Container Tree Nursery Manuals

Volume 1: Nursery Planning, Development, and Management

USDA Forest Service, Agricultural Handbook 674. 1995

Thomas Landis, Richard Tinus, Stephen McDonald and James Barnett

[Volume 1] [Volume 2] [Volume 3] [Volume 4] [Volume 5] [Volume 6]

In this volume, the authors provide information and guidance on how to start a container tree nursery. How does one build a nursery from scratch and equip it? What are the processes involved in growing container seedlings? How does one manage the process and the people?

Table of Contents

Chapter 1-Initial Planning and Feasibility Assessment, Pages 3-26

• Introduction
• Sources of Planting Stock
• Evaluating the Present Nursery Market
• Estimating Product Costs
• Feasibility Assessment and Development Tactics
• Summary
• Literature Cited

Chapter 2-Site Selection, Pages 27-46

• Introduction
• Critical Site Selection Criteria
• Secondary Site Selection Criteria
• Evaluation of Alternative Sites
• Summary
• Literature Cited

Chapter 3-Nursery Design and Site Layout, Pages 47-98

• Introduction
• Types of Propagation Environments
• Selecting a Propagation Structure
• Designing a Propagation Environment
• Service Buildings
• Site Layout and Orientation
• Summary
• Literature Cited

Chapter 4-Environmental Controls and Seedling Production Equipment, Pages 99-152

• Introduction
• Environmental Controls and Instrumentation
• Benches and Supports for Containers
• Handling Equipment for Materials and Seedlings
• Seedling Production Equipment and Supplies
• Seedling Harvesting Equipment
• Summary
• Literature Cited

Chapter 5-Nursery Management, Pages 153-188

• Introduction
• Organization
• Personnel and Supervision
• Data Collection and Analysis
• Nursery Problem Solving
• Customer Relations
• Summary
• References

The manual is based on the best current knowledge on container tree nursery management and should be used as a general reference. Recommendations were made using the best information available at the time and are, therefore, subject to revision as more information becomes available. Much of the information in this manual was developed for western and southern conifer seedlings. Although the authors attempted to include information for species from other geographic areas, because of the wide variation in individual species responses, contain nursery managers will need to adapt these principles and procedures to their own nursery situation.