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Black Plastic "Mulch" for Pine Planting

At the time of planting loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) in the Georgia Piedmont, 4-foot squares of black plastic (polyethylene) with 3-inch holes in the center, through which seedlings protruded, were placed on the surface of the ground. A simple twice-replicated randomized block design, with twenty-five 'seedlings in each plot, was used to test the effectiveness of this "mulch" for improving survival and stimulating early growth. The soil is a severely eroded Cecil clay, abandoned for row cropping several years prior to planting, and densely covered with herbs and grass. The original B horizon is the present surface soil.


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Author(s): Laurence C. Walker

Publication: Tree Planters' Notes - Issue 45 (1961)