Stability of the root plates of coniferous trees planted on surface water gley soils

ABSTRACT

This paper presents details of a field study on the dynamic loading of mature coniferous tree stems planted on saturated mineral soils. The trees examined were planted in a narrow shallow layer of soil which had been deposited on the ground surface as a result of ploughing a furrow, The root plates are extremely shallow and the main roots tend to grow along the deposited aerated layer of soil. The unsymmetrical radial distribution of the main roots and the shallow rrot plates can render the trees unstable. In windly conditions the soil in the root plates can fail and as a result the trees can be blown over. This phenomenon is common in Ireland and in the United Kingdom and results in economic loss (AU)