|
|
| You are here: Research Branch > Stand Management > Fertilization Fertilization
|
|
Although other
silvicultural treatments may redistribute volume and/or increase piece size
and value, fertilization is the most proven method for increasing harvest
volume and accelerating the operability of established stands. As such,
fertilization is widely viewed by forest managers and practitioners as a
potentially valuable tool for mitigating "pinch points" in the mid-term
timber supply caused by age class imbalances, and for increasing long term
harvest levels.
During the past several decades, the B.C. Ministry of Forests has sponsored extensive research to determine the nutritional status of coastal and interior forests and to document the effectiveness of single and repeated nutrient additions on improving tree and stand growth across a wide range of species and sites. The biological basis for fertilizing forests is to supply nutrient elements that constrain tree growth. Fertilization research conducted by the Ministry of Forests has confirmed that nitrogen (N) deficiencies are widespread in B.C. forests, and that N additions often have a substantial positive effect on tree and stand growth. Other nutrient deficiencies, either induced or aggravated by N fertilization, have also been implicated as growth-limiting factors, especially in interior forests. For example, larger growth responses are often obtained by including sulphur (S) or boron (B) in fertilizer prescriptions for lodgepole pine. Growth and yield data from area-based fertilization experiments is a vital source of data for treatment response predictions within managed stand growth and yield models. Over the long term, these field installations also provide data for checking a model's growth trends.
|
Experimental Projects - Coast
Experimental Projects - Interior
Fertilization Publications
|
Last Modified: 2007 APR 20. Ministry contact: Frank van
Thienen
|
