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Plastic net stockings placed over seedlings in
the nursery will protect them from mammalian browsing after they've
been planted in the field.
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Dr Alison Miller has been working on a two-year project, funded by
the TCFA (Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement), on
“Manipulating seedling palatability for non-lethal browsing
management”. This project has now come to an end. The
first phase of the project determined that the most effective
treatments for reducing browsing damage were the chemical repellent
(Sentree) and stockings (see
article in Biobuzz 5).
Based on these results, the second phase of the project further
tested these most promising treatments on six operational
demonstration trials (see
article in Biobuzz 6). This
work found that the combination of both stockings and repellent was
the most effective, and resulted in a significant delay in browsing
and a reduction in severity compared with control seedlings. These
results have important and immediate implications for tree
growers. Stockings and/or repellent can be applied to
seedlings in the nursery, prior to planting out, to significantly
delay the onset of browsing and reduce its severity. In areas
with low browsing intensity, this could be enough in itself; in
other areas the browsing delay could be enough to allow alternative
controls to be implemented. The long-term effects of stockings on
seedling growth and form is an area needing further
investigation.
Biobuzz issue eight, March 2009
