Eucalyptus and Pine Nutritional Diagnosis and Fertilizer Prescriptions

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 October 2015) | Viewed by 29672

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Reynaldo Campos Santana, Forest Engineering Department, College of Agrarian Science, Federal University of Jequitinhonha and Mucuri Valleys-UFVJM, Rodovia MGT 367, Km 583, nº 5000, Alto da Jacuba CEP 39100-000, Diamantina, MG, Brazil
Interests: forest nutrition and nutrient cycling; nutrient use efficiency; fertilizer best management practices; forest production; Silvicultural management systems
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fertilizer use in eucalyptus and pine plantations has trends, which are similar to some agricultural production systems, mainly in tropical and subtropical areas. The knowledge base for the nutritional diagnosis and the development of fertilizer prescriptions that optimize production are relevant questions that drive research in several countries regarding tree species. However, there is a lack of information about ecophysiological answers and their relationship with fertilizer prescriptions. This Special Issue focuses on research results and methods for nutritional diagnosis and fertilizer prescriptions and their effects on ecophysiological properties in Eucalyptus and Pine plantations.

Prof. Dr. Reynaldo Campos Santana
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • nutrient diagnosis methods
  • fertilizer prescription methods
  • nondestructive sample for nutrient diagnosis
  • nutrient use efficiency versus fertilizer prescription
  • soil and plant analyses
  • uptake efficiency and fertilizer prescription
  • quality control methods for fertilization
  • novel fertilizer application methods
  • novel fertilizer for forests
  • canopy leaf area, nutrient in the tissues and plant growth
  • growth in relation to tree nutrition
  • models relating forestry and fertilization
  • ecophysiological answer by tree nutrition

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

1682 KiB  
Article
Labile and Non-Labile Fractions of Phosphorus and Its Transformations in Soil under Eucalyptus Plantations, Brazil
by Marlon Gomes Costa, Antonio Carlos Gama-Rodrigues, José Leonardo de Moraes Gonçalves, Emanuela Forestieri Gama-Rodrigues, Marcus Vinicius da Silva Sales and Seldon Aleixo
Forests 2016, 7(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/f7010015 - 6 Jan 2016
Cited by 57 | Viewed by 9199
Abstract
Phosphorus (P) is the main limiting nutritional factor in the cultivation of Eucalyptus in Brazil. Despite this, little is known about the P fractions and dynamics in Eucalyptus soils in tropical regions. The aims of this study were (1) to evaluate the distribution [...] Read more.
Phosphorus (P) is the main limiting nutritional factor in the cultivation of Eucalyptus in Brazil. Despite this, little is known about the P fractions and dynamics in Eucalyptus soils in tropical regions. The aims of this study were (1) to evaluate the distribution of labile and non-labile fractions of P in soil in 10 sites of Eucalyptus in the state of São Paulo, Brazil and (2) to determine the interactions among the P fractions and to identify which fractions act as sinks or sources for the available P fraction. The P fractions were separated using the Hedley sequential extraction method, and the P transformation processes were evaluated via structural equation modeling. The labile P (resin-Pi + Pi and Po in NaHCO3) varied between 6% and 16%, the moderately labile P (Pi + Po in NaOH) varied between 28% and 40%, the occluded P (Pi + Po in Sonicate + NaOH) varied between 6% and 19%, the P associated with Ca (HCl-Pi) varied between 0.4% and 3% and the residual-P varied between 35% and 47%. The hypothetical structural model of soil P cycle was composed of four P pools (latent variables): the organic pool, occluded pool, inorganic pool, and available pool. The structural model was adequate to identify functional pools of P in soil, and to identify transformation processes of P based on the source-sink relationships. The available P pool was highly dependent on inorganic and occluded pools and the organic pool acted predominantly as a sink of P on available and inorganic pools. The results reinforce the high level of recalcitrance of the organic pool and the fact that Eucalyptus plants must access pools of limited-availability P to meet their nutritional demands. Full article
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2908 KiB  
Article
Responses of Clonal Eucalypt Plantations to N, P and K Fertilizer Application in Different Edaphoclimatic Conditions
by Eduardo Aparecido Sereguin Cabral de Melo, José Leonardo de Moraes Gonçalves, José Henrique Tertulino Rocha, Rodrigo Eiji Hakamada, José Henrique Bazani, Andrea Virginia Athayde Wenzel, José Carlos Arthur, Jr., Jarbas Silva Borges, Rogério Malheiros, Cristiane Camargo Zani de Lemos, Eric Victor de Oliveira Ferreira and Alexandre De Vicente Ferraz
Forests 2016, 7(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/f7010002 - 22 Dec 2015
Cited by 49 | Viewed by 7098
Abstract
Eucalypt plantations in Brazil have the highest mean productivity when compared to other producing countries, and fertilizer application is one of the main factors responsible for these productivities. Our aim was to identify appropriate rates of N, P and K in eucalypt plantations [...] Read more.
Eucalypt plantations in Brazil have the highest mean productivity when compared to other producing countries, and fertilizer application is one of the main factors responsible for these productivities. Our aim was to identify appropriate rates of N, P and K in eucalypt plantations and their interactions with edaphoclimatic factors. Four trials with four rates and three nutrients (N, P and K) were set up. Each nutrient was studied separately, and the trees received sufficient rates of all of the other nutrients through fertilization, to avoid limitations not related to the desired nutrient. We assessed solid wood volume (SV), productivity gains (PG), leaf nutrient content and leaf area index (LAI) to determine the responses to fertilization. PG, regarding N, rates ranged from 104% to 127% at 60 months after planting. P fertilizer application led to gains in productivity in soils with levels of P-resin up to 5 mg·kg−1, but decreased with stand age. K fertilizer application responses increased within age in three sites. In Paulistania, responses to K application were close to zero. N and K responses were climate related. Leaf nutrient content and LAI were not able to predict the highest yields obtained. Full article
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3074 KiB  
Article
Response of Boreal Jack Pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) Stands to a Gradient of Commercial Thinning Intensities, with and without N Fertilization
by Julien Moulinier, Suzanne Brais, Brian D. Harvey and Ahmed Koubaa
Forests 2015, 6(8), 2678-2702; https://doi.org/10.3390/f6082678 - 31 Jul 2015
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 5914
Abstract
This study examines tree and stand response to a gradient of commercial thinning intensities and nitrogen fertilization (200 kg N ha−1) in nine jack pine (Pinus banksiana) stands of Eastern Canada over a period of 14 years. Thinning intensity [...] Read more.
This study examines tree and stand response to a gradient of commercial thinning intensities and nitrogen fertilization (200 kg N ha−1) in nine jack pine (Pinus banksiana) stands of Eastern Canada over a period of 14 years. Thinning intensity ranged from 0% basal area removal in control plots to 64% in thinned plots. Tree diameter increment, absolute and relative volume increment and mean volume increased with thinning intensity and were higher in fertilized plots. Individual tree response depended on tree diameter, with smallest trees exhibiting highest relative volume increment to thinning intensity. Stand basal area increment was positively associated to initial stand basal area and negatively to stand age. In thinned and fertilized plots, stand volume increment was higher and natural mortality lower than in fertilized only and unfertilized control plots over the 5–14 year period after thinning. However, the positive effect of fertilization on tree volume increment decreased with thinning intensity. Despite positive individual tree growth responses to thinning and fertilization, residual stand volume increment decreased with increased thinning intensity in both fertilized and unfertilized plots. While total cumulative stand volume (harvested + residual) also decreased with thinning intensity in unfertilized plots, comparable total volumes were observed in fertilized + thinned and unthinned control plots. Nitrogen fertilization in the years following commercial thinning enhanced the benefit of thinning on these relatively poor sites by increasing tree diameter growth, lowering mortality, and increasing total stand merchantable volume compared to unfertilized thinned stands. Full article
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911 KiB  
Article
Available Nitrogen and Responses to Nitrogen Fertilizer in Brazilian Eucalypt Plantations on Soils of Contrasting Texture
by Ana Paula Pulito, José Leonardo de Moraes Gonçalves, Philip J. Smethurst, José Carlos Arthur Junior, Clayton Alcarde Alvares, José Henrique Tertulino Rocha, Ayeska Hübner, Luiz Fabiano de Moraes, Aline Cristina Miranda, Marcos Yassuo Kamogawa, José Luiz Gava, Raul Chaves and Claudio Roberto Silva
Forests 2015, 6(4), 973-991; https://doi.org/10.3390/f6040973 - 2 Apr 2015
Cited by 46 | Viewed by 6858
Abstract
Eucalyptus plantations have seldom responded to N fertilization in tropical and subtropical regions of Brazil. This implies that rates of N mineralization have been adequate to supply tree needs. However, subsequent crop rotations with low N fertilization may result in declining concentrations of [...] Read more.
Eucalyptus plantations have seldom responded to N fertilization in tropical and subtropical regions of Brazil. This implies that rates of N mineralization have been adequate to supply tree needs. However, subsequent crop rotations with low N fertilization may result in declining concentrations of organic and potentially mineralizable N (N0), and consequent loss of wood productivity. This study investigated (a) in situ N mineralization and N0 in soils of eucalypt plantations in São Paulo state, Brazil; (b) tree growth responses to N fertilizer applied 6–18 months after planting; and (c) the relationships between N0, other soil attributes and tree growth. We established eleven N fertilizer trials (maximum 240 kg ha−1 of N) in E. grandis and E. grandis x urophylla plantations. The soil types at most sites were Oxisols and Quartzipsamments, with a range of organic matter (18 to 55 g kg−1) and clay contents (8% to 67%) in the 0–20 cm layer. Concentrations of N0 were measured using anaerobic incubation on soil samples collected every three months (different seasons). The samples collected in spring and summer had N0 140–400 kg ha−1 (10%–19% total soil N), which were best correlated with soil texture and organic matter content. Rates of in situ net N mineralization (0–20 cm) ranged from 100 to 200 kg ha−1 year−1 and were not correlated with clay, total N, or N0. These high N mineralization rates resulted in a low response to N fertilizer application during the early ages of stand growth, which were highest on sandy soils. At the end of the crop rotation, the response to N fertilizer was negligible and non-significant at all sites. Full article
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