Effect of preweeding size of competitive plants in a young hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa) plantation on their resprouting ability after weeding in a warm-temperate region

ABSTRACT

We studied the effect of preweeding size of undesirable plants competing against planted hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa) trees on their resprouting ability subsequent to weeding in a warm-temperate region. Further, we investigated the period of heterotrophic-dominative growth by estimating the contribution toward growth in height of the preweeding tree size in terms of total basal area (TBA) and stem height at the initial stage of resprouting. No positive correlation was found between size of the sprouts (in terms of height and D²H, product of DBH² and height) and the preweeding tree size (in terms of TBA). These results may be related to the contribution of the parental stumps on the growth of sprouts having diminished at an early stage of growth, indicating that the period of heterotrophic-dominative growth of sprouts was limited to the very early stage subsequent to weeding. On the other hand, an increase of preweeding tree TBA had a positive effect on the number of the sprouts, which can increase the time required for the practice of weeding.

KEYWORDS:

• Heterotrophic growth
• late weeding
• resprouting ability
• preweeding size dependency

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the staff of the Tano Forest Science Station at the University of Miyazaki for their assistance during field surveys. The present study was supported in part by the Research and Development Projects for Application in Promoting New Policy of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries under the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council Secretariat (AFFRC) of Japan (No. 21020), the project “Research on development of silviculture system utilizing high performance seedlings and cuttings” funded by AFFRC of Japan (No. 18064868), and Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from JSPS (No. 25252029).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council of Japan [No. 21020]; Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) [JP 25252029]; Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council of Japan [No. 18064868].