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POPLAR SEEDS

Started by KDJ, April 14, 2006, 11:27:08 AM

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KDJ

NEXT TO MY OFFICE THERE IS A LARGE POPULAR TREE WHICH IN THE SPRING BEARS TONS OF THESE SEED LOOKING THINGS SO HERES THE QUESTION ON MY PERSONAL PROPERTY IF I WAS TO RAKE  UP THOSE SEEDS AND SPEAD THEM OUT ON THE DIRT I DUG OUT TO MAKE SOME PONDS WOULD THEY POTENIALLY GERMINATE INTO TREES ?

KDJ

SwampDonkey

poplar? as in aspen? Yes those will germinate on moist mineral soil. The fruit is a catkin which have capsules that open up with a bunch of cottony fluff, tiny, needle-point sized seed on the end of each strand of fluff. It's similar to willow.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

KDJ


Timburr

Another point....poplar seeds are only viable for a short period. About two weeks 'shelf-life'. So, as soon as they are ripe they need spreading.
Sense is not common

Pullinchips

I'm not sure of the askers location but around here a poplar is a yellow poplar what some may call a tulip poplar (leriodendron tuliperfera
) sp?  But yes they should germinate on mineral soil given the correct moisture.  They are an intollerant species so they should do very well in the open.

-Nate
Resident Forester
US Army Corps of Engineers: Savannah District

Clemson Forestry Grad 2004
MFR Clemson University 2006
Stihl MS 390

Ron Wenrich

Tulip poplar will stay viable in the soil for up to 8 years.  I don't think they are as intolerant as you may think.  They will germinate in intermediate thinnings.  Scarification helps quite a bit.
Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

Don P

Ron, can you describe the scarification required, I've had zero luck. I've heard they run about 2% viable seed  ???.

Ron Wenrich

Usually all it takes is enough to disturb the dirt a little.  Normal logging practices should be enough. 

As for viability, that seems awful low.  I've always been told that if you have had a good seed year within the last couple of years, you should have viable seeds in the ground.  Squirrels, mice, chipmunks and other rodents probably eat quite a few of them.
Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

SwampDonkey

You'll probably find it will vary depending on local climate, and success of pollination. I've read that in some regions fertility is a problem. That viability/germination % sounds like our basswood.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

Phorester


RON, it's my understanding that yellow poplar germination rates are indeed pretty low. But this species makes up for that with tremendous seed falls about every year in a pure stand.  Probably tens of thousands of them per acre.  And as you say, they are viable for 7-8 years, and need just a spot of bare dirt to germinate.

Pullinchips

Riles i am finished with dendro. 4 years or so ago.  In conversation you would never know that i could not spell it, and i always have books to look it up if i need a truly corect spelling. ;)

I said intollerant because they will donimnate clearcuts and road sides and pwer line right of ways here in the moutains.  But i agree that they will germinate under a canopy especially one with some sort or recent harvest to the canopy.

-nate
Resident Forester
US Army Corps of Engineers: Savannah District

Clemson Forestry Grad 2004
MFR Clemson University 2006
Stihl MS 390

SwampDonkey

I am glad to see that Nate can accept a little ribbing from the gang. You just never know how someone is going to react to a situation. With that in mind I think it's wise for folks to be careful with what they write about a fellow member. The wrong person could take it as an insult to their intelligence and be turned away from the forum. Heaven knows I've made a few spelling mistakes to and got terminology mixed up from time to time. I don't mind being corrected because it signals me to look it up and try and never forget my errors. ;)

That being said. Even trembling aspen will sucker from roots in a undisturbed stand. I see it all the time. It doesn't develop very far and often time dies after a couple or 3 seasons if the snow shoe hare don't browse it down to the ground. However, I don't recall seeing it germinate under canopy unless perhaps it's on a blowdown root ball.

Perhaps another note here is the fact that everyone has their own experiences when dealing with tree silvics and so on and it's hard sometimes to apply a blanket prescription or description about the development of a tree or stand that suits all instances. An example in another thread about beech comes to mind.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

Don P

Well, I had to look up Nate's town, sounded familiar. I've got a few trees in that neck of the woods, or a few hundred thousand  :D. We planted in that area in the early-mid 90's, Liberty Hill, Great Falls, Camden. I remember some of the prettiest smokey quartz crystals coming out of one of those sites, keep your eyes peeled  ;D

Riles

Ooo Kay, censured by an admin, guess my sense of humor doesn't go over like it used to.

In my defense, Nate used the sp? with his spelling, and I'm guessing his dendro classes were a lot like mine are now. And I used the  :D smiley face.

Can't be the educational background, we both got our degrees from the same school.

Sorry Nate, didn't mean to insult anybody.

I'll shut up now.
Knowledge is good -- Faber College

Don P

Twern't no big thing, I learned to italicize my misspellings   ;) ;D

Pullinchips

So Don yall got land all up and down 97,  that one twisted curvy road from the river to the dam at great falls.  I gues you dont work for Bowater since they sold all the land. Where are u from Don.

-Nate
Resident Forester
US Army Corps of Engineers: Savannah District

Clemson Forestry Grad 2004
MFR Clemson University 2006
Stihl MS 390

Don P

I'm up I-77 just over the VA border and about an hour west down a twisty, turny ...  :D. My folks are near Seneca.
"My trees", I was just a grunt on a hoedad crew through there, back when I could do that all day. Time flies,12 or 15 years, those trees ought to be looking good by now. We had one guy on the crew who had whatever sense someone can have to find crystals. He would drop his pack and burrow down, and usually came up with a crystal, or in one case a whole flat plate of stone covered with them. My whole voodoo in that regard, is that I stepped over one and he picked it up :D.


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