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What Is Silviculture?: Subjects

This document provides an introduction to silviculture. It defines silviculture as the art and science of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values. The document outlines the purpose of silviculture as making forests permanently useful to humanity by controlling stand growth and structure through treatments. Finally, it discusses some key aspects of silviculture including stand establishment, intermediate operations, harvesting methods and regeneration systems.

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43 views7 pages

What Is Silviculture?: Subjects

This document provides an introduction to silviculture. It defines silviculture as the art and science of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values. The document outlines the purpose of silviculture as making forests permanently useful to humanity by controlling stand growth and structure through treatments. Finally, it discusses some key aspects of silviculture including stand establishment, intermediate operations, harvesting methods and regeneration systems.

Uploaded by

alazarina
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 7

Subjects:

1. Introduction
2. Class Expectations
3. Syllabus
4. Grading
5. Outside Reading
6. Labs

What is Silviculture?

What is Silviculture?
• Principles vs Practices

• Theory & Practice of controlling forest


establishment, composition and growth -
--- (Smith)

• Cultural treatments involved in


controlling establishment, growth,
composition & quality of forest stands for
one or more objectives ---- timber,
wildlife, recreation, watershed,
aesthetics, soil stabilization, etc.

1
What is Silviculture?
• The art of producing and tending
forest stands by applying
scientifically acquired knowledge to
control forest establishment, growth,
quality and health

• Applying different treatments to make


forests more productive or useful to
landowners and society on a sustainable
basis

What is Silviculture?
• Integrating biologic and economic
concepts to devise and carryout
treatments most appropriate in
satisfying the objectives of an owner

• Silviculture is growing trees!

• Application of ecological principles to


grow a forest ..... the biological basis for
manipulating a forest to produce benefits
to the landowner

Purpose
• Make forests permanent useful to
mankind

• Create & maintain a forest that will


best fulfill the objectives of the
landowner

• To improve or modify on nature or


to restore ecosystems ---
controlling growth and structure of
stands. How do we do this ???

2
Purpose
• Why necessary? ---- time & money -----
Avg. rate of production of US forests is 39
cubic feet/acre/yr ---- includes poorly-
stocked, degraded and slow producers

• Contrast with a southern pine plantation -


--- 200 to 250 ft3/acre/yr

• Through silviculture we could easily


double the rate of production to 75
ft3/acre/yr

Purpose
• How accomplished?

1. Control of stand composition


2. Control of stand density
3. Intensive cultural practices

Silviculture and Other Aspects


of Resource Management
• Silviculture & its relation to biology,
harvesting, management &
economics

• What you do in one area will


influence all other areas of
management

• Relationship of Forests to Stands


to Individual trees

3
Management Terminology

• Stands --- biological unit,


contiguous group of trees
sufficiently uniform in species
composition, age classes &
conditions to be a homogeneous &
distinguishable unit. Any silvicultural
treatment is likely to affect all trees
in the same manner

Management Terminology

• Forest --- management unit, a


collection of stands. From a
sustainability standpoint, we
are talking about the forest and
not the area the size of a stand
--- whole stands may be used
in obtaining a sustained yield
cut from the forest

Economics
• Main reason why you cannot make a
silvicultural decision based solely on biological
grounds

• Economics will (should) influence your


silvicultural decision. Will often limit or
determine them.

• Long term investments ---- risk?

• Usually several silvicultural operations will


accomplish the objectives, but economics of
that operation will probably determine which
one is used

4
In Silviculture

We are managing:

• Sunlight
• Stand Density and Spacing
• Utilizing Site Productivity

Silviculture

• Is not cookbook
• Infinite variation
• Must be able to think & assess
situation and be able to improvise,
apply the basic knowledge that I
hope you obtain from this course to
more complicated situations in the
field

Silviculture

• More than fiber production


• In many cases, other uses may be the
more valuable product of the forest
• We can not under-emphasize any
product of the forest on social or
economic grounds
• Total resource management, not just
vegetation management

5
Subject Matter of Silviculture

1. Stand Establishment
2. Intermediate Operations
3. Harvest Cutting
4. Protection

Silvicultural Systems and


Methods of Regeneration

• System vs Method
• Regeneration vs Reproduction

• Classification of Regeneration
Methods ----- origin, form, and
size/geometry of cut

Silvicultural Systems and


Methods of Regeneration
• Even-aged system
Clearcut
Seed Tree
Shelterwood
• Two-aged system
• Uneven-aged system
Group Selection
Single-Tree Selection

6
Silvicultural Systems and
Methods of Regeneration
• What determines even-aged vs
uneven-form?

1. Height Differences (crown class)


2. Competition
3. Diameter Distributions (graphs)
4. Geometry & Size of Cut

Choosing a Regeneration
Method
• With most species, we have choices
as to the method that we use

• Factors
1. Desires of the owner
2. Biological Considerations
3. Economics ***

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