Is fall burning preferable to spring burning for promoting growth characteristics favorable for mechanical harvesting in Vaccinium myrtilloides Michaux?
Sp. Vander Kloet et J. Pither, Is fall burning preferable to spring burning for promoting growth characteristics favorable for mechanical harvesting in Vaccinium myrtilloides Michaux?, HORTSCIENCE, 35(4), 2000, pp. 608-610
Periodic prescribed burns of lowbush blueberry barrens pr omote high yield,
aid in weed control, and reduce fungal and insect damage. Whether such pre
scribed fires should be set in the autumn or the spring has been a matter o
f some dispute. Previous research on Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton suggeste
d some advantages to autumnal burning, but few data have been collected on
V. myrtilloides Michaux, To evaluate whether time of burning affected plant
qualities most favorable for mechanical harvesting, such as stem length an
d lateral branching, a series of experiments was conducted on V. myrtilloid
es. Differences in stem length, numbers of lateral branches, and bads per s
tem were nonsignificant among plants burned in fall vs. those burned in spr
ing. Pn three of four experiments, however, fall burns resulted in the grow
th of fewer lateral branches. Furthermore, among the four experiments, grow
th responses were more uniform following fall than following spring burns.
We therefore suggest that, where possible, fall burns should be prescribed
for blueberry plants that will be mechanically harvested.