Transplanting 



By hand - men working in pairs 180 hills per man per hour 



Machine - tractor; two -row 360 hills per man per hour 

 planter with six-man crew 

 (one on tractor, four on 

 planter, and one supplying 

 plants] 



Requirements on hectare basis 



For 0.91 by 0.91-meter spacing 12,000 hills per hectare or 



approximately 111 hills 

 per 1,000 sq ft 



Hand digging and planting 134 man-hours per hectare 



Machine digging from 63 man-hours per hectare 



nursery area and machine 

 planting 



These estimates may reflect higher productivity per man-hour than 

 would be realistic for large-scale operations. On the other hand, we feel 

 the digging operation could be speeded up appreciably with experience in 

 handling larger volumes, and by further development of harvesting 

 equipment . 



2 . Seeding . 



There are reports in the literature that S. alt erni flora produces 

 very few viable seed (Chapman, 1960; Larimer, 1968), and that seeds are 

 not as important as rhizomes in spreading this grass. However, early in 

 the studies, seedlings appeared to be the primary means of natural colo- 

 nization of S. alterniflora on freshly deposited sediments in the inter- 

 tidal zone in North Carolina estuaries (Fig. 11) . Seed germinate in 

 March and seedlings grow rapidly through the summer, producing flowers 

 and seed by the end of the growing season (October) . Seedlings are often 

 numerous in the debris of drift lines at high water and may also be present 

 at lower elevations, particularly in protected areas. 



If natural seeding is an important means of spreading S. alterniflora, 

 it seems logical that direct seeding would be a suitable method for 

 artificial propagation. This method would have substantial economic and 

 labor-saving advantages over transplanting. To use direct seeding, effi- 

 cient techniques for harvesting, processing, storing and planting seed 

 had to be developed. 



a. Seed Production . The amount and quality of seed available for 

 harvest varies from location to location and from year to year. As would 

 be expected, the most vigorous plants produce the best seed supply. Such 

 plants are generally found in areas recently colonized by S. alterniflora, 



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