| Native Nothofagus dombeyi growth rates excel in secondary forests and in some plantations, and the species has good timber quality. However, few have reported on the effects of fertilization on N. dombeyi plantations. This is a key matter since fertilization has environmental and financial costs, and therefore its use to increase growth and survival for production or restoration must be carefully evaluated. Here we evaluated the early effects of fertilization (control and three levels) using several performance variables (leaf properties, growth, plant quality, and survival) in a N. dombeyi plantation at a low elevation in the Coastal Range of south-central Chile, which has a rainy temperate climate and medium fertility soils. Four years after plantation... |
