How does alder spread?

How does alder spread?

When ready they open and disperse their seeds on the currents of wind and water. The clever seeds, or nutlets, are flat and waxy and have two corky wings containing air bubbles, which allows them to float and to be carried away by water.

Where can alder be found?

Alders are commonly found near streams, rivers, and wetlands.

What are alders in Alaska?

The alders, of which Alaska has three species (Alnus crispa, A. rubra,and A. ten uifolia), are large shrubs sometimes reaching tree size. (Viereck) Their stems are not erect and rigid, but tend to bend under the weight of the winter snow cover–an alder thicket becomes a maze of stems at various angles.

Where does speckled alder grow?

Speckled alder grows on streambanks, lakeshores, and wet roadsides and in riparian forests, swamps and swamp edges, bogs, fens, bog or fen borders, margins of wet fields, and swales [120,127]. It often forms dense thickets [120,255].

Is alder an invasive species?

Invasive impacts Black alder has been known to establish single species colonies as a result of its fast growth rate and high rate of seed production, out-competing native trees and other plants. Black alder is also known to change wetland ecosystems in a number of ways.

Are alder trees fast growing?

Alders can grow fast as long as they are happy in the location they have been placed in and receive enough water to sustain them, though they will never grow to excessive size so will be fine in some even moderately sized gardens. Why grow alder in your garden? Alder is a spectacularly useful tree.

Is alder good firewood?

Alder is good for wood stoves, cooking or smoking. It is our least dense wood. Conifer is our most popular firewood and burns for a good duration. Madrone is our densest firewood and is very long lasting.

What is the difference between alder and birch?

Alder has yellow-green, racquet-shaped leaves with indented tips and finely serrated edges. They are alternately arranged on the branches. Birch has oval or elliptical leaves with pointed tips and toothed margins. They are greenish-yellow on the upper side, and light-green on the bottom side.

How do I get rid of alders?

The most expedient method is to just cut them off with a chainsaw. They seldom resprout. Stumps will be virtually gone in 3 years. Unless you have a use for all of that maple, I would get rid of them, to make space and leave lots of alder.

What zone do alder trees grow?

For example, speckled alder trees can colonize cut-over northern conifer swamps. To start growing speckled alders in the landscape, you’ll need wet soil. You’ll also need to live in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 9, where the alders thrive.

Is speckled alder shade tolerant?

Best grown in medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Can tolerate erosion and wet soils. Fast growing, multi-stemmed tree that likes it best along bedsides of lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams.

What is a Sitka alder tree?

Sitka alder is an early successional deciduous shrub or, sometimes, a small tree. Plants often have multiple stems and may form dense thickets. Occasionally, plants may grow up to 12 m at lower elevations, but the species usually occurs at middle to high elevations. Sitka alder tolerates some shading as well as high water tables.

Can Sitka alder be used as a nurse crop?

Because of its nitrogen-fixing capacity and its positive impact on leaf litter quality and soil fertility, Sitka alder can be used as a nurse crop for conifers (Haeussler and Coates 1986). Sitka alder is distributed in the north and central Pacific and Cordilleran regions, from central Alaska and the Yukon Territory to north California and Montana.

What is the habitat of alder trees in Montana?

Montana wetland and riparian indicator plant [151] thinleaf alder riparian habitat types at low to midelevations (3,760-6,700 feet (1,150-2,040 m)); occupy alluvial terraces, streambanks, and floodplains of moderate- to high-gradient streams. Typically, thinleaf alder is dense and plant species diversity is high [151].

What is the difference between speckled alder and thinleaf alder?

Speckled alder and thinleaf alder intergrade where their ranges overlap, mostly in Saskatchewan and Manitoba [106,120,127,231]. In this review, gray alderrefers to information that is general to the species. Speckled alderrefers to A. i. subsp. rugosa, and thinleaf alderrefers to A. i. subsp. tenuifolia.