Relationship of shoot-root ration to survival and growth of outplanted Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine seedlings /

Abstract

Two-year-old Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine seedlings with three top heights, and with either large or small roots, were planted in a burned-over area in north-central Washington to evaluate the relationship of shoot-root ratio to first-year survival and shoot growth. Survival of fir seedlings with large roots was 22 to 26 percent higher than survival of seedlings with small roots, and pine survival was increased 5 to 15 percent. Shoot growth (increase in shoot mass) of large-rooted fir and pine seedlings was as much as 2.1 and 4.8 times, respectively, that of small-rooted seedlings. Height growth of both fir and pine seedlings with large roots was 1.2 to 1.7 times that of seedlings with small roots.