Red spruce bud mortality at Whiteface Mountain, New York

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Abstract
Terminal bud mortality for shoots produced between 1982 and 1989 was measured for midcanopy branches of mature red spruce trees (Picea rubens Sargent) at two elevations on Whiteface Mountain, New York, U.S.A. Average terminal bud mortality ranged from 15 to 45% in different years, and there was no evidence for a biotic cause of bud mortality. Between branches on different trees, there was a negative correlation between frequency of terminal bud mortality for shoots produced between 1987 and 1989 and the percent change in current-year foliage biomass between 1987 and 1990. Branches with a high frequency of terminal bud mortality also tended to have a high proportion (> 50%) of 1990 shoots developed on adventitious branchlets. In late November 1990, terminal buds from most trees at 710–1120 m elevation were susceptible to freezing injury between −31 and −38 °C when cooled at 4 °C/h under laboratory conditions. Typical winter minimum temperatures at 700–1100 m elevation on Whiteface Mountain are within this range. In a recent controlled study of red spruce seedlings, high foliar nitrogen was associated with an increased risk of freezing injury to terminal buds in autumn. We found that red spruce on Whiteface Mountain had higher foliar nitrogen levels compared with red spruce at a much lower elevation in Maine. Based on these results, we advocate further research on the relationship between foliar nitrogen and bud freezing sensitivity in high elevation red spruce. Key words: Picea rubens, red spruce, bud mortality, freezing injury, nitrogen, red spruce decline.

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