NEC103: Sugar Maple Tree Improvement
(Multistate Research Coordinating Committee and Information Exchange Group)
Status: Inactive/Terminating
NEC103: Sugar Maple Tree Improvement
Duration: 07/01/1997 to 09/30/2002
Administrative Advisor(s):
NIFA Reps:
Non-Technical Summary
Statement of Issues and Justification
Sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh) is the most important forest tree species in the northeastern floristic province of North America, comprising 40% of all tree biomass. As such, its importance to ecosystem integrity and health, to the maple syrup, timber products, and tourism industries, and to the well-being of thousands of rural landowners is unmatched by any other tree species. The value of the maple syrup industry to the producer alone is over $10 million in NYS, $15 million In Vermont, $3 million in PA, and another $14 million for the states of Connecticut, Main, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Wisconsin combined. Much of this income is generated at a time of year ( early spring) when opportunities for income generation by farmers and other rural landowners are limited.
Fuel required for converting maple sap to syrup can account for over 40% of the total annual production costs, and is directly related to the sugar concentration of the sap being processed. A tree improvement program initiated by the US Forest Service in the 1950's identified high sap sugar concentration maples, and subsequent work at the Cornell Uihlein Sugar Maple Field Station improved means for propagation of these high sugar trees and identified additional superior genotypes. A continuation of this work to identify potential high performing trees, and to propagate and establish superior maple stock, is especially urgent over the next five years, as abandoned fields reverting to forests throughout the Northeast are creating widespread opportunities for landowners to establish maple plantations.
Objectives
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Determine the genetic and physiological basis for high sap sugar concentration, and use this information to develop means for rapid screening of superior trees. a) Establish a protocol for efficient isolation of maple genomic DNA from leaf tissue for RAPD fingerprinting, and determine whether particular RAPD fragments are strongly correlated with high or low sap sucrose levels. b) Determine the relationship of rates of carbon fixation to sap sugar concentration and sap production. c) Develop a rapid and easily applied method for screening superior genetic line using a stable carbon isotope technique
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Refine methods for propagating superior sugar maple stock and ensuring its viability when outplanted
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Develop cultural practices for establishing superior sugar maple under field conditions in cooperation with public and private landowners in the Northeast.
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Determine susceptibility of superior stock to insect and environmental stressors. a) Determine the relationship of pear thrips and other defoliator attack to sap quality, phenology, and foliar chemistry in outplanted superior stock. b)Determine the relationships between soil (including acidified soils), soil solution, root, sap, tree wood, and foliar chemistry in outplanted superior stock.
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Procedures and Activities
Expected Outcomes and Impacts
- the development of genetic and physiological markers for identification of trees with high sap sugar concentration
- the development of means of propagating and successfully growing superior maple trees under different cultural conditions at sites throughout the Northeast
- knowledge about ways to avert and control potential insect and environment stressors of improved trees. Together this information will provide income opportunities for thousands of landowners in the northeastern US and Canada, for whom sugar maple provides a significant portion of their livelihood.
- Finally, we anticipate that additional researchers from northeastern and north central states and adjacent Canadian provinces will become cooperators in this research to develop an improved sugar maple tree.
Projected Participation
View Appendix E: ParticipationEducational Plan
Organization/Governance
Literature Cited