Effects of Lalrise Vita. Bacillus velezensis on Pinus banksiana and Picea mariana

Abstract

Jack pine, Pinus banksisana, and black spruce, Picea mariana, are the top two species harvested and planted in the boreal forest of Canada. Sustainable forest management incorporates greenhouses and artificial fertilizers that are used to produce high-quality seedlings to regenerate the forest. The purpose of this thesis was to determine if the growth-promoting rhizobacteria, Bacillus velezensis, would increase the height, root collar, shoot, and root mass of these seedlings, and optimize artificial fertilizers uses in greenhouse production. Both tree species had three treatments that were compared to each other to determine the growth differences. Treatment one was comprised of the controls, treatment two had three applications of the microbe, and treatment three had only two applications of the microbe. Each treatment had four replicate trays randomly placed on the greenhouse bench. A one-way ANOVA was run for each variable being measured with a statistical significance P-value <0.05 to determine if the addition of Bacillus velezensis had significant differences from the control. The results showed that there were no significant differences in the height, root collar, and mass of jack pine or black spruce seedlings inoculated with the seedlings, and therefore, would not be a good alternative to artificial fertilizers in greenhouse production. The Lakehead greenhouse, where this trial took place, had other trials with a variety of plants along both sides of the bench. These plants were greater in height and some carried diseases which could have affected the results. However, jack pine and black spruce are tree species that are adapted to succeed well in nutrient-poor and harsher conditions. They also evolved to be slow-growing species in the forest succession process. These two mechanisms may contribute to why the Lalrise Vita did not significantly increase the growth of the jack pine and black spruce over a five-month period.