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U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA Forest Service Southern Regional Extension Forestry Southern Regional Extension Forestry

01: Importance to reforestation

High-quality seedlings are those that meet defined levels of performance (survival and growth) on a particular forest site. Improved evaluation of seedling quality will permit better predictions of performance and also improve production and handling practices. Such evaluations can be divided into two categories: tests of material attributes (morphological and physiological traits that are directly measurable) and of performance attributes (performance of whole seedlings when subjected to specified tests). The principles, procedures, and predictive abilities of 10 tests of such attributes will be reviewed in these proceedings. Nurseries and reforestation specialists use the various tests of seedling quality for different purposes. Seedling evaluations need to be refined so that they predict not only growth as well as survival but also performance of specific seedling lots on particular sites.


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Author(s): Mary L. Duryea

Publication: Evaluating Seedling Quality: Principles, Procedures, and Predictive Abilities of Major Tests