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Effects of lichen, Sphagnum spp. and feather moss leachates on jack pine and black spruce seedling growth

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Abstract

Aim

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of leachates from three typical boreal forest ground layers on young tree growth and to explore the linkages between the chemical composition of the leachates, tree growth, the allocation between belowground and aboveground parts, and ectomycorrhizal colonization.

Methods

An original 6-month greenhouse experiment was set up to investigate (i) the effects of lichen (Cladonia spp.) and feather moss (Pleurozium schreberii [Brid.] Mitt.) leachates on jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) growth and (ii) the effects of feather moss and Sphagnum spp. leachates on black spruce (Picea mariana [Mill.] B.S.P.) growth.

Results

Belowground growth and root allocation was reduced by lichen leachates in 2-year-old pine seedlings, while the impact was significant on both below- and aboveground growth in 6-month-old pine seedlings. A substance having the same migration time as usnic acid was detected in the lichen leachates by high-performance liquid chromatography. Sphagnum spp. and feather moss leachates were not found to have any effect on black spruce seedling growth, despite a higher supply of dissolved inorganic N in the feather moss leachates compared to the leachates of Sphagnum spp. and the control.

Conclusions

These results demonstrate that ground layer composition plays a crucial role in shaping the plant community in boreal ecosystems by influencing the chemical composition of the soil solution. They suggest that chemical interference may be another mechanism by which lichens promote the self-perpetuation of open woodlands in the closed-crown boreal forest.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Nature et Technologies, the Chair in Sustainable Forest Management (NSERC-Université du Québec en Abitibi-Temiscamingue, UQAT-Université du Québec à Montréal) and an NSERC Collaborative Research and Development UQAT-Tembec-Chantiers Chibougamau grant. We thank D. Labrecque (Ministère des forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs du Québec) for seed and seedling supply; E. Pouliot, F. Pelletier, S. Dagnault, F. Michaud and J. Morissette for their help and advice in the greenhouse; H. Massicotte and S. Gauthier for their advice and support; J. Beguin for his support in statistical analyses; B. Gadet, L. Auger, S. Laflèche, R. Plusquellec and R. Julien for their help and advice in the field; S. Rousseau for soil analysis; and M. Cusson for his help and advice regarding HPLC analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Forest Research Institute, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Rouyn-Noranda, QC, J9X 5E4, Canada

    M. Pacé, N. J. Fenton & Y. Bergeron

  2. Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Laurentian Forestry Centre, Québec, QC, G1V 4C7, Canada

    M. Pacé & D. Paré

  3. VetAgro Sup, Université Clermont Auvergne, Campus agronomique, 89 Avenue de l’Europe, 63370, Lempdes, France

    M. Pacé

  4. Forest Research Centre, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3C 3P8, Canada

    Y. Bergeron

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  1. M. Pacé
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Correspondence to M. Pacé.

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Data access

The datasets generated during and analysed during the current study are available in the Data inventory of Natural Resources Canada, https://doi.org/10.23687/0f3008be-d40e-4179-a2cc-cfaccf3720a1

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Pacé, M., Paré, D., Fenton, N.J. et al. Effects of lichen, Sphagnum spp. and feather moss leachates on jack pine and black spruce seedling growth. Plant Soil 452, 441–455 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04587-0

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