Conifer Silviculture

8/2/2019 Conifer Silviculture

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Silviculture in conifer forest of Bhutan.


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Science and art of cultivating forest crops (caring, tending,harvesting) based on the study of the life history and generalcharact erist ics of forest t rees in combinat ion w it hspecif ic sit e and social fact ors.

Silviculture ?

MANAGEMENT OF FOREST CROPS


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Conif er forest :Fir Forest

Hemlock dominated forest

Spruce forest dominated forest

Blue pine dominated forest

For the purpose of management, each for est t ype and each for estsite has to be looked at individually


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Fir Forest ; Managem ent

Fir is a shade tolerant species, major competitors areR. hodgsonii, Y. microphylla, A.racemosa and Betula On sites with R. hodgsonii, select groups with presenceof a sapling bank.On sites with Yushania or Arundinaria - reduction

of bamboo canopy through controlled grazing will helpregeneration. Make sure seeds are available soon after felling.


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Restrict the size of openings below0.1 ha to avoid dominance of bamboos and other competitors.


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Create oval-shaped openings perpendicular to theslope for partial shading by the surrounding trees.Direct sunlight dries up the seedbed (e.g. moss pads)

Proper felling direction, avoid damage to sapling andpoles as these will form future stand.


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Retain coarse woody debris for protectionfrom the animals. The debris also serves asimportant seed bed once rotten.

Over sized trees should be retained to serveas mother trees, wildlife habitat (e.g. RedPanda and source of woody debris.

Follow management prescription strictly.


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Hemlock Forest ; Management :Highly shade tolerant, regenerates best in small groups(indirect sunlight). Opening size needs to be adjustedaccording to site conditions.

On moist sites, without severe competition,max. group opening of 0.35 ha. On drier siteswith bamboo and herbaceouscompetition, create group size of 0.1 to 0.25 ha.


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Avoid damage to the existing groups of regenerationduring felling, directional felling is a must in this case.

Hemlock strongly depends on moisture in thesubstrate, retain woody coarse debris (2 3m 3)and few over sized trees per opening tomaximize partial shading


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Spruce Forest ; Management :

Spruce is a intermediate shade intolerant species. Creatinglarge opening would be an option. Need to see thecompetitors. Bamboos, Sambucus and Aconogonom areserious competitors

Sites without competitors, maximum openingsize of 0.35 ha. can be created.Incase of understory competitors, restrict the openingsize below 0.25 ha.While felling avoid damage to the remaining stand.Incase of damage, remove it immediately toavoid bark beetle.Do not create opening more than the prescribed sizeBigger opening attracts animals.Follow sanitation prescription strictly


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Blue pine Forest ; Management :

Forms large stands of pure forests. Highly shade intolerant.

For mature stand (80 -90 years), create opening up to0.35 ha. But make sure enough seed trees are left in the

surrounding (40% of surround trees blue pine).Single tree selection is an option for local use.In young stand, carry out thinning starting from crownclosure.Moderate thinning (removal of 25% vol.) should be

carried out at least once in 10 years.Thinning should not only concentrate on malformed anddamage trees. Elite trees should be favored by removingimmediate competitors.

Aim at creating well structured stand, avoid creating large

gaps in the canopy in young stands to avoid snowdamage.


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I n General

Follow management plan seriously.

Maintain prescribed distance between

openings and cable lines.

Avoid cable line radiating from one landing,

danger of interlocking and large opening.

Create parallel lines

Do not harvest in the intercorridor areasuntil the next scheduled operation.


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Tashi Delek

Documents

Conifer Silviculture