Pine Plantation Rotation
-
Upload
landlearn-nsw -
Category
Education
-
view
3.544 -
download
3
description
Transcript of Pine Plantation Rotation
![Page 1: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Timber Production in NSW State Forests
The pine plantation rotation
![Page 2: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
Radiata pine
• Radiata pine is a native tree of North America
• It is grown commercially in Australia and supplies timber for 1 in 4 houses built in NSW
![Page 3: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Where is it grown?
• Radiata pine plantations are located near Bathurst, Tumut, Bombala and Walcha
• It is also grown commercially in New Zealand, Chile and Spain
![Page 4: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
What is a plantation?
• Plantations are like farms for trees
• Plantations have a cycle of about 32 years
![Page 5: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Age 0 - Growing the seeds or cuttings and preparing the site
• Germinate the seeds or establish cuttings
• Seed is sown during September and October ready for planting from June to August the following year
• The containerised nursery at Tumut produces 10 million seedlings each year
![Page 6: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
Age 0
• The site needs to be prepared for planting• Plantations are grown on cleared land• Site preparation involves ripping (breaking
up compacted soil with a bulldozer) and mounding (creating rows of soil mounds to allow young seedlings to establish their roots quickly)
![Page 7: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
Age 1 – Planting the Seedlings
• Planting takes place in winter when the seedlings are dormant (not growing)
• One seedling is planted every 2.5 metres along the rows of mounds
• About 1000 plants / hectare
![Page 8: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
Age 2 – Seedlings grow into small trees
• After two years the seedlings reach about 2 metres in height
• Competing vegetation is suppressed
• Fertiliser is used to give plants a boost
![Page 9: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
Ages 13, 21, 28 - Thinning• Thinning is where the smaller
and weaker trees are removed allowing the remaining trees more space, light, water and food to help them grow
• Timber removed during thinning is mostly used for pulpwood and processed into woodchips for newspaper, particle board and kitchen cupboards
![Page 10: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
Age 32 – Final Harvest
• Plantation pine trees are harvested between age 30 and 35
• The logs from this harvest produce timber for houses and furniture
![Page 11: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
What machine is that?
• A feller buncher is used to cut the trees down.
• It is a vehicle with tracks which rotate like an excavator and moves through the forest felling and bunching trees into a clear area.
![Page 12: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
What machine is that?
• A processor looks like an excavator or feller buncher.
• It picks up the trees, removes the branches and cuts the log into different lengths.
![Page 13: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
What machine is that?
• A forwarder is a large vehicle with rubber tyres.
• It has a cabin at the front and an arm with a grapple in the centre for loading logs into the tray at the back.
• The forwarder picks up the logs and takes them to the log dump
![Page 14: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
What machine is that?• Cable logging equipment is often used
in steep country because it is the most efficient option and it minimises erosion
• A yarder with a vertical pole has a skyline cable extends down into the forest to where the trees are being logged
• The trees are felled by a person with a chainsaw and are attached to the cable.
• They are then pulled up to the yarder where the logs are processed and loaded onto a truck
![Page 15: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
What happens next?
• Logs are carried by trucks to sawmills where they are sawn and dried to produce timber
![Page 16: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/16.jpg)
What products are made?
• Pulpwood is used to make paper, particle board and kitchen cupboards
• Small logs become treated posts for landscaping
• Sawlogs are used for furniture and house frames
![Page 17: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/17.jpg)
After harvesting, what’s next for the plantation?
• Back to Age 0 – a new plantation • After harvesting the trees, the land is
prepared for a new pine plantation and the cycle continues
![Page 18: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/18.jpg)
What are growth rings?• A radiata pine tree adds
a growth ring on the outside of its trunk under the bark each year.
• The colour and thickness of the rings are affected by the season – spring produces a lighter coloured ring and summer, a darker ring
![Page 19: Pine Plantation Rotation](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062617/54b847a34a7959e11c8b460f/html5/thumbnails/19.jpg)
Where can I find out more?
• www.landlearnnsw.org.au• www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/forests• www.australianforests.org.au