Effect of biofuel waste, urea, deer browsing, and vegetation control on Pinus banksiana seedling growth on a dry upland site in central Canada

Abstract

Ash from biofuels and nitrogen fertilizer are increasingly being used as soil amendments. While this can increase tree growth, it can also increase mammalian grazing and competition with vegetation. We applied moderate amounts of ash (1.5 t·ha−1·year−1) and urea (74 kg N·ha−1·year−1) in each of 2 years to a well-drained site in southeastern Manitoba, planted with Pinus banksiana Lamb. Subplots received deer browsing and (or) vegetation control. The ash resulted in an increase in pH in the upper 15 cm of mineral soil from ∼5.7 to 6.6, and the urea created short-term spikes in soil inorganic nitrogen (NH4 and NO3) levels. Urea combined with ash significantly increased seedling relative growth rates in the first 2 years, with seedlings being largest with urea, with or without ash. However, by the fourth year, seedling growth and size did not differ between the amendments. Urea application increased browsing damage to 91%, but only when vegetation was mowed. Browsing guards resulted in seedlings having 1.6 times greater shoot mass by the end of the fourth growing season. These results suggest that on sandy soils in the dry region of central Canada, P. banksiana may get little benefit from ash applications.