• Brissette, John C.
  USDA Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station, Pineville, LA
  
• Barnett, James P.
  USDA Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station, Pineville, LA
  

Field performance of bare-root stock is affected by seedling root orientation and planting depth, and the effects are most apparent when water stress occurs after outplanting. The effects of planting straight or J-rooted loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) seedlings at three depths relative to the root collar, with well-watered or water-deficient conditions imposed in greenhouse water stressed beds over a 12-week period, are described in this paper. The results indicated that shallow-planting, regardless of root orientation, and J-rooting can cause mortality. Only a small percentage of the surviving shallow-planted, water-stressed seedlings exhibited any shoot growth, and their average growth was less than that  of the straight-planted seedlings. It was concluded that trees planted with their roots orientated will outperform J-rooted stock.