Radial growth of trees from northeastern to southeastern Labrador.

Prior to the Mount Allison Dendrochronology (MAD Lab) sampling in the summer of 2007, little tree ring work was conducted in Labrador, with the most studies coming from the eastern coast and from one species. Given this, the information is still quite spotty, as the cost of transportation and limited tree availability has limited a systematic sampling across the landscape. Over this backdrop, the MAD Lab initiated a more region-wide study breaking Labrador into three zones (east, west, and north). Within each zone a consistent grid was used that will link the entire region together, while at the same time highlight the major zones of homogenous tree cover currently found. This talk will illustrate some of the early results of areas in southeastern Labrador, while at the same time discuss some of the difficulties in sampling the more northern locations. Three species will be discussed (white spruce (Picea glauca), black spruce (Picea mariana) and balsam fir (Abies balsamea)). Preliminary results from chronologies of black spruce and balsam fir developed from the southeastern region will be compared to the other chronologies in adjacent areas in Labrador, highlighting some of the similarities and differences in growing conditions that are already being seen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]