Phenotypic correlations between juvenile-mature wood density and growth in black spruce.

摘要

Phenotypic correlations between juvenile and mature wood density and growth were examined based on increment core samples from two plantations, a provenance test and a commercial plantation, of black spruce (Picea mariana) in Quebec. The ring density components were significantly correlated with their respective ring width components: earlywood and ring densities were negatively correlated with ring and earlywood widths, respectively, while ring and latewood densities were positively correlated with latewood width. These hold true in both juvenile and mature wood. However, the correlation between ring width and ring density decreased with increasing age. This suggests that the correlation between wood density and growth rate tends to lessen as thetree ages. For each character, the correlation between juvenile and mature wood was significant but moderate. Thus, juvenile wood characters were only indicative of mature wood ones. On the other hand, trees with 12 growth rings from the pith were goodpredictors of wood density and radial growth of the whole tree. Individual growth rings from the juvenile-mature wood transition zone can be used to predict to some extent the wood density of either mature wood or the whole tree.