• A recent study in Thailand finds that raising native tree seedlings inside repurposed bottle crates improves performance compared to standard methods in community-run nurseries.
  • Saplings grown in bottle crates had better root formation and superior growth when planted out in a deforested site, thanks to better air circulation for the roots.
  • Crating the saplings also saved on labor costs, which more than offset the cost of purchasing the crates.
  • Adoption of the new method could improve the quality of saplings grown in community nurseries, a benefit for reforestation projects where sapling survival is key to success.

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  • Jim East@slrpnk.netOPM
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    2 months ago

    Is this really a new discovery? People I know have been using old plastic crates in the nursery to air-prune the roots for as long as I can remember. If I had known that people elsewhere hadn’t figured it out, I would have posted about it sooner…