Seventeen-Year Growth of Cherrybark Oak and Loblolly Pine on a Previously Farmed Bottomland Site

Abstract

This study documents the effects of cultural treatments on 17-year growth of cherrybark oak (Quercus pagoda Raf.) and lobiolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) planted on a previously farmed bottomland site in southwestern Tennessee. Yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.) was part of the original study, but was excluded due to very high mortality in early years. The experiment was a randomized, complete-block design located on a former soybean field prone to occasional flooding. Cultural treatments were third-year fertilization (nitrogen and phosphorus) as well as disking and mowing for weed control. Natural regeneration as a means of afforestation also was investigated. Survival after 17 years averaged 64 percent for cherrybark oak and 63 percent for loblolly pine. Mean total height was 34.0 feet for cherrybark oak and 55.0 feet for loblolly pine. The mean diameters at breast height (DBH) of cherrybark oak and loblolly pine were 4.1 and 10.2 inches, respectively. Survival, height, and DBH of both species were not significantly affected by fertilization, mowing, or disking, nor were there any significant interactions among the treatments. Natural regeneration resulted in dense stands (4,340 trees per acre) dominated by small-diameter sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua L.).

Citation

Devine, Warren D.; Rennie, John C.; Houston, Allan E.; Tyler, Donald D.; Reich, Vernon H. 2002. Seventeen-Year Growth of Cherrybark Oak and Loblolly Pine on a Previously Farmed Bottomland Site. In: Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS–48. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. pg. 415-418