This paper was published in: Deal, R.L. and C.A. Harrington, eds. 2006. Red alder—a state of knowledge. General Technical Report PNW-GTR-669. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 150 p.
This study was designed to help elucidate what differences, if any, exist within the species Alnus rubra Bong., grown naturally at various elevations and locations throughout the Pacific Northwest and coastal Alaska. Increasing importance of the species, including both economic and silviculture values, prompted the investigation into the early growth...
Red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) seedlings were grown at three initial spacings (8 x 8 cm, 4 x 4 cm, and 2 x 2 cm) and on two soil types
(forest soil and river loam) under greenhouse and lath house conditions for 525 growing days. There were seven harvest dates,...
The biomass and the composition of 15 stands of red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) on river bottom sites in western Oregon was measured during August and early September, 1969. These stands ranged in age from two to 64 years. Biomass was found to vary from 134 k/ha (kilograms per hectare)...
Inoculation trials were set up in fumigated nursery beds for red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) seedling production. Frankia inoculum was applied in eight treatments: control, nodule suspension, and three levels of cell suspension (strain ArI5) applied with and without a peat carrier. Seedlings were evaluated at midseason and lifting. The...
Published March 1986. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Revised November 1995. Reprinted April 1996. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) is recognized as an important source of nitrogen to
ecosystems that it inhabits. I examined N dynamics within alder trees, alder leaf litter, and the soil beneath alder leaf litter. ¹⁵Nitrogen, a stable isotope of N, was used as a tracer to follow the movement...
Red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) seedlings fertilized with NH4NO3 or inoculated with a pure culture Fran/cia and inoculated with live or dead spores of the mycoirhizal fungus Alpova diplophloeus (Zeller & Dodge) Trappe & Smith were grown in a growth
chamber or in a greenhouse for six months Frankia inoculation...
The Oregon Forest Products Laboratory was asked in July 1953 by the Oregon Alder and Maple Company, Willamina, to work on the problem of dark stain which developed at sticker crossings in air-drying red alder (Alnus rubra, Bong.) during the summer months.
Previous experience at the Oregon Alder and Maple...
"Because forest managers and geneticists need basic information about natural variations in populations of red alder, we studied conelet and seed characteristics, as well as early growth, of this species along an elevational transect in the Coast Range of Oregon."--P. [1].
Nodulated roots of young red alder trees and soil samples were collected from a 5 year old clearcut on Mary's Peak, Oregon. Frankia was isolated from root nodules, andactinomycetes from nodules, roots, and soil. A total of 229 pure culture actinomycete isolates were recovered: 131 colonies from root surfaces, 52...
Three Nelder plots of 3-year-old red alder (Alnus rubra Bong) were used for this study at the Cascade Head Experimental Forest, Oregon in the growing season of 1988 at an elevation of 330 meters. Each Nelder plot
represented a range of densities from 238 to 101,219 trees per hectare. The...
Two case studies of 5 ecosystems were used to examine the nitrogen fixation rate of red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.), varnishleaf (Ceanothus velutinus var. laevigatus (Hook.) T. & G.), deerbrush (C. i ntegerrimus H. & A.), and snowbrush (C. velutinus var. velutinus Dougl. Ex Hook). The first case study assayed...
Stem growth, stem form development, and the dynamics of crown recession in young red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) were studied by analyzing annual growth rings of stems and
knots, annual height increments, projected crown areas, and branch diameters. Forty-one
trees were sampled from three plantation spacing studies, representing ages 1...
Two-stage sulfite pulping conditions were determined which
produced a high-yield high-hemicellulose pulp from red alder (Alnus
rubra Bong.). Those cooks with a bisulfite first-stage and an alkaline
second-stage produced pulps with the highest hemicellulose
content and the highest strength properties.
The major hemicellulose in red alder is 0-acetyl-(4-0-
methylglucurono)xylan. Removal...
Many landowners have hardwood trees that appear to be of marketable size. Some of these landowners may want to replace the hardwoods with conifers immediately.
Allometric equations are useful tools for predicting tree biomass when direct measurements are impractical. Any factor affecting plant growth can be a significant variable in allometric equations. Density and species proportion are spatial variables that influence tree growth and should be considered when developing allometric equations. This consideration is especially...
The juvenile development of Douglas-fir, red alder and snowbrush
associations was investigated in western Oregon. The relationship
between Douglas-fir and red alder was studied and compared
in the Coast, Willamette Valley and Cascade regions. Snowbrush-
Douglas-fir stands were sampled in the western Cascades. Alder-
Douglas-fir relationships were studied on clearcuts...
The increased interest in red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) management instigated research in growth and yield and stand development of red alder in pure and mixed red alder/Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) stands. This study had the goa1s of evaluating the accuracy of the currently existing growth and yield tools...
Our diagram is intended to provide general guidance in density management of red alder. The management zone defines a reasonable compromise between individual-tree and stand growth and mortality. Factors considered in its formation include desired tree size at harvest, growth rate, and yield per acre. Social and legal constraints, as...
Chemical and microbial analyses were made at four seasonal intervals on soil horizons under red alder, conifers, and mixed
alder-conifers at the Cascade Head Experimental Forest, established in 1937 by the U. S. Forest Service near Otis, Oregon.
Microbial analyses showed that although plate counts of molds and bacteria fluctuated...
In western Oregon, hardwood trees occupy 20% of the
timberland but account for less than 1% of the timber
harvest. Information about how to manage them effectively
is limited.
The objective of this study was to examine: 1)
effect of thinning on tree growth, plant moisture stress,
and crown cover...
Red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) is a fast-growing pioneer species that colonizes disturbed forest sites west of the Cascade Mountains in the Pacific Northwest.
Streambottoms, toe slopes, and mass movement of surface soils have historically provided the scarification and soil moisture necessary for successful regeneration of red
alder. During the...
The objectives of this research were to isolate and
determine the molecular structures of certain polyphenols
in Douglas-fir and red alder barks. The compounds of
interest in Douglas-fir were the lignans which are
eventually incorporated into the outer bark phlobaphenes.
Phlobaphenes are the red colored, alcohol soluble, water
insoluble phenolic...
This study was to investigate effects of growth rate
and cambial age on properties of wood from two increasingly
used hardwood species, red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) and
Oregon white oak (Quercus garryana Dougl.), for better
understanding factors affecting wood quality in hardwoods.
Thirty 7-year-old trees grown at widely varying...
Dihydroquercetin [(2,3-trans)-3,3',4',5,7-pentahydroxyflavanonol]
was shown to be the precursor to the phenolic
stains that often develop in Douglas-fir [Pseudotsuga
menziesii (Mirb.) Franco] sapwood. Douglas-fir sapwood was
extracted with methanol and the methanol solubles were
fractionated by solvent partition, thin-layer chromatography,
silica-gel column chromatography, and Sephadex gelpermeation
chromatography. Tyrosinase, a commercially
available...
Competitive interactions between Douglas-fir seedlings (Pseudotsuga menziesii), and seedlings of a nitrogen-fixing hardwood
associate, red alder (Alnus rubra), were investigated in an addition series experiment. The primary objective of the research was to identify and quantify key processes underlying intra- and interspecific competitive interactions of Douglas-fir and red alder seedlings....
When Douglas-fir and red alder grow in mixture, interactions between the two species can be competitive, facilitative, or a combination of both over time. A number of factors have recently led to increased interest in managing these two species together for commercial production, and ongoing investigations are yielding important information...
The amount and quality of competition among
individuals in developing plant communities is an important factor determining community structure, composition and development. In perennial plant communities, this competition is reflected by shifts in carbon allocation among plant parts and can result in long-term structural differences between neighboring individuals. This study...
Moisture content and shrinkage were determined on specimens equilibrated at two conditions for equilibrium moisture content (EMC) at room temperature after the specimens had been dried under a variety of constant temperatures with constant EMC's. Moisture content at room temperature equilibrium was less for specimens dried at high temperature than...
Red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) is a common associate and a potentially severe competitor of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) in the Oregon Coast Range. However, because it fixes nitrogen and increases rates of soil nutrient cycling, red alder has the potential to benefit Douglas-fir. The objective of...
This study characterized the nature and dynamics of interference in mixed red alder
(Alnus rubra Bong.)/Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) stands in the Pacific Northwest, USA. Long-term spatial and tree measurements from the Cascade Head (CH) and H.J. Andrews (HJA) Experimental Forests in western Oregon and Delezene Creek (DC), Washington...
Described as one of the most destructive pathogens of agricultural crops and forest trees, Phytophthora is a genus of microorganisms containing over 100 known species. Phytophthora alni has caused collar and root disease in alders throughout Europe and a form of the species has recently been isolated in North America....
The structuring of canopy arthropod communities was reviewed and investigated in relation to tree species diversity and its component factors, interspersion of different species and density of each tree species. Fifteen treatments of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and red alder (Alnus rubra) (various densities and proportions of each) were randomly assigned...
The objective of this monograph is to illustrate how the elements of an investment analysis are brought together to form a basis for sound decisions on new plant investments. These elements include financial analysis, raw material analysis, and market analysis.
The financial analysis consists of determining the initial investment required...
It has been observed that edging flitches into lumber
unnecessarily reduces the yield of cut stock. This research
investigated the yield of cut stock from unedged red alder
(Alnus rubra) flitches, and compared it to yields attained
from boards subjected to a variety of edging strategies:
conventional, light-edging, actual, severe...
The effect of solution nitrogen (N) and phosphorus
(P) concentrations on biomass production and N₂ fixation
of red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) seedlings grown in
perlite-filled pots in a climate controlled growth room
were studied. Nodulated seedlings were subjected to 12
different nutrient solution combinations of nitrogen and
phosphorus and...
The role of disturbance in seed germination and first-year survival of red alder (Alnus rubra) was studied over two growing seasons at four sites representing a climatic gradient within the central Coast Range of Oregon. Disturbance affected red alder seed
germination and seedling establishment by altering the temperature and moisture...
This study was initiated to make some preliminary
evaluations of the effects of red alder (Alnus rubra,
Bong.) leaf fall on stream water quality, particularly
water color. Laboratory tests were also conducted
to better understand the effects of leaf loading, duration
of leaf leaching, and type of leaching on
changes...
The authors varied the number of red alder retained with 300 Douglas-fir per acre on a high-quality site in coastal Oregon. Alder densities of 0, 20, 40, and 80 per acre were tested. The authors' fifth treatment eliminated nitrogen-fixing alder, but substantial nitrogen fertilizer. Treatment 6 had neither thinning nor...
Bioassays using red alder and snowbrush plants grown in soils collected
from a clearcut, a young Douglas-fir plantation, and an old-growth stand were
conducted. Sites are located at the Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon. In
the first bioassays, more alder than snowbrush plants survived and nodulated.
Of the plants that survived,...
It doesn’t come easy! Does any of your woodland
property look like the alder stand at the left? If your goal
is to convert this kind of ground to a productive conifer
forest, you should know it can be a challenging task.
You’ll have to do something with all that...
This study examines the long-term role of interference on stand development of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) and red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) planted mixtures in the Central Cascades of Oregon, USA. The two species are common associates in naturally regenerated and planted conifer stands in the Pacific Northwest. Due...
Understanding how N availability influences base cation stores is critical for long-term ecosystem sustainability. Indices of nitrogen (N) availability and the distribution of nutrients in plant biomass, soil, and soil water were examined across ten young, unpolluted Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) stands in the Oregon Coast Range spanning a three-fold soil...
"The information in this paper on litterfall in stands of red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) was developed from a series of studies carried out to determine the pattern and quantities of litterfall of various
tree species grown at the University of Washington Charles Lathrop Pack Forest in western Washington. This...