Innovation Anthology #651:
It’s not easy being a tender aspen seedling slated for forest reclamation in northeastern Alberta.
It’s a battle for survival against extreme weather and other environmental insults.
Forest reclamation scientist Dr. Simon Landhausser sets the scene.
DR SIMON LANDHAUSSER: It’s a tough life. It’s kind of as if you would plant something in the middle of a farmer’s field so that the plant is exposed to the whole environment of wind and rain and cold and abrasion from snow and all these kinds of things. So it’s a tough life out there on these open areas.
Some of Dr. Landhausser’s research is focused on how to make better seedlings to enhance their chances of survival.
DR SIMON LANDHAUSSER: Well its almost like going on a trip. You gotta make sure you have everything in your suitcase. And for plants to have in their suitcase, they need to have nutrients, carbohydrates, so food, in order to function on a site where they don’t get all the resources right away because they don’t have a big root system yet. They use whatever they have in their tissues to start growing and to start developing new tissues and hopefully succeed.
To date, Alberta tree nurseries have produced over a million enhanced aspen seedlings based on Dr. Landhausser’s research.
Thanks today to SYNCRUDE
FOR INNOVATION ANTHOLOGY
I’M CHERYL CROUCHER
Guest
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Sponsor
Syncrude
Program Date: 2014-12-02