VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Alnus rugosa | Speckled Alder 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
Because of its coarse, shrubby growth-habit the wood of speckled alder
has no commercial value.  It is used locally for fuel [27,49].  Mattson
and Winsaur [40] evaluated the potential for commercially harvesting
speckled alder for fuel and found that due to the lack of an efficient
way to handle small stems, commercial harvest of speckled alder is not
cost-effective.  Speckled alder supports symbiotic nitrogen-fixing
bacteria in root nodules.  The yields of timber-producing trees in the
genera Fraxinus, Liquidamber, Liriodendron, Picea, Pinus, Platanus,
Populus, and Pseudotsuga can be enhanced when these trees are grown
in association with speckled alder [54].




IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Moose, muskrats, beavers, cottontail rabbits, and snow-shoe hares feed
on the twigs and foliage of speckled alder [25].  In most cases its food
value is thought to be minor.  Speckled alder is considered
low-preference white-tailed deer browse [25] and is avoided by moose in
the Lake Superior region [1,5,14,20], although reportedly important to
Fortune Bay moose in Newfoundland [10].  Songbirds, including redpolls
and goldfinches, feed on speckled alder seeds.  Woodcock and grouse eat
the buds and catkins as well [25].  In Wisconsin, the shade from
streamside alder thickets inhibited the growth of aquatic macrophytes,
which reduced the standing crop of stream invertebrates, and in turn
reducing wild brook-trout production [30].


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
The structural features of speckled alder thickets provide hiding cover
to moose and white-tailed deer, and drumming sites to woodcock and
grouse [25].  Beavers build dams and lodges with speckled alder.



VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Speckled alder's early seral nature, rapid release, and acceptance of a
wide variety of soils (described in Site Characteristics slot) make it a
good choice for disturbed site rehabilitation.  Its affinity for wet
sites makes it valuable for watershed management, providing stream-bank
stability and erosion control [25,49,54].

Seed and seedling stock are seldom available commercially.  Seed are
easily shaken from dried conelets collected during September and
October.  In the nursery, fresh seed should be broadcast and drilled
into washed sand or a washed sand-humus mixture.  Seedbeds should be
mulched for overwinter protection, although mulch should be removed
prior to germination in the spring.  Spring planting requires
stratification in moist sand or vermiculite for 60 to 90 days.  Seedbeds
should be kept moist and shaded until late in the summer.  Two- or
three-year-old seedlings should be used for field planting.  Site
preparation requires sod layer removal to prevent herbaceous competition
[25].

The presence of nitrogen-fixing, symbiotic bacteria in its root nodules
makes speckled alder valuable for soil conditioning.  Average annual
nitrogen accretion in an alder-dominated ecosystem in Connecticut was
74.6 pounds per acre (85 kg/ha), comparable to that of the leguminous
crops used in agriculture [59].  Various alder species have been used to
reclaim mining spoils in Great Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, and
the United States; and have improved soil fertility in the U.S.S.R.,
Italy, Denmark, Japan, and Taiwan [25,54].  Planting trials in
copper-mine tailings suggest that speckled alder may not be a good
choice for the rehabilitation of this particular waste [61].  Managers
should recognize that the nitrogen-enhancing effects of speckled alder
are local and resricted to plants in the immediate vicinity [40].



OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Managers wishing to cultivate speckled alder for wildlife cover should
note the following recommendations:

        (1)  Cutting schemes should be designed to provide patches of
             various age classes.
        (2)  Overmature stands should be opened by clear-cutting.
        (3)  Spring and winter cutting produces the most rapid sprout
             growth.
        (4)  Thinning is best done in July or August.
        (5)  Speckled alder may out-compete native conifers.

Conifer competition can be reduced by controlling alder with basal
stump or foliage sprays of 2-4-5 T, and 2-4-D.  Proper guidelines for
the use of these chemicals must be followed [32,45].  Alder eradication
through burning is unlikely [9].

Speckled alder is sensitive to prolonged flooding above the root crown
[43,36] and may be sensitive to acid precipitation [12].

Related categories for Species: Alnus rugosa | Speckled Alder