. Research for tomorrow's forests : 1983 research accomplishments. --. Forests and forestry Research United States. Resource Economics Legumes Stimulate Growth of Southern Pines Nitrogen fertilization is rapidly gaining a following in southern forestry, and its use in pine plantations on poor soils might become routine if the costs could be reduced. In agriculture, supplies of soil nitrogen for succeeding crops are often increased by growing a crop of legumes—peanuts or clover or lespe- deza. Scientists at the Southeastern Station hope they can adapt this prac- tice to forestry. In the South,
. Research for tomorrow's forests : 1983 research accomplishments. --. Forests and forestry Research United States. Resource Economics Legumes Stimulate Growth of Southern Pines Nitrogen fertilization is rapidly gaining a following in southern forestry, and its use in pine plantations on poor soils might become routine if the costs could be reduced. In agriculture, supplies of soil nitrogen for succeeding crops are often increased by growing a crop of legumes—peanuts or clover or lespe- deza. Scientists at the Southeastern Station hope they can adapt this prac- tice to forestry. In the South, legumes must be able to survive hot, dry sum- mers and fit into management schemes for southern pine plantations. More than 50 species of highly promis- ing nitrogen-fixing plants were tested in Virginia and the Carolinas. Of these, Sericea lespedeza, a perennial, survived well and competed successfully with native weed species—a requirement for legumes planted on forest sites. The species thrived with the application of phosphorus. Subterranean clover, an annual, reseeded itself and competed well with weeds for 3 or more years under favorable conditions. When the crowns of planted pines come together at age 5 to 10 in a typical plantation, legumes die. If all goes as expected, however, the nitrogen they have fixed in the soil early in the life of the plantation is slowly taken up by the trees and stimulates their growth for many Legumes, such as this Sericea lespedeza plant, take nitrogen from the air and turn it into compounds that stimulate pines to grow for years after the legumes have died. 36. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original United States. Forest Service. [Washington, D. C. ?] : USDA, Forest Service
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