Determination of seedling growth stage of bare rooted and containerized forest tree seedling in Eskişehir forest nursery

In this study, bare rooted and the containerized forest tree seedlings; aged 1+0 and 2+0 and originated from different areas which are also grown under the same ecological conditions in Eskişehir Forest Nursery were used, the periods of growth stage was determined by dry-weight matter changes method. Without using any special treatment on the seedlings, under normal growth conditions, initial growth, fast growth, hardening, lignification and real dormancy periods were determined within a year. With the determination of growth stage according to nursery conditions and species types, it was aimed to find out the right time for using suitable fertilizers and irrigation regimes, root cutting, thinning, and etc. As a result, it was determined that 2+0 years seedling of Anatolian Black Pine from Ahırdağı and Tota provenance and Taurus Cedar from Kapıdağ provenance were suitable for semi-arid region afforestation. Moreover, most suitable provenance to Anatolian Black Pine for humid region is Sarıçiçek. As a result of this study it was found that; the 1+0 years seedlings from Ahırdağı provenance have grown 7,93 cm height and 1,03 mm root collar diameter on the field but the same kind of seedlings which were grown up in the greenhouse conditions got 23,42 cm height and 4,4 mm root collar diameter. In addition to these, the effects of root cutting and thinning on seedling quality were also determined.Key words: Growth stage, Black pine, Cedar, Seedlings, Lignification, Nursery