Silviculture, plantation

The experiences in Paragominas, Para, Brazil mentioned in the previous section and experiments at EMBRAPA stations constitute isolated, pioneering examples of this type of silvicultural plantation in the Amazon. 

The State of Missouri produces 10 million ton per year (MMTPY) of agricultural residues, including 5.4 MMTPY from corn S). It also has a potential silvicultural plantation capability of producing, by current technology. an average of 7 dry ton equivalent (DTE) per year-acre of hybrid poplar. Availability of state land for development of silvicultural plantations is estimated to be 11 to 15 million acres for U.S. Forestry Service classification 1-IV sites (3). 

Such techniques are generally categorized under the term forest vegetation management and involve the use of machinery, fire, and or chemicals during silvicultural practices such as site preparation, weed control for plantation establishment, pine release from overtopping brush, timber stand improvement, etc. 

In the past, reforestation relied on the establishment of monospecific plantations, often with exotics (e.g.. Eucalyptus, Pinus, Acacia spp.) or a limited number of native tree taxa for which seeds are readily available and silvicultural practices have been developed (Knowles and Parrotta 1995). Also at Porto Trombetas, about 160 native forest species in mixed plantings were evaluated for their suitability for forest restoration on bauxite mine land over a 14-year period. Observations over 600 ha of plantings have yielded information on ecological characteristics of the species and cost-effective propagation methods. The plantations of exotics and natives are expected to catalyze natural forest succession in the understory and thus accelerate the rate at which species-rich native forest stands develop on severely degraded lands. 

Apart from the use of biogenic waste, the feedstock for biobased products is provided from agricultural production of crops or from harvesting of silvicultural products. In both cases, land is the primary resource. However, it has become obvious that land is not simply used continuously in more or less the same way, but that major changes in land use may be induced by a rising demand of biobased products, for example, the conversion of tropical forests into plantations for sugarcane, which alter the quality of land and the respective ecosystems. 

Smith, David M., et al. The Practice of Silviculture Applied Forest Ecology. 9th ed. New York John Wiley Sons, 1997. Plantation silviculture as well as broader forestry theories are covered in easy-to-understand language. 

The United States leads the world in the production and consumption of wood products. Therefore, silviculture is important to the future of industries that rely on healthy forests. Silviculture is being practiced throughout the globe, from single-species plantation silviculture in countries such as New Zealand, Brazil, and South Africa and in the southern United States to silviculture education in the historic forests of Europe, where the field of silviculture was born. In addition, forested wetlands and coasts in locations such as Australia and the United Kingdom are maintained through silviculture practices. Silviculturalists are necessary participants in meeting industrial objectives to eradicate insect pests and plant diseases that affect commercial forest lands. 

Otsamo, A. (2001). Forest plantations on Imperata grasslands in Indonesia -Establishment, silviculture and utilization potential. Helsinki University of Helsinki. 

Fox TR, Jokela EJ, Allen HL. 2007. The development of pine plantation silviculture in the southern United States. J Eor 105 337 47. 

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