for soil moisture, reaction (pH) and nitrogen, compared to plots without P. serotina. Twenty indicator species were identified for plots in which P. serotina occurs. The species richness of the herb layer was negatively correlated with the percentage cover of black cherry in the shrub layer. The percentage cover of P. serotina saplings in different overstory types was ranked as follows: Quercus > Pinus > Fagus > logging areas. Only three variables explained significant amounts of variation in Prunus abundance: slope, light intensity at 120 cm in April and light intensity at ground level in September. We found a positive response of black cherry seedlings to light intensity between 58 and 80% of full light (April measurements at 120 cm), while saplings showed a negative response within this range. Between 21 and 47% of full light (April measurements at 120 cm), seedlings were poorly represented whereas saplings showed a quite high cover. Between 0.3 and 1.8% light (September measurements at ground level), seedlings were almost absent while saplings maintained a high abundance. The results suggest that P. serotina shows a differential response to light intensity in relation to its development stage, i.e. the species is heliophilous at the seedling stage and becomes a shade plant at the sapling stage.
Occurrence of black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.) in the State Forests in Poland
Forest Research Papers, 2015
Among the invasive tree species identified in Polish forests, black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.) appears to pose the greatest threat. The objective of this study was i), to determine the abundance of this species in the forests managed by the State Forests National Forest Holding (PGLLP) and ii), to characterise the ecological conditions that it is found in. The source data was obtained from the State Forests Information System (SILP) database. In Polish forests, black cherry mostly occurs as an understory plant and is present in a total area of 99,185 hectares, which is 1.4% of the forest area under the management of the PGLLP. Although Prunus serotina can be found within a wide range of habitats, it most commonly occurs on sites that can be considered average in terms of fertility (mixed coniferous and mixed deciduous types) developed primarily on rusty soils (podzols).
The aim of this study was to analyse the possibility of enriching the local population of wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) with introduced material capable to withstand rigorous environmental conditions. Progenies of wild cherry from nine European countries were tested in northern marginal site of species’ distribution range. Persistence of progeny in relation to transfer to new environment refers here to the height loss due to frost damage and to the certain variability among morphological traits. The progenies were evaluated at two and three years of age in the provenance nursery trial in central Lithuania. F-ratios and significance of provenance and block fixed effects, Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients, Tukey comparison lines for LS-means of provenances were estimated for set of traits: tree height at the end of the vegetation period and in the next spring, tree diameter, tree height to diameter ratio, the diameter of strongest branch or side stem, branch diameter to tree stem diameter ratio, and autumn over-coloration of shoot tips, leaf gland length in relation to petiole width, leaf gland colour. The analysis of variance of most traits revealed that the effects of provenance, block, and provenance by block interaction were statistically significant and indicates a presence of genetic differences in populations general performance and in ecological reaction norms. Very weak correlation between tree height and tree branchiness ratio gives an indication of breeding possibility of fast growing trees while retaining relatively slim branches. Independent samples t-test and Levene's test for equality of variances approved the relationship between tree morphology parameters and leaf gland characters of survived saplings. Determination of changes in morphology of wild cherry survivors showed that induction of gland pigments is not subjected to stress. The autumn over-coloration of cherry shoot tips was considered as stress indicator in this study. The more damaged tree tips were in autumn, the less tree height was next spring. It was found strong and significant correlation between gland number and hardiness zone index at populations' origin locations (r = 0.60, P = 0.03). Positive correlations between the maximum number of glands and hardiness zone index, tree height in spring of 2011 and longitude were moderate but not sufficiently significant. In general, wild cherry reproductive material from Poland and Austria may be candidates for further testing for the potential introduction of the most fitted populations to Lithuania.
The distribution of clones in managed and unmanaged populations of wild cherry (Prunus avium)
Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 1997
Several intensive wood production plantations and reafforestation programmes are being carried out in Europe using wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) as a valuable species. The study of the genetic structure of wild cherry managed and (or) unmanaged natural stands is important for resource management. Wild cherry stands are in fact frequently composed of single scattered trees or small dense groups, most of which are thought to have originated by suckering. Electrophoretic analysis of nine enzyme loci was carried out for five French managed stands and a unmanaged Italian stand. Phenological flowering phases were also assessed to confirm the presence of clonal sucker groups previously detected by electrophoresis within the Italian stand. Propagation by suckers was the most frequent propagation system; the number of genotypes detected within the examined populations varied from 6% to 49% of the total number of individuals. It particularly seems to occur within short distances and during the early successional stages. The following conclusions were thus drawn: the minimum distance between trees selected for improvement is 100 m; selective thinnings within wild cherry stands should take into account this minimum distance; mixtures of at least 5 to 10 clones, mostly from different origins, should be used in plantations, in order to improve heterogeneity and self-sustainability.
Population differentiation in the wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Background and Purpose: The wild cherry (Prunus avium) has great and multiple importance. The fruits it produces are used for several purposes (as food for people, birds and other animals, as well as in phytotherapy). As many birds and mammals feed on the fruit of the wild cherry, it has the ability of dispersion over large areas in a very short time. It is present in from river deposits up to 1900 m/alt, while it is quite rare in the Submediterranean. Wild cherry grows as a solitary tree or in small groups, usually at the edge of the forest or within the forest in areas with more sunlight. The significance of the wild cherry is reflected in the high economic value of its wood, which makes it much demanded and popular, and thus endangered. Materials and Methods: The plant material was collected from 22 natural populations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The fruit and leaves were collected from marginal or solitary trees, usually from the south-facing, outer sun-exposed parts of the tree crown. We measured the following fruit characteristics: fruit length (FL), fruit width (FW), fruit thickness (FT), seed length (SL), seed width (SW), seed thickness (ST), length of the stalk (LOS) and width of the stalk (WOS), and leaf characteristics: length of the petiole (LP), length of the leaf blade (LB), distance from the blade base to the blade's widest part (BBW), width of the leaf blade (WB), insertion angle of the leaf venation (AV), number of leaf teeth on a 2-cm length (NT), blade width at 1 cm from the blade apex (WBA) and blade width at 1 cm from the blade's base (WBB). All statistical analyses of the data were made using the SPSS 15.0 package for Windows. Results: The results obtained show the presence of a high level of intrapopulational, as well as interpopulational, morphological variability in the natural populations of the wild cherry which have been investigated. Analyses of population differentiation have not confirmed our expectations. Our results only indicate differentiation in fruit size characteristics, but the indicators are very weak. The resulting high values of the regression coefficient in this research can serve to estimate the values of some features and characteristics without their measurement. Conclusions: The analyses of 16 morphological characteristics in 22 natural populations of the wild cherry in Bosnia and Herzegovina showed statistically significant differences between investigated populations. Differentiation in natural populations of the wild cherry was very low and identified only in fruit dimension characteristics.
Biological Invasions, 2011
This research investigates why the invasive American black cherry tends to dominate the forest canopy on well-drained, nutrient-poor soils, but usually hardly establishes on both waterlogged and calcareous soils in its exotic range. Prunus serotina was sampled from four soil types and two light conditions, to measure (1) radial growth; (2) height growth compared to the main native competitor, Fagus sylvatica; (3) leaf traits; (4) seed production; and (5) rate of fungal attack. We found that P. serotina invested a significant amount of energy in height growth and seed production on well-drained, nutrient-poor soils. These characteristics enabled it to rapidly capture canopy gaps and subsequently exert a mass effect on neighbouring stands. On moist soils, we found irregular growth patterns and high rates of fungal attack, while on calcareous soils, leaf traits suggested a low nitrogen assimilation rate, limiting the production of N-containing compounds. We conclude that P. serotina fails on waterlogged and calcareous soils because it is unable to allocate sufficient energy to fruiting and/or height growth. Conversely, it succeeds on well-drained, nutrient-poor soils because of high fitness which increases its invasiveness.
Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences.
The distribution of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L. syn. Cerasus avium Moench.) in natural woodlands of Latvia was studied. The growth, vitality and stem quality of the first-generation plantations established in Latvia in different agricultural soils using the planting stock of local origin was assessed. In woodlands, sweet cherry is found in 11 Forest Resource Monitoring plots in the administrative regions of Madona, Kuldīga, Alsunga, Saldus, Cīrava, and Kazdanga. In the last decade, interest in sweet cherry as a wood producer has increased and plantations with a total area of 21.92 ha were established in 22 localities (Priekule, Kazdanga, Durbe, Talsi, Ventspils, Kuldīga, Tukums, Saldus, Dobele, Bauska, Cēsis, Pārgauja, and Krāslava). Survey was made of sweet cherry plantations established between 1997 and 2019, using both local and foreign origin clonal stock (Danish clone Truust and Swedish clones nos. 9 and 10) in different agricultural soils (typic sod-calcareous soil; sod-podz...