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Home → Publications → Tree Planters' Notes → Tree Planters' Notes Volume 46, Number 4 (1995) → Field Testing a Modified Duster for Supplemental Mass Pollination in Douglas-fir Seed Orchards

Field Testing a Modified Duster for Supplemental Mass Pollination in Douglas-fir Seed Orchards

An agricultural Solex duster (Model 100) was modified for supplemental mass pollination (SMP) of Douglas-fir— Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco— seed orchard trees. In performance trials, isolated megastrobili (female cone Homers) were exposed briefly to the outside environment while the tractor-mounted duster blew pollen on the 7.6- to 10.7-m-tall clones. Average filled seed efficiency (FSE) obtained was 34 and 48% after 1 and 2 SMP's, respectively. This FSE difference was significant at α = 0.02. The numbers of filled seeds per cone, from cones averaging 57 round seeds, were 19 and 27 after 1 and 2 SMP's, respectively. When 2 SMP's were done, FSE values were generally similar from the ground to 8.5 m, which indicated that the duster uniformly distributed the pollen throughout the crown. Tree Planters' Notes 46(4):118-125; 1995.


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Author(s): Donald L. Copes, D. O'Rourke, William K. Randall

Publication: Tree Planters' Notes - Volume 46, Number 4 (1995)

Section: Technical Update

Volume: 46

Number: 4