foundation high-elevation habitat species threatened by rust fungi (c. ribicola),...
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Foundation high-elevation habitat species
Threatened by rust fungi (C. ribicola), uncharacteristically severe wildfire, and pine beetles
Restoration is complicated by slow growth, site severity, and limited access
Planting rust-resistant containerized seedlings is currently the standard (Mahalovich, et al 2006)
Whitebark Pine Summary:
WBP Production at CdA NurseryBegan in 1985
Over 2,000 separate WBP seed lots
Over 3,055 lbs of WBP seed processed since 1985
Over 1,200 lbs of WBP seed currently stored
WBP Seed Processing Trend:
91-'9
619
9719
9819
9920
0020
0120
0220
0320
0420
0520
0620
0720
0820
0920
1020
110
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
Seed
Pro
cess
ed
(L
bs)
Approx. 2,700 seeds/lb
High-Five Pine Seedling ProductionContainer stock WBP
Produced for restoration since 1990’s
Many Forests in Regions 1, 2, 4, and 6
Over 624,000 trees produced since 1990
Continuing to streamline production
WBP Seedling Production Trend:
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 20130
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
9 1 3 8 4 530
85 95
190
WBP Seedlings Produced (K)
Sowing Year
Obstacles to WBP Germination
Physiological embryo dormancy (requires stratification)
Seed coat dormancy / impermeability (requires scarification) (Riley, et al 2007)
Historically poor and inconsistent germination
Scant research on WBP germination protocols
Existing ProtocolsGrow
erPre-
Treatment
Warm Strat
Cold Strat Scarification Germination
Dorena Genetic Resourc
e Center*
H2O2Soak / Rinse
30 days @
50°F
90 days@
33-35°F
Seeds individually hand sanded along center-
line.
Small seedlots; germinated
artificially, then hand
transplanted. Glacier National Park**
48 hr cold-water
rinse (+ pre-strat scarif.)
90 days@
70°F day / 64°F night
30-100 days
@33-35°F
Pre-strat, seeds
individually hand sanded or knicked.
Direct seeded into containers, or germinated
artificially, and hand
transplanted.Coeur
d’ Alene Nursery
48 hr cold-water rinse
30 days @
50-60 °F
60 days@
33-35°F
3-4 hours mechanized sanding of bulk seed
Direct seeded into containers,
minimal/no hand transplanting
*Riley, et al 2007**Wick, et al 2008
Scarification study conducted at CdA Nursery-
4 seedlots, 9 sanding treatments, 3.0 - 7.5 hours
Showed no significant difference between lots sanded 3+ hours
2010 WBP Crop
3 4 4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 3 + T0
20
40
60
80
100
Burke7425Puz-zle-Hills
Sanding Time (Hrs)
Cell
s F
ille
d (
%),
D
ay
35
2011 WBP CropNo study conducted
Erratic and lower than expected germination
Considerable latent germination, especially when exposed to direct sun / warm temperatures
New germinate crop after additional 30 day cold stratification
Goal: Increase operational production efficiency by:Improving germination consistencyEliminating the need for re-stratificationReducing handling and sorting costs, and media wasteUsing valuable seed more efficiently
Stratification study conducted at CdA Nursery Current scarification protocols + increased stratification
2012 WBP Crop
Existing ProtocolsGrow
erPre-
Treatment
Warm Strat
Cold Strat Scarification Germination
Dorena Genetic Resourc
e Center
*
H2O2Soak / Rinse
30 days @
50°F
90 days@
33-35°F
Seeds individually hand sanded along center-
line.
Small seedlots; germinated
artificially, then hand
transplanted. Glacier National Park
**
48 hr cold-water
rinse (+ pre-strat scarificati
on)
90 days@
70°F day / 64°F night
30-100 days
@33-35°F
Pre-strat, seeds
individually hand sanded or knicked.
Direct seeded into containers, or germinated
artificially, and hand
transplanted.
Coeur d’ Alene Nursery
48 hr cold-water rinse
30 days @
50-60 °F
60 days@
33-35°F
3 hours mechanized sanding of bulk seed
Direct seeded into containers,
minimal/no hand transplanting*Riley, et al
2007**Wick, et al 2008
23 operational seedlots, 6 breeding zones
30 warm / 90 cold strat + 3 hour bulk sanding
Standard operational greenhouse growing conditions
Measured number of viable germinates in August, 2012. (at least 7% sample size per lot, average 23%)
Factors included: Breeding zone Sowing date Source elevation Seedlot age
Materials and Methods
Results - Overall GerminationW
B1
40
91
09
3
WB
02
09
10
81
FR
EE
ZE
OU
T1
0
VIP
ON
DP
AR
K1
0
WB
03
03
00
92
GR
OU
SE
MT
N0
9
UN
ION
PA
SS
09
DE
AD
LIN
E1
1
WB
P2
06
7
WB
P2
06
6
WB
P1
26
2-0
9
WB
P2
06
8
SA
WT
EL
L0
9
BE
TA
_DE
SE
RT
_NI
HO
RN
ET
11
NA
PA
_SU
NS
ET
11
BIG
MT
N1
1
LIT
TL
EJO
E1
0
BU
RK
E0
9
OL
DM
AN
RIS
ING
WO
LF
WH
ITE
CA
LF
PR
ES
TO
NP
AR
K0
7
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
By Seedlot - Mean = 70%
Results – Germination by Factors
BTIP
CFLP
CLMT
GYGT
MSG
P
SKCS
10%
30%
50%
70%
90%
5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.0 11.010%
30%
50%
70%
90%
R² = 0.00593342942660802
2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 201210%
30%
50%
70%
90%
R² = 0.0791184843442356
Breeding Zone
Seed Collection Date
Sowing Date
Elevation (K ft.)
1/1 2/20 4/10 5/3010%
30%
50%
70%
90%
R² < 0.001
Consistent germination near 70%
No significant correlation between germination and:Breeding zoneSowing dateSource elevation
No significant correlation between germ and collection year, but data is limited
Discussion – 2012 Data
Discussion – 2011 vs. 2012 Germination
WB02
0910
81
WB02
0910
81'
GROUSE
M...
GROUSE
MT.
..
SAW
TELL
09
SAW
TELL
09'
UNIO
NPA
SS09
UNIO
NPA
S...
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%90 days vs. 120 days
2012 Original2011 Restrat2011 Original
Using new WBP stratification / scarification protocol,
Seed origin, elevation, and sow date showed no significant effect on germination percentage
Seed age showed no significant effect on germination, although most lots (78%) were 2009 or newer
Compared to 2011, 2012 sowing had far superior initial germination, presumably due to increased stratification time
Conclusions
120 day strat, less emphasis on other factors
Reduce % oversow = seed savings
Request clients make timely orders (Sept.-Oct.)!
Test for seed age effect
Test sowing techniques, top dressing, etc. to increase lg. scale production efficiency
Direction for CdA Nursery
Mahalovich, MF, Burr, KE, and Foushee, DL. 2006. Whitebark pine germination, rust resistance, and cold hardiness among seed sources in the Inland Northwest: Planting strategies for restoration. In: USDA Forest Service Proceedings RMRS-P-43. 2006.
Riley, LE, Coumas, CM, Danielson, JF, and Berdeen, JC. 2007. Seedling nursery culture of whitebark pine at Dorena Genetic Resource Center: Headakes, successes, and growing pains. In: USDA Forest Service R6-NR-FHP-2007-01.
Wick, D, Luna, T, Evans, J, and Hosokowa, J. 2008. Propagation protocol for production of container Pinus albicaulis Engelm. Plants (172 ml conetainers); USDI NPS-Glacier National Park, West Glacier, MT. In: Native Plant Network.
References