Effect of trace elements on growth of Pinus tabulaeformis seedling

The stimulative effect of trace elements on seed germination and seedling growth of Pinus tabulaeformis was tested. The experiments were carried out on seed soak and topdressing with different trace elements and varied concentrations at the nursery of Gardens Research Institute, Harbin, in 2000-2001. The experimental results showed that soaking seed with 1% and 0.2% concentrations of Mn element produced best result for seed germination, and the germination rate was increased by 9%~19% for the seeds treated with 1% concentration and 12%~14% for the seeds treated with 0.2% concentration compared with the control group. The seeds treated with boron element had lowest germination rate. For trace element topdressing, Mn and Mo elements presented good result for seedling growth and the treatment with low concentration was even better. The height or chlorophyll content of the seedlings with spray of low-concentration Mn and Mo element was much higher than that of untreated ones. In the contrast to the treating method of seed soak, topdressing (application of spraying on foliage) had evident effect on seedling growth.

Cytological Mechanism of Cytoplasmic Inheritance in Pinus tabulaeformis: Ⅱ. Transmission of Male and Female Organelles During Fertilization and Proembryo Development

In an earlier report the ultrastructure and nucleoid organelles of male gamete in Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. have been described. Presently, the ultrastructure of the cytoplasm of the egg cell and pollen tube—immediately before fertilization and during cytoplasmic transmission of male gametophyte—has been described for the same species. The fate of parental plastids and mitochondria in the proembryo has also been followed. The mature egg cell contains a large amount of mitochondria, but seems to lack normal plastids. Most plastids have transformed into large inclusions. Apart from the large inclusions, there are abundant small inclusions and other organelles in the egg cell. During fertilization, pollen tube penetrates into the egg cell at the micropylar end and thereafter the contents are released. Plastid and mitochondrion of male origin are lacking near the fusing sperm_egg nuclei. The second sperm nucleus—not involved in karyogamy—remains at a site near the receptive vacuole. This nucleus is surrounded by large amount of male cytoplasm containing mixed organelles from the sperm cell, tube cell, and egg cell. At the free nuclear proembryo stage, organelles of male and female origin are visible in the perinucleus_cytoplasmic zone. Most of the mitochondria have the same morphological features as those in the egg cell. Some of the mitochondria appear to have originated from the sperm and tube cells. Plastids are most likely of male gametophyte origin because they have similar appearance as those of the sperm and tube cell. Large inclusions in the egg cell become vacuole_like. Paternal plastids have been incorporated into the neocytoplasm of the proembryo. In the cellular proembryo, maternal mitochondria are more abundant. Plastids resembling those of the sperm and tube cell are still present. These cytological results clearly show that in P. tabulaeformis, plastids are inherited paternally and mitochondria bipaternally. The cytological mechanism of plastid and mitochondrion inheritance in gymnosperm is discussed.

Cytological Mechanism of Cytoplasmic Inheritance in Pinus tabulaeformis: Ⅰ. Ultrastructural Aspects and Nucleoids of the Male Gametes

The cytological mechanism of plastid and mitochondrion inheritance in Pinus is an interesting research topic with only a limited number of published articles. The results indicate that the sperms of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. contain abundant plastids, mitochondria and organelle DNA. These data provide reliable cytological evidence of paternal plastid and mitochondrion inheritance in Pinus . The results are in line with the confirmed general rule of paternal plastid inheritance in Pinaceae. But whether mitochondria in sperm cells can be transmitted into the embryos is an issue needs further developmental studies. Another important finding is that contrary to earlier classification of the male gamete of Pinaceae into the male nuclei type, the results reveal that male gametes in Pinus tabulaeformis are actually cells. However, the sperm cells are only surrounded by plasma membranes without cell walls. The larger leading sperm cell in a pollen tube section is long in shape, with a large amount of cytoplasm; while the second sperm cell is smaller, round in shape and contains less cytoplasm. Whether this feature of the male gamete type could be considered as a representative characteristic of the family is discussed and further conclusions await more experimental evidences from studies on plants from different species.

Optimization of Ultrasound-assisted Extraction Conditions for Polysaccharides from Pinus tabulaeformis Seed Shells

[Objective] This study aimed to investigate the optimal technological condi- tions for ultrasouqd-assisted extraction of polysaccharides from Pinus tabulaeformis seed shells. [Melhod] Polysaccharides were extracted from P. tabulaeformis seed shells by ultrasound-assisted hot water extraction method and detected by phenol- concentrated sulfuric acid method. The effect of extraction temperature, extraction duration, solid-liquid ratio and extraction frequency on the extraction of polysaccha- rides was investigated using single-factor gradient experiment and the extraction conditions for polysaccharides from P. tabulaeformis seed shells were optimized us- ing L9（34） orthogonal design. [Result] The content of polysaccharides extracted twice at 60 ℃ for 25 min with solid-liquid ratio of 1：3.5 reached the maximum. The re- covery rate （n=-5） ranged from 97.71% to 100.67% and RSD was 1.56%, suggesting high stability. [Conclusion] A simple and efficient method for ultrasound-assisted ex- traction of polysaccharides from P. tabulaeformis seed shells was established in this study, which laid solid foundation for the development and utilization of abandoned pine nut shell resources.

Carbon,nitrogen and phosphorus stoichiometry in Pinus tabulaeformis forest ecosystems in warm temperate Shanxi Province,north China

Although carbon(C), nitrogen(N), and phosphorous(P) stoichiometric ratios are considered good indicators of nutrient excess/limitation and thus of ecosystem health, few reports have discussed the trends and the reciprocal effects of C:N:P stoichiometry in plant–litter–soil systems. The present study analyzed C:N:P ratios in four age groups of Chinese pine, Pinus tabulaeformis Carr., forests in Shanxi Province, China: plantation young forests(AY,<20 year-old); plantation middle-aged forests(AM, 21–30 year-old); natural young forests(NY,<30 year-old); and natural middle-aged forests(NM,31–50 year-old). The average C:N:P ratios calculated for tree, shrub, and herbaceous leaves, litter, and soil(0–100 cm) were generally higher in NY followed by NM,AM, and AY. C:N and C:P ratios were higher in litter than in leaves and soils, and reached higher values in the litter and leaves of young forests than in middle-aged forests;however, C:N and C:P ratios were higher in soils of middle-aged forests than in young forests. N:P ratios were higher in leaves than in litter and soils regardless of stand age; the consistent N:P<14 values found in all forests indicated N limitations. With plant leaves, C:P ratios were highest in trees, followed by herbs and shrubs, indicating a higher efficiency in tree leaf formation. C:N ratios decreased with increasing soil depth, whereas there was no trend for C:P and N:P ratios. C:N:P stoichiometry of forest foliage did not exhibit a consistent variation according to stand age. Research on the relationships between N:P, and P, N nutrient limits and the characteristics of vegetation nutrient adaptation need to be continued.

Anatomic Study of Female Sterility of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.

The anatomic research on the mutant clone of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. in the seed orchard in Xingcheng, Liaoning Province was carried out. The female cone of the mutant clone looked like normal, but its ovules degenerated in the early stage. This paper tries to find out the reason and time of ovule abortion. It seems that the ovule abortion is probably caused by female sterility because the microspores of this mutant clone were normal. Through the serial observations on the one-year-old macrosporangiates and the ovules of two-year-old female cones of mutant and normal clone, it is found that the reason of ovule abortion in mutant clone is the failure of the mitosis of free nuclei in the female gametophyte, and the time is about in the early April.

Content Changes of Several Endogenous Plant Hormones in Female-Sterile Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.

To determine the relationship between female sterility of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. and plant hormones, content changes of several endogenous plant hormones in a female-sterile clone and a normal clone were analyzed during the key period of female gametophyte abortion in mutant clones. The change of ABA content showed a similar pattern between normal and mutant clones, but the ABA content of the mutant clone was always much higher than that of the normal clone. In the normal clone, the IAA content decreased significantly at the early stage of the period and reached its minimum during the first ten days of April and stabilized thereafter. The endogenous ZR levels increased sharply at the early stages and reached a maximum in the middle of April, then decreased dramatically. The IAA and ZR contents of the mutant clone did not change perceptively through the entire period. We conclude that the high levels of ABA and the deficit of IAA and ZR may be the reasons of female gametophyte abortion in the female-sterile clones of P. tabulaeformis.

Responses of Pinus tabulaeformis tree rings to climatic metrics in Hasi Mountain

A tree-ring width chronology developed from Pinus tabulaeformis tree-rings of Hasi Mountain was employed to analyze responses of tree-ring to different climatic metrics.Correlation analyses between tree-ring chronology and precipitation and temperature suggest that tree growth is both limited by precipitation and temperature,and moisture is the principal limiting factor of tree-ring width.To find a suitable moisture index to be reconstructed,three moisture indices considering precipitation and evaporation even water balance are chosen to be analyzed.The results suggest that the PDSI is an appropriate index as predictor of tree-ring width and can be used to reconstruct in this area.

Climate response and radial growth of Pinus tabulaeformis at different altitudes in Qilian Mountains

In order to test whether the relationship between climate and the radial growth of trees is affected by altitude,altitude variability and time stability of climate-influenced radial growth of a dominant conifer,Chinese pine(Pinus tabulaeformis),in the eastern Qilian Mountains were studied against the background of climate change using dendrochronology.Results show that 1)droughts at the end of the growing season of last year and during the early and middle growing season of the current year were the main limiting factors for the radial growth of Chinese pine at two altitude gradients;this was determined by analyzing the relationship between tree-ring width chronologies and climate factors.2)The sensitivity of the radial growth of trees to climate change gradually decreased and was affected more by drought stress at a lower altitude.3)An unstable divergence response was observed in the radial growth at the two altitudes,in response to controlling climatic factors;this observation was based on the moving correlation analysis of growth/climate relationships,and the aggravation of drought stress caused by increasing temperature was the main reason.4)The growth rate of Chinese pine at the two altitudes increased at first and then decreased,as measured by basal area increment(BAI)modeling.Future temperature rises may have significant effects on mountain forest ecosystems in arid and semi-arid regions.Effective management and protection measures should be taken,according to the response patterns of trees to climate change at different altitude gradients.

Spatial patterns of Pinus tabulaeformis and Pinus massoniana forests in Qinling-Daba Mountains and the boundary of subtropical and warm temperate zones

The Qinling Mountains is not only the geographical boundary between North and South China,but also the boundary between subtropical and warm temperate zones.It plays an important role in the geo-ecological pattern of China.However,there is controversy about the specific location of this geographical boundary in academic community due to the complexity,transition and heterogeneity of the transitional zone,as well as the differences in the delimitation indicators and research purposes.To further reveal the characteristics of the North-South transitional zone and clarify the specific location of the geo-ecological boundary between North and South China,combined with SRTM topographic data,temperature and precipitation data,Pinus massoniana forest and Pinus tabulaeformis forest,which represent subtropical coniferous forest in South China and temperate coniferous forest in North China respectively,were chosen to analyze their spatial distributions in the Qinling-Daba Mountains and the climatic conditions at their boundary with the climatic indexes of annual precipitation,the coldest month(January) average temperature,the warmest month(July) average temperature and the annual average temperature.The results show that:(1) Pinus massoniana and Pinus tabulaeformis forests and the climate indicators of their boundary can be used as one of the vegetation-climate indexes for the delimitation of subtropical and warm temperate zones.The boundary between the subtropical coniferous forest(Pinus massoniana forest) and temperate coniferous forest(Pinus tabulaeformis forest) is located along the south slope of Funiu Mountain to the north edge of Hanzhong Basin(the south slope of Qinling Mountains) at an altitude of 1000–1200 m,where the climatic indictors are stable:the annual precipitation is about 750–1000 mm,the annual average temperature is about 12–14℃,the coldest monthly average temperature is 0–4℃,and the warmest monthly average temperature is about 22–26℃.(2) It can be more scientifically to delimitate the boundary of subtropical and warm temperate zones in China by comprehensively considering the vegetation-climate indicators.Additionally,the boundary between subtropical and warm temperate zones in Qinling-Daba Mountains should be a transitional zone consisting of the boundaries of coniferous forests,broad-leaved forests and shrubs between subtropical and warm temperate zones.The results provide a scientific basis for the selection of delimitation index of subtropical and warm temperate zones.

Changes in Germination and Physiological Characteristics of Seeds of Robinia pesudoacacia and Pinus tabulaeformis during Artificial Ageing

In order to study seed quality changes of main afforestation species under high temperature and high relative humidity, the deterioration mechanism of seeds of Robinia pesudoacacia and Pinus tabulaeformis from arid and semiarid areas of Northern China was elucidated in this study. The seeds were artificially aged for 2 and 6 d at the temperature of 45 oC and the relative humidity (RH) of 50%, 75% and 100% , respectively. The results showed that the germinability decreased and the cell membrane deteriorated with the artificial ageing. The decrease in germinability was well correlated with the decreased activities of dehydrogenase and α-amylase. After 6-day accelerated ageing, the seed germination and the activities of dehydrogenase and α-amylase decreased to a great extent for both species of seeds. The results suggest that seed deterioration during accelerated ageing is closely related to the increase of relative conductivity and the decrease of dehydrogenase and α-amylase activities.

Discussion on Pipe Model through Hydraulic Architecture of Pinus tabulaeformis Seedling

In the paper, the hydraulic architecture parameters of Pinus tabulaeformis seedlings (4 years old)were measured by improved flushing method under normal water condition in the green house and the basictheory of hydraulic architecture is used to discuss the rationality of the pipe model. The results of theexperiment and simulation show that the differences of hydraulic conductivity, specific conductivity and leafspecific conductivity is great in different stems and branches of Pinus tabulaeformis seedlings. The hydraulicconductivity of non-constriction area is higher than that of constriction area. The devotion of functionalxylem of stem to unit leaf growth is not a constant, namely, the Huber value is diverse. Even though the pipemodel has been accepted in some areas, its precondition is not perfect, and it is helpless in correctlyunderstanding the essence of water transport in seedlings from the prospective of water physiology.

Analysis of the Volatile Constituents of PinusTabulaeformis Carr. Pine Cones

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Study on the production effect and prevention index of the forthputting of sonsau cocuus sinensis chen on the Pinus tabulaeformis

The growth of Pinus tabulaeformis is influenced by the sonsau cocuus sinensis chen. When the insect density is more than 300-350 head/hundred beam conifer, sonsau cocuus sinensis chen occurred significantly influence the Pinus tabulaeformis＇ s growth. when the insect density reached 250-300 head/100 beam coniferous, sonsau cocuus sinensis chen significantly influence the accumulation of Pinus tabulaeformis volume. To determine the sonsau cocuus sinensis chen 2nd instar nymph theory control index was 220.5 / hundred beam needles has a guiding significance to the production practice.

Transformation and assessment of Chinese pine pure plantations for soil and water conservation in western Liaoning Province,P. R. China

Western Liaoning Province is characterized by huge areas of lowly-efficient Chinese pine (Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.) pure plantations. How to transform these plantations has become an increasingly significant management problem. In this study, the authors summarized the approaches, which are based on close-to-nature silvicultural system, to transform the pure pine plantations. Native broadleaved trees were planted in three methods: 1) after strip clearcutting, 2) after patch clearcutting; 3) on the open forestland and the forest edge. The transformation targets and the selection of tree species were expatiated in this paper. The key techniques and their application conditions for each method were analyzed and discussed. Through investigation and contrastive analysis, the assessment was made to the stands transformed by strip method. Results showed that the mixed stands at 16 years after transformation had an obvious layered structure and the species richness of understorey vegetation increased by 23.5%–52.9%. Soil enzyme activities of urease, phosphatase and sucrase increased by 6%–142%, 46%–99% and 31%–200%, respetively. Moreover, the transformed stands could effectively control the occurrence of pine caterpillars in plantations. Consequently the transformations enhanced the function of soil and water conservation. Keywords Pinus tabulaeformis - Monoculture - Transformation - Principles and methods - Assessment CLC number S791.254 - S727.22 Document code A Foundation item: This research was supported by grants from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX3-SW-418), National Natural Science Foundation of China (30100144), and National Key Technologies R & D Program of China (96-007-01-06).Biography: ZENG De-hui (1965-), male, Ph.D. professor in the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016, P. R. ChinaResponsible editor: Zhu Hong

Studying the mechanical properties of the soil-root interface using the pullout test method

It is important to quantify the effect of the root diameter, the embedment length of the root and load speed on the soil-root interface mechanical properties for studying the root anchorage. The soilroot interface mechanical properties can be obtained through the pullout force and root slippage curve(F-S curve). About 120 Pinus tabulaeformis single roots whose diameters ranged from 1 mm to 10 mm divided into 6 groups based on different root embedment length(50 mm, 100 mm and 150 mm) and different load velocity(10 mm·min^(-1), 50 mm·min^(-1), 100 mm·min^(-1) and 300 mm·min^(-1)) were investigated using the pullout method. This study aims to explore the mechanical properties of the soil-root interface in the real conditions using the pullout test method. The results showed two kinds of pullout test failure modes during the experimental process: breakage failure and pullout failure. The results showed that the roots were easier to be broken when the root diameter was smaller or the loading speed was larger. The relationship between the maximum anchorage force and root diameter was linear and the linearly dependent coefficient(R^2) was larger than 0.85. The anchorage force increased with the root embedment length. An increase of 10%^(-1)5% for the maximumanchorage force was found when load speed increased from 10 to 300 mm.min^(-1). The mean peak slippage of the root was from 13.81 to 35.79 mm when the load velocity varied from 10 to 300 mm.min^(-1). The study will be helpful for the design of slopes reinforced by vegetation and in predicting risk of uprooting of trees, and will have practical benefits for understanding the mechanism of landslide.

Response to climate change of different tree species and NDVI variation since 1923 in the middle arid region of Ningxia,China

The normalized difference vegetation index （NDVI） is used extensively to describe vegetation cover and ecological environ- ment change. The purpose of this study was to contrast the response of different tree species growing in the same habitat to climate change and retrieve past NDVI using tree-ring width data from tree cores collected from the transitional zone of Pinus tabulaeformis and Picea crassifolia in the Luoshan Mountains in the middle arid region of Ningxia. Correlation analysis indi- cated that radial growth ofP tabulaeJbrmis is more sensitive to precipitation and temperature change than that ofP crassifolia. Natural factors such as water availability and heat at this elevation are more suited to the growth ofP crassifolia, and are more advantageous to its renewal and succession. P. crassifolia is probably the better of the two species for protecting the forest ecosystem and conserving water in the Luoshan desertification area. Ring width of P. crassifolia correlates significantly with average NDVI for April-May （r =0.641, p 〈0.01）, and both of them are influenced positively by precipitation in April-May. The reconstructed NDVI for 1923-2007 shows the relatively low vegetation cover occurred in the 1920s-1930s, the 1960s-1970s, and the early 21 st century. The reconstructed NDVI better reflected the drought climate in the study area.

Tree ring analysis for determination of pollution history of Chengde City，north China

Air pollution history of sulphur and heavy metals since 1800 in Chengde City , north China,was studied by analyzing the concentrations of sulphur and heavy metals in growth rings of Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. Sulphur concentrations in the tree rings of 1910-1920, 1970-1980,and 1980-1990 have increased 1-2 , 3-5 and 10 times respectively as those in the tree ring of 1810-1820 (P<0. 05). This is ascribed to the result of urbanization, especially the appearance and aggravation of industrialization, in the city of Chengde since 1950s. Fe appeared to increase during 1920-1940, possibly due to the opening of Damiao Iron Mine by the Japanese in 1927; Mn increased throughout the whole history, from 4. 1 μg/g(1840- 1850) to 10. 4 μg/g (1980 1990,P <0. 05);Pb did not increase until 1980 but increased sharply during the last 10 years by 560%(P<0. 001). This is caused by the increased number of automobiles in the city. The contents of Cu,Zn, Ni have changed little. The concentrations of sulphur and heavy metals in the tree rings at the beginning of 1800s were the lowest and could be regarded as the background concentrations.We calculated that S, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni, and Zn in the tree rings have increased 10, 2.4,1.8,1.5,1.0 and 0. 8 times respectively during the past 190 years or so. The results showed that serious environmental pollution, especially air pollution of SO2,has occurred since 1949 when the People's Republic of China was founded.

The effects of fall fertilization on the growth of Chinese pine and Prince Rupprecht’s larch seedlings

Nutrient loading in the fall is a practical way to improve seedling quality and has been proven to increase nutrient accumulation,translocation and utilization.Few studies have reported on the variation in free amino acids as a result of fall fertilization,especially for diff erent seasonal needle habits(evergreen,deciduous).Therefore,a balanced two-factor factorial design with one fall fertilization treatment(10 mg N/seedling)and Chinese pine(Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.)and Prince Rupprecht’s larch(Larix principis-rupprechtii Mayr.)seedlings was used to examine growth response over one nursery season.Associated changes between fall fertilization,N storage and free amino acids were analyzed.Results showed that:(1)stem height,diameter and biomass for both species were similar between controls and fall fertilization treatments;(2)compared to controls,fall fertilization increased Chinese pine needle and root N by 17.7%and 36.9%,respectively.For Prince Rupprecht’s larch,fall fertilization resulted in 26.3%and 34.54%more N in stem and roots,respectively,than controls;(3)the three main amino acids in control and fertilization treatments in Prince Rupprecht’s larch seedlings were glutamine,arginine and proline,and in Chinese pine seedlings were glutamine,arginine andγ-amino butyric acid;(4)total amino acid contents were not signifi cantly increased by fall fertilization,but glutamine in Chinese pine and Prince Rupprecht’s larch increased by 64.2%and 35.2%,respectively.Aboveground biomass of Prince Rupprecht’s larch had higher proline contents than Chinese pine,which suggests that the stress resistance of the aboveground tissue may be higher for Prince Rupprecht’s larch.The results indicate that diff erent plant organs with various response are well adapted to nitrogen loading for nutrient storage in evergreen and deciduous conifer seedlings.

Relationship between effective solar radiation and sap flow process during an entire growing season in Western Mountains of Beijing

In order to explore the relationship between the time processes of solar radiation and sap flow, sap flow velocity （SFV） of Platycladus orientalis and Pinus tabulaeformis, effective solar radiation （ESR） and other environmental factors were synchronously monitored for one year in the Beijing Western Mountains by using a thermal dissipation probe （TDP） system and an automatic weather station. Results showed significant differences between changes in diurnal characteristics of ESR and sap flow in sunny days during three seasons. Starting times of sap flow occurred generally 1.5-3 hours later than those of solar radiation and there were small differences between Platycladus orientalis and Pinus tabulaeformis. But peak times and stopping times of sap flow varied considerably with large contrasts in ESR. The duration of sap flow showed clear differences among the seasons owing to the variable rhythms of climate factors in Beijing. Fluctuation amplitude in the duration of sap flow remained relatively stable during the autumn but changed greatly during spring and summer. Changes in diurnal sap flow velocity of both Platycladus orientalis and Pinus tabulaeformis were about 0-3 hours later than those of ESR but with the same configuration. The start of sap flow was mainly induced by the sudden intensification of ESR （sunrise effect）. Seasonal models of SFV indicated that a cubic equation had the best fit. It was more practical to simulate seasonal water consumption models of trees with ESR. In further investigations, these models should be optimized.