Effects of Torrefied Wood Chips and Vermicompost on Tree Growth and Weed Biomass: Implications for the Sustainable Management of Salt-Affected Reclaimed Lands

Ji Young An, Aung Aung, Jonathan Ogayon Hernandez, Jeong Min Seo, Si Ho Han and Byung Bae Park
Additional contact information
Ji Young An: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
Aung Aung: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
Jonathan Ogayon Hernandez: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
Jeong Min Seo: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
Si Ho Han: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
Byung Bae Park: Department of Environment and Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 5, 1-11

Abstract: A harsh environment, slow tree growth, nutrient deficiencies, and competition between trees and weeds can impede forest establishment on reclaimed lands. We investigated the effects of torrefied wood chips (TWC) and vermicompost (VC) soil amendments on the growth of Populus euramericana Guinier, weed biomass, and soil chemical properties on reclaimed land in Saemangeum. The 2.5 Mg ha −1 and 5.0 Mg ha −1 TWC had a similar effect on tree diameter and height growth (i.e., 2.5 = 5.0 > 0 TWC) and tended to have similar, higher effect on the total biomass of P. euramericana than the 0 Mg ha −1 . The 2.5 Mg ha −1 TWC resulted in a significantly larger root biomass than the 5.0 Mg ha −1 TWC. The weed biomass was significantly larger at the 2.7 Mg ha −1 VC (i.e., 730.5–810.5 g m −2 ) than the control (605.1–610.6 g m −2 ), but VC alone was not effective for tree growth and soil amelioration. The TWC had no effect on weed biomass. Thus, the TWC and VC had contrasting effects on tree growth and weed biomass when they were used as soil amendments on salt-affected reclaimed land. VC application may promote weed proliferation, whereas TWC application may potentially increase the growth of P. euramericana and control weed growth on reclaimed lands. Our results enhance the existing knowledge on tree and weed responses to torrefied wood chips and vermicompost amendments for the sustainable management of salt-affected reclaimed lands.

Keywords: afforestation; organic fertilizer; Populus euramericana; reclamation; soil amendments; weed control (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/11/5/725/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/11/5/725/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:11:y:2022:i:5:p:725-:d:813601

Access Statistics for this article

Land is currently edited by Ms. Carol Ma

More articles in Land from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().