Abstract

The objective of this study was to find easily measured morphological parameters that illustrate climatic adaptation, and to study the variation within and between provenances as well as to find the main climatic reason for adaptation. Various methods were tried on two- and three-year-old nursery stock which consisted of provenances from all over Sweden (lat. 55 °-68 °N). To obtain a true correlation with long term survival under field conditions the methods were also applied to older trees in a provenance field test. Up to 96 per cent of the variation in survival after ten years in the field could be accounted for by the regression of the data obtained with the following methods: bark colour of terminal shoot (Aug.) , Needle development (July), Shoot development (June), Dry matter percentage of needles (Oct.), Lignification of xylem (Scpt.). Budsetting showed a significant but different pattern of variation from thc above-mentioned traits. Growth rhythm was related to latitude and altitude of seed source but not in the same way as suggested by previous studies. Variation in annual rhytllm among seedlings within a provenance was considerable, and the height growth of the single secdling was correlated with the rhythm.