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The importance of increasing the adaptability of deconstructed forests to climate change scenarios and preserving forest vegetation in the forest steppe zone of Romania requires the promotion of thermophilic and xerophytic species. Of these, pubescent oak (Quercus pubescens) is one of the most suitable species for combating desertification. The necessity to have seeds with superior genetic characteristics, derived from trees adapted to the environmental conditions of the Romanian forest steppe, outlines the general objective of research represented by establishing the first clonal seed orchard for pubescent oak in Romania. The present paper describes the preliminary activities undertaken for the establishment of the seed orchard, starting with the selection of valuable populations, continuing with the identification of plus trees donors of grafted branches, the cuttings actions necessary to stimulate shoots in their crowns and ending with the first action of graft branches sampling. In the forest-steppe area of Bărăgan and Dobrogea (region of south-eastern Romania), 30 plus trees were selected, which will provide grafted branches. They are vigorous, have higher than average growth traits (Dbh, trees’ height), vertical stems, straight, cylindrical, and well developed globular crowns. In order to obtain vigorous grafts, the plus trees were covered with cuttings to stimulate sprouting in the crowns (three stages of intensity: weak, moderate, strong), works carried out one year before the sampling of the graft branches. The production of viable grafts has been closely correlated with the increasing intensity of stimulation cuttings. The sampling of graft branches complied with the condition of being carried out in a period with positive air temperatures, at least 48 hours before the collecting time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the purpose of establishing a seed orchard of gray oak (Quercus pedunculiflora) which will provide acorns for the whole area of the Dobrogea forest steppe (region of south-eastern Romania), in this paper are presented the most important aspects of obtaining grafted plants stage, whose accomplishment involves carrying out the following steps: » choosing trees donors of grafts, stage which was previously discussed (Budeanu et al. 2014), » performing cuttings for stimulating growth of annual branches in tree crowns of grafts donors, » sampling of graft branches, » vegetative multiplication by grafting, » monitoring of grafted plants. Another working hypothesis which will be discussed in this material is represented by performing of phenological observations regarding flowering period of tree graft donors, which will allow, for the first time in Romania, the arrangement of grafted plants in the future seeds orchard to be carried out in strong correlation with flowering period of the clones: the clones with flowering in the same period will be placed beside. To obtain viable graft branches one year before sampling branches are necessary to performed moderate - high intensity interventions in the crowns of grafts donors. Between the interventions intensity and the number of graft branches sampled were resulted a positive and very significant correlation. Gray oak vegetative multiplication, in a controlled atmosphere, through improved copulation method, it was resulted in a 31.5% rate of success of grafting at the end of the first growing season. In the Murfatlar seed orchard were identified donor clones of gray oak var. atrichoclados that are flowering in the same period, thus will be assured the genetic gain in the 2nd seed orchard generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]