Description
This Manual is the third in a series of readable, well illustrated handbooks about propagating and planting tropical trees.
The five Manuals have been designed to provide clear and concise information on how to select, grow, plant and care for tropical trees, in both moist and drier parts of the tropics. They are intended for anyone interested in growing trees, from the small-holder to the large-scale grower, from local communities to national governments and from school and further education teachers to research and extension staff of agricultural and forestry departments. They provide illustrated, step-by-step instructions, practical guidelines and an outline of the thought processes behind them.
Manual 3 deals with the all-important stage of the tree nursery. Growing good planting stock that is likely to establish successfully in the field depends on:
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choosing a suitable site for the tree nursery
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having some understanding of how tropical trees grow
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selecting appropriate genetic origins of seeds and cuttings
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producing young trees with favourable root systems
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recognising the important relationships between trees and micro-organisms
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building a well-trained nursery team
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looking after the young trees carefully
The procedures described in this series of Manuals may be used with the majority of woody species to provide diverse seedling or clonal mixtures. They include techniques for ‘domestication’, so that superior planting stock can increasingly be used. This can help to capture more rapidly the great potential for multiple usefulness offered by tropical trees, while also encouraging conservation of their genetic resources.
Contents
Introduction
Why grow tropical trees?
Do I need a tree nursery?
Overcoming problems when growing trees
What makes a good tree for planting?
‘Domestication’ of trees
Containers and potting mixes
Growing trees for research
General principles of tree growth
Introduction: how trees grow
Expanding root systems
Growing stems, leaves and branches
Maintaining the water balance
Absorbing, making and moving substances
Experiments with young trees in pots
Planning a tree nursery
Introduction: choosing the site
Temporary or permanent?
Size, shape and layout
Nursery soils
Supplies of water and soil mixes
Protecting the whole nursery
Setting it up
Micro-organisms, nutrients and tree growth
Introduction: close associations with roots
Mycorrhizas: fungi plus tree roots
Nitrogen-fixing root nodules
Wastes, composts and fertilisers
Size of planting stock
Protecting growing trees
Introduction: care and checks
Avoiding various kinds of stress
Potting up and transplanting into beds
Watering nursery trees
Weeding
Dealing with diseases and pests
Fences, hedges and gates
Preparing young trees for planting
Special conditions for research trees
Running a tree nursery
Introduction: training and maintenance
Tools and materials
The nursery team
Useful contacts
Planning ahead, labels and records
Assessing pot experiments
Check-lists, sources and records
Check-list for nursery trees not growing well
Some information about nurseries
Some information on tree growth
Estimating quantities
Record sheet for seeds, cuttings and plants collected for received
Record sheet for batches of plants grown
Record sheet for checks made during nursery propagation
Record sheets for measurements and analyses of variance
Assessment by scoring
Analysing the results of experiments
Index