(Quercus Rubra L. Syn. Q. Borealis F. Michx.) in Europe: a Review
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Funded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union Ecology and management of northern red oak (Quercus rubra L. syn. Q. borealis F. Michx.) in Europe: A review Valeriu-Norocel Nicolescu, Torsten Vor, William L. Mason, Jean-Charles Bastien, Robert Brus, Jean-Marc Henin, Ivo Kupka, Vasyl Lavnyy, Nicola La Porta, Frits Mohren, Krasimira Petkova, Károly Rédei, Igor Stefančik, Radosław Wąsik, Sanja Perić, and Cornelia Hernea International Conference Non-native trees species for European forests, Vienna-Austria, 12-14 September 2018 1 Overview Introduction Major species characteristics Ecology of northern red oak Management of northern red oak Conclusions 2 Introduction Northern red oak (Quercus rubra L. syn. Q. borealis F. Michx.) (NRO): Broadleaved tree species originating from the eastern half of the U.S.A. (32 to 47o N latitude, 62 to 96 o W longitude). Natural distribution map for Q. rubra (adapted from Little, 1971) 3 Introduction Natural range The northernmost American oak species (= 'baptised' borealis) In pure or mixed stands, along with both hardwoods (Quercus sp., Fraxinus sp., Acer sp., Populus sp., Carya sp., Juglans sp., Magnolia sp., Celtis sp., etc.) and softwoods (Pinus sp., Thuja sp.). 4 Introduction Europe Introduced in 1691: NRO seeds/seedlings were brought in to France and planted in Le Petit Trianon (vicinity of Versailles Palace). Especially in the 19th century: used in parks, gardens, arboreta, trials, as well as forest plantations, all over Europe, with the exception of the cold zone of Scandinavia. 5 Introduction Currently: NRO covers over 350,000 ha in Europe, with the most important forest areas in: - Ukraine:192,868 ha - France: 52,000 ha - Germany: 44,550 ha - Poland:15,261 ha - Hungary:13,174 ha - Slovenia:11,978 ha - Bulgaria: 9,941 ha - Netherlands: 8,696 ha On a smaller scale: found in Czech Republic (5,586 ha), Romania (ca. 2,500 ha), Slovakia (2,193 ha), Lithuania (1,500 ha), and the United Kingdom (700-1,000 ha). 6 Species characteristics Provides many ecosystem services: - Soil protection/stabilization and improvement - Carbon sequestration - Habitat for wildlife (birds, mammals, rare species of insects) - Shelterbelt, windbreak (plain areas, continental sand dunes) - Fire belt (pine regions) - Used in parks, public gardens, as a street tree (has a large crown and crimson-coloured leaves, with a high landscape and ornamental value, and good resistance to urban pollution) NRO may be an alternative to native oaks (pedunculate Quercus robur and sessile Q. petraea): i. On sites that are marginal for the latter ii. Under expected climate change as a ”drought tolerant species”. 7 Species characteristics Denser wood but of lower quality and durability than that of native oaks. Used for lumber, furniture, veneer, in construction, for the interior finish of houses (e.g., wall panelling, flooring, parqueting), railroad ties, as mine wood, firewood, etc. 8 Species characteristics Fast growing Can reach mean/ dominant heights of: - 16 m at 20 years - 21 m at 30 years - 24 m at 40 years. 9 Maximum mean or dominant height of northern red oak stands at 20 to 40 years in different European countries Country Maximum mean/dominant Source height at age... (years) 20 30 40 Ukraine 15.9 21.0 24.1 Anonymous, 1987 Belgium 16.8 21.0 24.2 Rondeux et al., 1999 The Netherlands 16.9 20.2 22.7 Oosterbaan et al., 2016 Hungary 16.0 20.0 24.0 Rédei et al., 2010 Germany 11.0 16.7 21.0 Bauer, 1953 Slovakia 12.3 17.8 21.5 Stefančik, pers.comm. Bulgaria 15.5 20.0 22.8 Poryazov et al., 2004 NRO's mean/dominant height (best sites): 30-36 m at 80-100 years 10 Species characteristics Diameter growth Can reach 1 cm yr-1 under very favourable site conditions and using an appropriate silviculture. Mean stand diameters: - 40 cm in 50 years - 55 cm in 80 years - 60 cm in 100 years. 11 c. a. b. Large-diameter northern red oak trees in Germany (a) and Romania (b - stand and c - park) (photos V.N. Nicolescu) 12 Species characteristics Volume growth: as high as 8-10 m3 ha-1 yr-1 at 80 yrs. 13 Mean volume growth of NRO in some European countries Country Mean annual volume Age, Reference Obs. increment, m3 ha-1 yr-1 years Belgium 7-10 50-100 Rondeux et al., 1999 Elevation below 450 m Bulgaria 4.1-7.5 80 Poriazov et al., 2004 Czech 7 120 Kupka et al., 2018 Republic France 10 (range 7.6-12.3) 30-60 Pilard-Landeau, 1984 Germany 12 (range (4) 8-17) 80-120 Bauer, 1953; Seidel and Kenk, 2003 Hungary 2.7-9.0 75-80 Rédei et al., 2010 Latvia 7-9 59-67 Dreimanis and Šulcs, 2006 Loamy soils Netherlands 3.3-8.6 80 Oosterbaan et al., 2016 Poland 8.5 Jaworski, 2011 Romania 8.5 (range 7.7-10.2) 80 Dumitriu-Tătăranu and Costea (coord.), 1988 Slovakia 6.1-12.6 72 Réh and Réh, 1997 Thinning from above 9.5-11.2 72 Thinning from below Slovenia 14.6 33 Eleršek et al., 1994 10.4 30 Ukraine 7.8-9.3 80 Anonymous, 1987 14 Species characteristics Root system Deep, tap-rooted tree during the early years (can reach over 70 cm depth at 3-5 years of age), then heart-like with many thin lateral roots. These roots can expand horizontally up to over 15 m from the tree stem. NRO trees are firmly anchored in the soil = windthrows are rare. 15 Species characteristics Easily regenerated by seed - First heavy seed crop at 20-30 years of age; masting every 2-3 years. - Seed production = biennial; acorns are heavy = dispersed mostly by gravity, birds and mammals. - Most acorns germinate within a distance of 150 m from the seed tree. Long- distance seed dispersal: very small scale; main vector European jay (Garrulus glandarius). Photo R. Brus 16 Species characteristics Regenerates vegetatively (by stool shoots), due to its good sprouting potential at young ages. Declines after 40 years of age BUT: Sprouting of NRO, even quite abundant = weaker than of native Q. petraea and Q. robur. Photo V.N. Nicolescu 17 Species characteristics In some countries considered as a potentially invasive or even an invasive species (= regenerates well naturally by seed). 18 Invasive potential of northern red oak in some European countries Country Northern red oak considered as... Observations Potentially invasive Invasive Bulgaria X (Petrova et al., 2013, in - Petkova et al., 2016 Czech - X (Mlíkovský and Stýblo, Republic 2006, in Urban et al., 2016 Germany - X (Nehring et al., 2013) Not considered invasive by forest scientists (Nagel, 2015; Vor et al., 2015) Lithuania - X (Riepšas and Straigyté, 2008) Slovenia X (De Groot et al., X (Zelnik, 2012; Strgulc 2017) Krajšek et al., 2016) Poland - X (Tokarska-Guzik et al., 2012) Belgium X ('with moderate impact') (Henin - pers.comm.) 19 Species characteristics BUT: The invasive potential: site-specific i. Can be invasive on dry, nutrient poor soils or on relatively rich sandy soils. ii. On richer soils, it is far less invasive. Other European countries: NRO is not considered to be a threat because its potential to spread is limited due to: (a) The ineffective seed dispersal vectors (b) Lack of vegetative reproduction by root suckers (c) A high browsing pressure. 20 Species characteristics Young ages: able to tolerate a light shelter. Adult ages: light-demanding species, showing a marked phototropism. BUT: more shade-bearing than Q . robur and Q . petraea. 21 Species characteristics Epicormic branches: Can occur due to (a) heavy thinning, (b) lack of light from above, (c) crown dieback or (d) too much competition. In general, are not a major problem of NRO. The risk of epicormics on NRO trees with large crowns is lower than for Q. petraea and Q. robur. Photo V.N. Nicolescu 22 Species characteristics Potential for natural pruning: good when trees are grown in stands with dense canopy cover. Even in dense stands, natural pruning is not perfect (= dead branches remain attached to the trunk) = should be combined with artificial pruning. It is also the case in widely-spaced plantations (initial spacing over 2 x 2 m): natural pruning is slow = artificial pruning becomes necessary. Photo V.N. Nicolescu 23 Species characteristics Vulnerability to pests, diseases and wildlife Many fungal pathogens and insect pests have been found in NRO stands across Europe, but none of them have been reported to cause serious damages to the species. a. Insects - Defoliators (to which the species is quite resistant): Operophtera brumata, Erannis defoliaria, Tortrix viridana, Euproctis chrysorrhoea, Lymantria dispar, Melolontha melolontha. - Wood-boring insects: Cerambyx cerdo, Scolytus intricatus, Agrillus viridis, Zeuzera pirina, Cossus cossus - Acorn-damaging insects: Laspeyresia splendana, Curculio glandium, Curculio elephas. b. Fungi On leaves and branches: Ciboria candolleana and Taphrina caerulescens; almost immune to Erysiphe alphitoides. On bark: Stereum rugosum, Pezicula cinnamomea, Phytophthora cinnamomi, Nectria galligena. On roots: Armillaria mellea and Collybia fusipes. Producing root rot: Laetiporus sulfureus, Stereum rugosum, Stereum hirsutum, Ganoderma spp., Inonotus dryadeus. BUT: the most important enemy of NRO in the natural range, the vascular fungi Ceratocystis fagacearum, which produces the so-called 'oak wilt', has not been encountered in Europe thus far. - NRO is very often browsed by mammals such as deer and other animals can cause damage such as hares, rabbits, voles and mice. 24 Ecology of northern red oak 25 25 Climate requirements Wide climatic tolerance = cultivated in areas with similar m.a.t. as in the native range, but much lower m.a.p., reaching a minimum of 500-550 mm yr-1. Better resistance to drought than Quercus petraea and Q.