Will intensity of forest regeneration measures improve volume production and economy?

Abstract

The prevailing regeneration methods in Scandinavian countries are artificial regeneration methods including measures such as site preparation and planting. These measures are considered to be a part of a more intensive forest management and require an initial investment. The use of artificial regeneration measures can, however, increase the growth of a forest stand. In this study, the purpose was to investigate if such an investment is profitable by comparing three different intensity levels (low, medium and high) applied during the regeneration phase, with aspect on both economics (LEV, land expectation value) and growth (MAI, mean annual increment) after a full rotation. The forest stands used in this study were regenerated between 1984 and 1988 and the future growth of the stands was simulated using Heureka StandWise. It was clear that naturally regenerated (low intensity) stands resulted in better economics than stands actively regenerated (medium and high intensity). However, actively regenerated stands resulted in both higher volume production and growth, and the uncertainty of regeneration success was reduced using artificial regeneration measures. These factors are important when considering both the ongoing mitigation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and future access to raw material.

Keywords

Conifers; broadleaves; site preparation; planting; seedling; natural regeneration; plantation

Published in

Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research
2022, Volume: 37, number: 3, pages: 200-212
Publisher: TAYLOR AND FRANCIS AS

SLU Authors

• Jonsson, Axelina

  • Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Elfving, Björn

  • Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Hjelm, Karin

  • Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Lämås, Tomas

  • Department of Forest Resource Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Nilsson, Urban

  • Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Associated SLU-program

SLU Forest Damage Center


Sustainable Development Goals

SDG15 Life on land


UKÄ Subject classification

Forest Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02827581.2022.2085784

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/118241