To ensure a sustainable product for the future, we evaluate our loblolly pine families to understand their full potential. Through research and development, we ensure that this improvement will continue for decades to come.
Seed Orchard Optimization
The mass production of control-pollinated seed has taken seed orchard management to a whole new level. Optimization of the design and management of these orchards is essential to ensure sufficient quantities of the best genetics are made available to forest landowners. Our research portfolio includes seed orchard design, nutrition and disease management, evaluation of pollination tools and procedures, and environmental effects of operational practices.
Genomic Applications
Genomic selection methods may fundamentally change the way tree breeding is done. Understanding our families on a molecular level will allow for faster breeding, higher gains, QA/QC initiatives, and savings in both time and investment. Our Cooperative maintains populations that allow us to demonstrate the potential of genomic selection tools that are available. Support from Cooperative members and a proposal funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture have yielded a SNP Array that allows a high throughput method to evaluate families, making this technology more applicable to the forest industry.
Fusiform rust infection on the stem of a loblolly pine.
Disease resistance- Fusiform Rust
Fusiform rust is the most economically important disease of loblolly pine in the southern US. The disease is caused by the fungus Cronartium quercuum f. sp. fusiforme and manifests on stems and branch limbs as swollen galls. The evaluation of fusiform rust disease resistance is performed in field tests or through controlled inoculations in a greenhouse environment. Basic research incorporating molecular technologies complement breeding programs by providing insight into pathogen-plant pathosystems. A key focus area is the identification of genes conferring disease resistance and the development of molecular screening technologies used to assay future breeding populations, thereby expediting the selection process.
Current NIFA funding to identify molecular markers in loblolly pine (2019-2024, USDA-NIFA Award #: 2019-67013-29169).
Longleaf Pine Orchard
Longleaf Pine Improvement
For longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) restoration to be successful, reliable and dependable sources of adapted seedlings are required. Given that 80% of longleaf restoration will occur on private lands, there are a myriad of objectives for these plantations (e.g. wildlife habitat, timber, pine straw, carbon sequestration, aesthetics, ecosystem diversity), and landowners need options for the seedlings they plant. The wide range of the restoration region also requires a diverse genetic pool for seedling adaptability, especially for cold- and drought-hardiness. We have partnered up with The Longleaf Alliance to conserve and improve this valuable resource for generations to come.
Project Information: https://www.nfwf.org/grants/grants-library/profile?egid=78739
Wood properties measurements being taken in a research trial.
Wood Properties
Loblolly pine has a long list of product destinations, from the lumber products that build our communities to the fiber products used in both construction and everyday household goods. Knowing the wood characteristics of our families can help bolster these industries and ensure they provide a quality product. We evaluate our trees’ wood properties in order to help classify their value for these product lines. With research tools that measure wood density (shown here) and wood stiffness, we can effectively estimate wood performance values in families within our population.
Sustainable Forests- Climate Change and Bioenergy Initiatives
Loblolly pine is the most widely planted commercial forest species in the southern US. Understanding the adaptability of our genetic material at the physiological and molecular level is crucial to ensuring the resilience of forests in a changing environment. The abundance of loblolly pine also provides the opportunity to develop an economically and environmentally sustainable source of sawlogs, pulpwood, and biomass for mills. Our research aims to demonstrate implementable 'real-world' solutions that effectively address the economic and environmental barriers that currently limit sustainable and reliable wood production, while reducing deployment risks, lowering feedstock and conversion costs, and maximizing societal gains.
Project information and the agencies that have sponsored our research in this area: NCDA Bioenergy, USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture- PINEMAP Project, USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture- Intergrate Biomass Supply System