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Fallowing for Cottonwood Plantations: Benefits Carry to Rotation's End

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Johnson grass and other weeds are so prolific in old fields on the Mississippi Delta that frequent cultivation is necessary during the first season to obtain acceptable survival of planted cottonwood. A number of site preparation treatments were tested as a means of increasing early survival and growth. Fallowing, essentially five diskings the summer before planting, was the most successful treatment. Fallowing resulted in 18% better first-year survival than sites not fallowed before planting. By rotation's end (11 years), fallowed plots yielded over 50% more than nonfallowed plots, primarily due to better survival. Diameters were also significantly greater. Thinning at 5 years reduced total yield by 19% compared to unthinned, fallowed plots, but increased mean diameter by about 7%. Thinning at 8 years resulted in yields and diameters similar to unthinned plots. Second-year cultivation was tested; no benefit was detected.

Keywords

Populus deltoides Bartr. ex Marsh., plantations, cultivation, thinning

Citation

Francis, John K. 1982. Fallowing for Cottonwood Plantations: Benefits Carry to Rotation's End. Proceedings Reprint. New Orleans, LA: USDA-Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station. In: Zavitkovski, Jerry; Hansen, Edward A., eds. Proceedings of the North American Poplar Council 19th Annual Meeting, Rhinelander, WI. Manhattan, Kansas: Kansas State University. 1-7.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/42947