Performance of container-grown seedlings of American chestnut backcross hybrids BC₃ F₃ generation in central Louisiana

Abstract

Seedlings from two families of the BC₃F₃ backcross generation of the American chestnut (Castanea dentata) and Chinese chestnut (C. mollissima) were cultured in 2013 in Missouri using the Root Production Method®, a container-based system used to avoid disease problems associated with bareroot nursery production. After culling part of the seedlings at initial leaf formation in a greenhouse, both the culled and the remaining “kept” seedlings were transplanted into containers of 1.33, 1.57, and 2.62 L and grown outdoors. Seedlings, remaining in their containers, were brought to central Louisiana in mid-June 2013 and cultured outdoors. Half of the seedlings were harvested in September, and the other half continued to grow until storage in a cold room in mid-November. Of the seedlings harvested in September, family W4938 (W) seedlings had 90 percent more biomass than family D3862 (D) seedlings. Patterns of biomass allocation from each component within a seedling did not differ between families. All but one seedling had short (less than 6 cm) taproots, whereas the lengths of first-order lateral roots and adventitious roots were similar to the depths of the containers used. In family W, seedlings cultured in the 2.62 L containers were larger in size and biomass than those of the smaller volumes. Seedlings were outplanted in central Louisiana in late March, 2014. First-year survival was only 47 and 33 percent for the W and D seedlings, respectively. High summer temperature and local wet planting spots are suspected of causing the high seedling mortality.

Parent Publication

• Proceedings of the 18th biennial southern silvicultural research conference

Citation

Sung, Shi-Jean S.; Clark, Stacy L.; Schlarbaum, Scott; Dey, Daniel; Leduc, Daniel J. 2016. Performance of container-grown seedlings of American chestnut backcross hybrids BC F generation in central Louisiana. In: Schweitzer, Callie Jo; Clatterbuck, Wayne K.; Oswalt, Christopher M., eds. Proceedings of the 18th biennial southern silvicultural research conference; 2015 March 2-5; Knoxville, TN. e-Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-212. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station: 546-552.