Experiment and Demonstration Plots – Results and Silvicultural Guidelines
Consultancy Report No 25
by
Dr. Björn Wode and Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Lung
Son La, January 2001
TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Annexes
List of Abbreviations
Acknowledgements
1. Background and Objective of the Assignments
2. Rationale and overview of the Experiment and Demonstration Plots
3. Findings on the E&D plot program
3.1 General assessment
3.2 Plot specific results
3.3 Experiences with and impact of the E&D plot program
3.4 Recommendations for the continuation of the E&D plot program
4. Technical Guidelines (Fact Sheets)
4.1 Objectives of fact sheets
4.2 Validity of database
4.3 Comments on the economic assessment
4.4 Conclusion and future outlook
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List of Abbreviations
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This report is the result of joint efforts of a national short-term forestry expert, Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Lung, and an international short-term forestry expert, Dr. Björn Wode. The assignments have been carried out in November 2000. The consultants would like to thank the Community Forestry Unit of SFDP and the forestry experts in the districts for supporting their mission. The presented results of the Experiment & Demonstration plot program and the silvicultural guidelines ("fact sheets") are the results of joined field visits and intensive fruitful discussions with SFDP staff and local foresters, which are hereby acknowledged.
1. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE OF THE ASSIGNMENTS
Annex 1: Terms of Reference 17
Annex 2: Plot specific findings 20
Annex 3: Fact Sheets 27
Annex 4: Explanation of technical terms 54
Annex 5: Economically useful trees 55
Annex 6: Economic assessment of each technical option
AF School Agro-Forestry School Mai Son
DB Dien Bien district, Lai Chau province (district for upscaling of SFDP methodologies)
CIFOR International Center for Forest Research
E&D Plots Experiment and Demonstration Plots initiated by SFDP
FDD Forest Development Department
FP group Forest Protection Group
FPMB Forest Protection Management Board Thuan Chau – Quynh Nhai
FPsD Forest Protection sub-Department
FPU Forest Protection Unit at district level
FRC Forest Research Center
Hh household
MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
MS Mai Son district, Son La province (district for upscaling of SFDP methodologies)
NTFP Non-Timber Forest Products
SL Son La town, Son La province
SFDP Social Forestry Development Project Song Da
TC Tua Chua district, Lai Chau province (pilot district of SFDP)
TG Tuan Giao district, Lai Chau province (district for upscaling of SFDP methodologies)
ThC Thuan Chau district, Son La province (district for upscaling of SFDP methodologies)
VND Vietnamese Dong
YC Yen Chau district, Son La province (pilot district of SFDP)
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Since 1996, SFDP has established a total of 32 forestry trials on technical options for community forest management in the pilot areas of Yen Chau and Tua Chua districts. Additional 18 plots have been established by partner institutions in Son La and Lai Chau. In these so-called experiment and demonstration (E&D) plots, forest management options are introduced on a trial basis to test and demonstrate technical issues in community forest management. At the same time basic silvicultural research and monitoring was conducted by either national research institutions, project staff or villagers. With these plots SFDP provides villagers with technological options to improve practical forest land management. The E&D plots focus on management options for the major types of forest stands existing in the project area and on basic silvicultural treatment applicable by local communities.
The objective of the assignment of Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Lung was to analyse the experiences gained with the E&D plot program and to give recommendations for its continuation. The objective of the assignment of Dr. Björn Wode was to structure these experiences into guidelines for silvicultural management ("Fact Sheets") in order to promote application of the identified options on a wider scale (see also ANNEX 1: Terms of Reference).
2. RATIONALE AND OVERVIEW OF THE EXPERIMENT AND DEM ONSTRATION PLOTS
In 1993, SFDP forestry activities started with assisting natural forest protection and plantation activities under the Decree 327 program. The main focus was to involve the local population in the program and to establish village nurseries. Starting from 1996, forest activities gradually expanded to developing pilot initiatives on other components of local forests and potential silvicultural practices emphasising community forestry as an appropriate management option in the Song Da watershed. Pilot activities were implemented through E&D plots. Such trial plots on small areas were very much within the mandate of the project. Management activities including timber and fuelwood harvesting could only be tested on a trial basis with permission of local authorities.
At this time local people were seen by state institutions as the major threat to forest protection. Local people were excluded from access to forest land, and thus separated from a resource of crucial importance for meeting local subsistence requirements and income needs. The policy was mainly implemented through legal measures, deterring people from the use of forest resources through an sophisticated system of fines and an expanding state agency specialised on forest protection. Local people increasingly viewed the forest as owned by the Forest Protection Units or the state as the state did give them only very limited rights over forest resources.
The main objective of the E&D plot program was to introduce community forest management practices in a first step. The project envisioned that demonstrated success with the E&D plots would result in wider application of the introduced practices and in policy changes at provincial and national level.
Other objectives included:
i. to test and to demonstrate technical options for various types of forest and forest land, ii. to provide local communities with technological options for improved forest management, iii. to explore in a participatory way the needs and interests of local communities and their capacities
concerning forest management, and iv. to conduct basic silvicultural research in order to determine a basis for the management options and to
calculate economic issues.
The E&D plot program deals with technical issues of community forest management. However, SFDP has always considered the provision of an organisational and regulatory framework for forest management as the basis for any technical intervention. Therefore, the project emphasised the development and test of the methodologies for forest protection and development regulations and for community forest management plans.
Since 1999, SFDP is testing the formulation of Community Forest Management Plans in which local communities plan and implement forest activities. Experiences from E&D plots form the basis for technical forest management applied within the framework of these plans. For example, activities related to NTFPs were initially part of the E&D plot program, but are today introduced by working together with interest groups on larger scale.
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3. FINDINGS ON THE E&D PLOT PROGRAM
3.1 General assessment
In the period between 1996 and 2000, SFDP initiated 32 E&D plots. Out of these 32 plots, 25 are still maintained (see tables 1 and 2). Seven plots in Tua Chua district were discontinued due to low interest of local communities (e.g. Thinning in pine plantations, fire protection breaks) or termination of data collection (e.g. mother tree trial, Schima seeding trial).
Starting from 1999, the establishment of E&D plots was contracted out to partner institutions within the framework of co-operation contracts. In 1999 and 2000 an additional number of 18 plots were established in five districts in Son La and Lai Chau provinces (see table 3).
The technological options tested and demonstrated in these plots can be grouped as follows:
(1). Trials on forest establishment:
a) natural regeneration without additional planting,
b) natural regeneration with additional planting (enrichment),
c) species trials to determine suitable species for plantations;
(2). Trials on basic silvicultural treatment of young forests including thinning, singling, and pruning, including coppice systems with standards;
(3). Trials on restoration of degraded forests, including the establishment of fire breaks;
(4). Trials on regulated timber harvest;
(5). Trials on non-timber forest products.
The E&D plot program has a clear focus on natural regeneration without additional planting. Trials in this field have been very successful. They demonstrate that natural regeneration is an appropriate option for establishment of protection forests in the Song Da watershed. The monitoring and data collection in these plots have yielded useful results concerning growth dynamics, economic issues, and the interest of farmers in this option.
The trials on enrichment planting show limited success. Additional planting in young natural regeneration is a difficult and labour intensive technical option for which almost no experience in Vietnam is available. Protection of enrichment planting plots from animal grazing is an issue. Furthermore, selection of unsuitable species (e.g. Teak) and low quality of planted seedlings have caused low survival rates.
Species trials on altogether 16 species have yielded mixed results. For the test of indigenous species, the results have been useful for the Debt Swap project as well as the national afforestation program 661. The results of testing exotic species under partly unsuitable conditions and in questionable mixtures are of limited usefulness.
Trials on basic silvicultural management have been generally successful. Local farmers proved to be capable to apply simple silvicultural techniques. Improvement thinnings in young natural regeneration positively influence tree density, species composition, quality of the stand, and foster the growth on economically useful target trees. The plots also provide data for economic calculations.
Trials on restoration of degraded forests show that forest protection measures (protection from fire, grazing, illegal logging) combined with natural regeneration is in most cases the appropriate option to restore over-logged forests. However, fire breaks as a protection measure are hardly taken over by farmers or local forest protection units due to high labour costs.
Trials on regulated timber harvest yielded mixed results. The introduction of selective felling according to certain criteria (e.g. minimum diameter) proves to be difficult and shows low acceptance among local farmers. It is mainly hampered by the fact that existing forests are yet to be allocated to local farmers and harvesting
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activities need approval of the local forest protection units. The upcoming allocation of existing forest to local households and communities is likely to provide a better basis for activities in this field.
Trials on non-timber forest products (NTFP) focus on the planting of bamboo, harvesting of bamboo culms and shoots in natural stands, and more recently on shellac production and medicinal plants. Plots on NTFP´s are underrepresented in the E&D plot program. However, NTFP´s are recently introduced within the framework of community forestry management plans in Yen Chau and the Market Analysis & Development program in Tua Chua.
3.2 Plot specific results
The consultant travelled to Yen Chau and Tua Chua and visited 22 plots established within the framework of SFDP´s E&D plot program. A description of the state of each plot and recommendations for follow-up activities are provided in ANNEX 2.
A common shortcoming is the insufficient demarcation of the plots in the field. Plot boundaries are often only to be indicated by the field staff and not clearly visible in the field.
The documentation of the individual plots in Yen Chau and Tua Chua is very structured covering the objective, location, and date of establishment as well as a site description, plot description, the collected data and its analysis. However, the documentation is mainly available at Son La office, in the field offices some information is lacking.
In general, the plots are managed by local communities, groups of households, or individual farmers. The sense of ownership of the plots is highest with groups of households and communities. In the case of working with individual households the dissemination and spread of experiences seems to be limited.
Table 1: Experiment and demonstration plots in Yen Chau district
No. Location (village / commune)
Description/Purpose Managed by Established by Date of establish-ment
YC 1 Huon / Chieng Dong
Natural regeneration on forest land classified as Ic
FP group FRC Phu Ninh 4/96
YC 2 Chum / Chieng Dong
Bamboo plantation on forest land classified as Ib
hh group FRC Phu Ninh 5/97
YC 3 Huoi Phu/ Chieng Dong
Plantation trial with 6 species hh group FRC Phu Ninh 5/97
YC 4 Huoi Phu / Chieng Dong
Mixed plantation trial with 3 species hh group FRC Phu Ninh 5/97
YC 5 Then Luong / Chieng Dong
Regulated extraction of natural forest (IIa)
Village SFDP 12/97
YC 6 Huoi Toi / Chieng Hac
Sustainable production of bamboo shoots and culms
Village SFDP 12/97
YC 7 Dong Tau/ Chieng Dong
Promotion of natural regeneration village SFDP 6/2000
YC 8 Huoi Thon / Chieng Hac
Fire protection trial Village SFDP 2/99
YC 9 Dong Tau / Chieng Dong
Fire protection trial Village SFDP 2/99
YC 10 Bung Mo / Chieng Sang
Enrichment planting demonstration individual hh SFDP 6/99
YC 11 Ban Put / Chieng Khoi
Enrichment planting demonstration individual hh SFDP 6/99
YC 12 Ban Thin/ Sap Vat Enrichment planting demonstration individual hh SFDP 6/2000
YC 13 Na nga/ Chieng Enrichment planting demonstration individual hh SFDP 6/2000
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Table 2: Experiment and demonstration plots in Tua Chua district
Note: The missing numbers represent trials that have been discontinued.
Table 3: E&D plots established through co-operation contracts
Hac
YC 14 Na Pan/ Chieng Dong
Restoration of degraded forest (IIIa1)
forest protection group
SFDP 12/98
No. Location (village / commune)
Description/ Purpose Managed by Established by Date of establish-ment
TC 2 Thon 1 / Xinh Phinh
Natural regeneration on forest land classified as Ic
FP group FRC Phu Ninh 10/96
TC 4 Talacao / Xinh Phinh
Plantation trial with 8 species hh group FRC Phu Ninh 5/97
TC 5 Tapao / Xinh Phinh
Gradual transformation of natural regeneration into high forest
Individual hh SFDP 8/97
TC 6 Vang Chua / Xinh Phinh
Regulated extraction of natural forest (IIb)
FP group SFDP 2/98
TC 7 Thon 3 / Xinh Phinh
Improvement thinning in natural regeneration
FP group SFDP 12/97
TC 8 Thon 1 / Xinh Phinh
Coppice system with standards FP group SFDP 12/97
TC 12 Talacao / Xinh Phinh
Afforestation with fast growing tree species
Village SFDP 5/98
TC 14 Doi 2 / Muong Bang
Improvement thinning in natural regeneration
Village SFDP 5/99
TC 15 Dong Phi 1 / Muong Bang
Improvement thinning in young forest (IIa)
FP group SFDP 5/99
TC 17 Doi 2 / Muong Bang
Teak plantation species trial Hh SFDP 4/99
TC 18 Thon 1 / Xinh Phinh
Silvicultural treatment of natural regeneration
FP group SFDP 5/99
No. Location (village /
commune)
Description/ Purpose Area (ha) Established By Year of establish-
ment
SL 1 Mong / Hua La
Plantation of Taiwanese Bamboo 3.0 FDD Son La 1999
SL 2 Hai Phieng / Chieng Sinh
Plantation of Taiwanese Bamboo 3.0 FDD Son La 1999
SL 3 Unit 8 / Son La town
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Cassia siamea)
3.0 FDD Son La 1999
SL 4 Son La town Test plantation of Paulownia 1.0 FDD Son La 1999
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3.3 Experiences with and impact of the E&D plot pro gram
The so far gained experiences with the E&D plots can be summarised as follows:
� Natural regeneration is a cost effective and ecological appropriate way to re-establish forest on degraded forest land and to restore degraded natural forest. By means of simple silvicultural treatment naturally regenerated stands can be designed according to local conditions and needs. Silvicultural treatment enhances diameter and height increment and improves the quality and value of the stands in comparison to untreated stands.
� Enrichment planting is a very difficult technical option that requires further research concerning species selection, light conditions, and further silvicultural treatment of enriched stands. Labour intensity and high requirements concerning protection make this option not very suitable in a community forestry context.
� Regulated extraction of forest products in natural forests by local communities is able to combine effective soil and watershed protection and sustainable utilisation for local needs provided that there is secure tenure over forest land.
� The results from basic silvicultural research provide for an assessment of the production potential of natural forest stands, including non-timber forest products (see Fact Sheets).
An impact of the plot program can be noticed at two levels. First, within the project area some of the technical options have been taken over by national programs or spread by themselves. This is the case for the establishment of forest by means of natural regeneration, which has been widely taken over by the Debt Swap project and the 661 program (Five Million Hectares Program) and for basic silvicultural treatment of young natural forest, which has been taken over by the Debt Swap project in Yen Chau and Tua Chua. Furthermore, co-operation contracts facilitated the wider application of these two options to other districts and provided the partner institutions with opportunities to gain practical experiences with these and technical options.
SL 5 Hip / Chieng Ngan
Silvicultural treatment of natural regenerating Keteleeria stand
5.0 FDD Son La 1999
SL 6 Co Puc / Ch. Ngan
Silvicultural treatment of natural regeneration
5.0 FDD Son La 2000
MS 1 Bom Cua / Mai Son
Styrax tonkinensis seeding trial 1.0 FDD Son La 1999
MS 2 Bom Cua / Mai Son
Test plantation of Paulownia 1.0 FDD Son La 1999
MS 3 Bom Cua / Mai Son
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Pine, Teak)
3.0 FDD Son La 1999
MS 4 Na San / Mai Son
Plantation of Taiwanese Bamboo 3.0 FDD Son La 1999
MS 5 Hong San / Ta Hoc
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Melia azedarach)
3.0 AF School Mai Son
2000
MS 6 Pa Dong / Ta Hoc
Restoration of degraded forest (IIIa1) 3.0 AF School Mai Son
2000
ThC 1 Noong Lay / Thuan Chau
Styrax tonkinensis seeding trial 1.0 FDD Son La 1999
ThC 2 Noong Lay / Thuan Chau
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Melia azedarach, Tectona grandis)
3.0 FDD Son La 1999
ThC 3 Phieng Phai / Tong Co
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Chukrasia tabularis, Tectona grandis)
7.0 FPMB Thuan-Quynh
2000
ThC 4 Dan Chu / Chieng Pac
Natural regeneration with enrichment planting (Chukrasia tabularis, Cinnamomum cassia)
7.0 FPMB Thuan Quynh
2000
TG 1 De Chia / Quai Cang
Silvicultural treatment of natural regeneration
7.3 FPsD Lai Chau
2000
DB 1 Boi / Thanh Yen Silvicultural treatment of natural regeneration
4.0 FPsD Lai Chau 2000
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Secondly, the E&D plots have contributed to influence policy at provincial and national levels. Community forest management in general and natural regeneration and silvicultural treatment of established stands in particular are nowadays accepted forest management options and increasingly supported by provincial and national policies. With data from its plots based on natural regeneration SFDP has been able to contribute to national regulations on natural regeneration and the incorporation of natural regeneration into the „5 Million Ha Afforestation Program" in which 1 million ha of protection forest are planned to be established by means of natural regeneration combined with enrichment planting. Furthermore, recent provincial decisions in Son La allowing for the allocation of existing forests to local communities greatly expand the possibilities for community forest management.
3.4 Recommendations for the continuation of the E&D plot program
As mentioned in chapter 2, the main objective of the E&D plot program was to introduce community forest management activities in a first step. In view of the changing policy environment such activities do not need to be confined to small experimental plots. Instead they can be increasingly carried out within the framework of Community Forest Management Plans or working with interest groups on a larger scale.
However, the need for experimentation on forest management issues still prevails, especially in the field of further silvicultural management of stands established by means of natural regeneration. It is recommended to concentrate these activities in 4 plots in each district. Main activities in these plots will be the continuation of data collection and the testing of silvicultural practices such as marking of target trees, improvement thinnings, adjustment of tree densities and growth space for target trees. The species trial in Tua Chua as well as one enrichment planting trial in Yen Chau should be used for further collection of data.
In total, 10 E&D plots should be continued by SFDP (see table 4). Follow up activities in these plots are listed in ANNEX 2. All other plots should be discontinued or handed over to farmers for management without further project support. For continued maintenance and data collection in all plots established there are mainly two options:
1. Allocation of a budget to the vocational schools in Mai Son and Dien Bien which could organise the maintenance through district institutions (e.g. Forest Protection Unit, Agro-forestry Extension Station) and at the same time use the plots for training purposes;
2. Allocation of a budget directly to the above mentioned district institutions to maintain the plots and collect data. This could be organised through a cooperation with international or national research institutions (e.g. CIFOR, FRC Phu Ninh).
In 2001 the project should establish 9 plots on NTFP´s, 3 each for bamboo, rattan, and medicinal plants. 4 new plots are recommended for trials on timber tree species. For all new plots it should be explored if funds from provincial institutions can be secured.
Table 4: Proposal for continuation of E&D plots in the year 2001
No. Location (village) Description/Purpose Managed by Established by Date of establish-ment
YC 1 Huon/Chieng Dong Natural regeneration on forest land classified as Ic
forest protection group
FRC Phu Ninh 4/96
YC 5 Then Luong/
Chieng Dong
Regulated extraction of natural forest (IIa)
village SFDP 12/97
YC 7 Dong Tau/
Chieng Dong
Promotion of natural regeneration
village SFDP 12/98
YC 12 Ban Thin/
Sap Vat
Enrichment planting demonstration
individual hh SFDP 6/2000
YC 14 Na Pan/ Restoration of degraded forest (IIIa1)
forest protection group
SFDP 12/97
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4. TECHNICAL GUIDELINES (FACT SHEETS)
Based on the experiences gained by SFDP during a period of 4 years of implementing the E&D program and references from outside the project area as well as outside Vietnam the following 10 technical guidelines (fact sheets) were developed by the consultant (see ANNEX 3).
These fact sheets include 7 silvicultural management guidelines for the dominant vegetation types in the project area, as well as 3 technical guidelines for the production of non-timber forest products (NTFP), tested in Tua Chua and Yen Chau district.
4.1 Objectives of fact sheets
The objectives of the herein presented fact sheets are to analyse, structure and document technical guidelines in order to set a basis for forest and natural resource management and to promote the application of the identified options on a wider scale, in particular as follows:
1. to provide practical guidelines on silvicultural management applicable for the specific natural and socio-economic environment of the Song Da watershed applicable in a community forestry context;
2. to provide economic data as quantifiable criteria for a comparison and assessment of different forest management options;
3. to serve as means of verification of the project output No. 3: "Improved technological and organisational options for sustainable natural resource management are available".
The silvicultural guidelines are presented as tables covering technical, economic and gender aspects. The intention is to provide clear and practicable criteria on technical options to ensure the standard of implementation by local forest staff using this tables as a manual during planning and field activities.
The technical aspects include (i) site selection, considering forest land-use classification, forest function classification as well as socio-economic site conditions; (ii) silvicultural procedures in a brief sequence to provide guidance for planning and implementation of field activities and (iii) minimum requirements to stand after treatments to define technical standards as a basis for monitoring and evaluation.
A detailed economic assessment of each option is carried out separately in ANNEX 6. In the fact sheets only the main indicators are presented in order to ensure clarity and practicability of the tables. Although income generation from forest activities is nearly negligible at the moment, cash flow calculations are made as an indicator of their long-term economic viability.
Gender aspects are mentioned and should be taken into consideration during all forestry activities, as women represent an important user group of several forest products such as firewood, bamboo poles, and non-timber
Chieng Dong
TC 2 Thon 1/
Xinh Pinh
Natural regeneration on forest land classified as Ic
forest protection group
FRC Phu Ninh 10/96
TC 4 Talacao/
Xinh Pinh
Plantation trial with 8 species hh group FRC Phu Ninh 5/97
TC 5 Tapao/
Xinh Pinh
Gradual transformation of natural regeneration into high forest
individual hh SFDP 8/97
TC 14 Doi 2/
Muong Bang
Improvement thinning in natural regeneration
village SFDP 5/99
TC 15 Dong Phi 1/
Muong Bang
Improvement thinning in young forest (IIa)
forest protection group
SFDP 5/99
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forest products.
The section experience mentions the area where the specific management option is already carried out and can serve as reference and as demonstration and training subject. These areas are utilised to exchange experiences among communities and forestry staff and to visualise the results of the management applied.
For an explanation of the technical terms used in the fact sheets kindly refer to ANNEX 4. A list of economically useful tree species (so-called target trees) which are promoted in the treatment of natural regeneration is provided in ANNEX 5.
4.2 Validity of database
Due to the limited database after a period of four years of implementation and lack of comparable results from other scientifically based investigations conducted in the Song Da it has to be stressed that the silvicultural guidelines provided in the fact sheets can only set a rough framework for further forest management. Especially for the presented forest management systems with rotation cycles of tens of years, guidelines need to be improved and adapted to local situations in an iterative long-term process during the application in the field together with local communities. Due to lack of sufficient profound yield data, some calculations are based on references from other studies outside Vietnam. Thus knowledge of growth characteristics of different tree species should be build up to form an essential basis for yield calculations and sustainable management.
The iterative process of implementation and further improvement of the guidelines will also build silvicultural capacity among local foresters and farmers. It also implies that the fact sheets presented here need to be continuously refined and fact sheets for other options added in the future.
4.3 Comments on the economic assessment
Community forest activities carried out by the local population in the project area are mainly aiming at meeting subsistence needs in terms of timber, fuel-wood and NTFPs. The presented forestry management options can only provide small income complementary to that from main agricultural production. They are not foremost selected by beneficiaries on the basis of economic (or more properly termed financial) returns. However, especially on areas with competition between agriculture and forestry use, estimation of financial returns can give some indications on the choice of beneficiaries. It is not surprising that most forestry activities cannot reach financial returns per area that a farmer could currently gain through agriculture on many of the slopes. If these are areas, where assumed public benefits differ from individual benefits, economic assessments further give an indication of the subsidies required by government in order to convince beneficiaries to choose the option they themselves consider less beneficial.
Secondly on pure forest areas, economic assessments can be used to decide between potential alternative investments. These investments can be either made by the individual based on his perceived benefits he receives from the different investment options available to him (i.e. plant teak, invest in improved rice seeds, buy a motorbike). Where assumed public benefits differ from perceived individual benefits, they can again be partially or totally covered by the state.
When estimating the public benefits of a specific forest management option in comparison to other land use practises as e.g. agriculture, additional benefits of forests apart from quantifiable outputs like timber and NTFPs may be taken into consideration. Among these "non-tangible" values are erosion control, watershed protection as well as reduced risk of diseases and failures. The latter is especially the case for natural regeneration with diversified, locally adapted species composition. The following economic assessments exclude these benefits. Calculations further base on the assumptions of existing stable local markets and clear benefit sharing arrangements. The need for clear benefit sharing arrangements emphasises the importance of legitimate permanent land use rights (red book certificates) being provided after completed land use planning and land allocation.
Before comparing the different options it has to be stressed that all fact sheets are made for specific natural and socio-economic site conditions found in the field. Variability of site conditions and rotation cycles limits the comparability between them to some extent. Only some general hypotheses can be drawn:
1. Establishment of natural regeneration (see fact sheet 2a, 2b, 3) requires subsidy
The establishment of production forest by means of natural regeneration (fact sheet no. 2a) covers a period of 8 years. This has to be understood as an initial management phase leading to forest structures described as IIa forests (young regenerated forest after shifting cultivation with average dbh > 8 cm) according to the
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Vietnamese forest land use classification. The cumulative negative cash flow expressed as Net Present Value discounted at 5 % amounts to approx. 1,000,000 VNÐ/ha during this phase. This value represents the subsidy level currently covered by MARD.
It has to be noted that labour costs are calculated fairly low at 15,000 VND/day. The government subsidy is mainly an incentive where there are few alternative income options (opportunity costs for labour are low). The subsidy also does not cover losses from not using the land for agriculture (opportunity costs for land).
For the establishment of protection forest (fact sheet 2b) the negative net present value has been estimated with only around 700,000 VNÐ for the first 8 years. The value is lower as in this case thinning activities are only carried out to a limited extent without selection or preferential treatment of target trees. This management option will result in limited revenues in later stages.
The lower benefit level received by the individual is compensated partially by annual payments. Existing protection forest is usually contracted out to farmers with so-called forest protection contracts. Contract holders receive a small annual payment (50,000 VND/ha) for protection activities but enjoy limited benefits of forest products. They only have the right to collect dry fuelwood and NTFPs.
When using enrichment planting (Fact Sheet no. 3), the investment costs for the first 8 years nearly double to approx. 2,000,000 VNÐ. Disregarded in this calculation are the costs for beating up due to low survival rates as seen in many enrichment plantings. Natural regeneration in contrast represents the result of long-term intra-and inter-specific species competition, thus reducing monitoring costs and investment risks to a minimum. Especially in the field of community forestry these aspects of low initial investment and reduced risk level are important factors for further acceptance of the involved population and large-scale application. Furthermore the management of natural regeneration reflects the available skills, traditional knowledge and management capacity of the communities, thus reducing training and monitoring cost.
2. Establishment of Teak (fact sheet 7) cannot always compete with bamboo and agricultural use
In comparison to natural forest management systems teak plantations require a much higher initial investment of above 3 Mio. VNÐ/ha. Labour input amounts to 215 workdays for the establishment phase of 8 years, not including possible additional costs for replanting and pest control. With a rotation of 35 years the net present value (NPV) depends crucially on the discounting rate. At a discounting rate of 5 % the NPV reaches 163 Mio. VNÐ. Due to the even age stand structure, the final harvests in these stands is clear cutting. Revenues therefore are concentrated at the end of the rotation, unlike natural regenerated forests which provide yearly revenues from NTFPs and timber during the whole rotation. If cash is considered more expensive, i.e. using a discounting rate of 15 %, NPV drops to below 10 Mio. VND/ha. This equals the value of an annual payment of 800.000 VND/ha. Thus, even low maize yields (of approx. 800 kg/ha) and established bamboo stands (fact sheet no. 1) can compete with teak plantations.
Concerning the public value of these stands it has to be noted that they can hardly fulfil protection functions like erosion control. Due to one-storied canopy erosion control is questionable during the rotation. Furthermore final clear cutting harvest leads to bare land conditions exposed to water and wind erosion after each rotation cycle. Thus government subsidy schemes based on ecological considerations seem unjustified.
3. Established forest can provide positive returns on investment on good soils when labour costs are low (fact sheets 4,5,6)
Following the establishment phase of natural regeneration (fact sheet no. 2) the two further options of high forest management (fact sheet no. 5) or coppice with standards (fact sheet no. 4) can be selected according to demand of the local population. Comparing the gross margin/workday between the two options, high forest management shows a slightly higher value with 29,600 VNÐ in comparison to 22,000 VNÐ for coppice with standards (note that these values are not discounted and can thus not be compared to returns from other activities). However, as mentioned before under the aspect of socio-economic site conditions, high forest management can only be the choice in areas with low fuelwood demand due to sufficient resources as for example in Muong Bang commune in Tua Chua district with 47 households sharing 87 ha of forest.
As a result of strict protection of undergrowth and selective cutting as main principles of these two continuous forest management systems an uneven vertical stand structure with a wide range of age-classes will be formed. Unlike even-aged forest plantations e.g. Teak, further rotation cycles of these options will never fall back to the stage of Ic forest land (scattered natural regeneration > 1000 trees/ha, tree height > 1m), therefore excluding this phase in following rotation cycles with all embodied costs and reducing the erodibility of the site due to permanent forest cover. Furthermore these stands will provide some yearly source of income as every
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year some proportion of the stand will reach final diameter for harvest due to the uneven age structure, thus meeting the demands of the local population.
From an investors point of view, both investments are only viable if capital costs were relatively low (5%) or if labour costs were much lower than calculated. At labour costs of 15,000 VND/ha, the internal rate of return (IRR) is 15 % and 17 % respectively. The NPV would be zero if capital costs are assumed at 15 % as argued for teak above.
The technical option for managing existing mixed pine forest stands (fact sheet no. 6) is elaborated for very poor soil conditions on hill slopes. These site conditions restrict the choice of species to pioneers like Pinus khasya and few natural regenerated broadleaf species with serving functions due to their reduced growth in this area. Considering the low area productivity - the NPV amounts to only one tenth (approx. 1 Mio VNÐ/ha) discounted at 5 % for a 30 years rotation - only very labour extensive options like utilisation of natural regenerated target trees are a suitable choice.
Government subsidies would be justified as the main values and benefits of these sites are their protection function. These public benefits are considered much higher than the benefits to the individual measured as net present values.
4. Non Timber Forest Products can provide positive returns on investment when markets exist (fact sheet 8,9,10)
Apart from main forest products as timber and fuelwood, the NTFP program carried out in Tua Chua considers income generation for local people aiming at positive effects on forest protection. However, NTFPs are only of local importance for income generation for households living in and nearby forest areas. Moreover the promotion of NTFPs is only promising in areas where forest resources are still abundant and where traditional knowledge supports their management.
At present markets for NTFPs in Tua Chua are depending on middlemen, causing over-exploitation whenever there is an opportunity to sell the products to them. If managed in a sustainable way NTFPs like honey with an average yearly gross margin of 1,630,000 VNÐ per 20 colonies/year (fact sheet no. 9) and black fungus with 821,000 VNÐ per 3 stacked cubic meter of wood as planting substrate (fact sheet no. 10) could become a meaningful additional source of income. Especially women and older members of the community could be involved in the production as these products are cultivated near the houses and require mostly light physical labour.
Another promising option is tested with the cultivation of shellac on Dalbergia host trees, situated near the settlement or scattered on the fields. With an average yearly gross margin of 2,115,000 VNÐ per 20 host trees yearly harvested (fact sheet no. 8) and low expenditure of labour done by both gender, shellac represents another important non-timber forest product. The economical viability of this product was tested and confirmed by 2 interest groups in Tua Chua and encouraged the further establishment of 4 additional interest groups for 2001.
4.4 Conclusion and future outlook
Due to the allocation of forest land and most recently of existing forest to households the need for defining appropriate forest management is increasing. Management options have to be suitable for a community forestry context meeting the capacity, demand and needs of the local population. For the two project areas, different silvicultural treatments were tested in an experiment and demonstration program (E&D program) over a period of 4 years. Out of these experiences 10 technical fact sheets (discussed in details above) were elaborated to provide a framework for future activities in the field of forestry. Due to long rotation cycles in forestry these guidelines have to be further specified and completed.
Silvicultural practices based on the treatment of natural regeneration proved to be a favourable option combining ecological as well as economical advantages in the context of community forest management. Furthermore, management of natural regeneration reflects indigenous knowledge and management capacity of the communities, thus reducing training and monitoring costs.
The following activities are anticipated for the future:
� Fact sheets need to be improved and adapted to local situations in an iterative process during the application in the field together with local communities.
� The iterative process of implementation and further improvement of the guidelines will strengthen
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silvicultural capacity among local foresters and farmers involved. Guidelines can further be made available to local foresters throughout the provinces and can be used for training in co-operation with vocational schools. Site visits and (partial) integration into this iterative process are likely to facilitate the improvement of silvicultural capacity.
� For improved knowledge of growth characteristics of different tree species data collection has to be encouraged in the future for main economic species to complement currently available data to provide more detailed site-specific guidelines for yield calculations and sustainable management. Therefore collection of these data has to be encouraged in the future for main economic species such as Tectona grandis, Chukrasia tabularis, Pinus spp., Schima wallichii, etc. to complement available data to provide more detailed guidelines.
� Besides the need to continuously refine the existing fact sheets, documentation of experience with newly tested options needs to be added in the future.
� The organisational requirements for sustainable planning, management and comprehensive documentation of E&D plots within the province are most likely to be found within the vocational schools in co-operation with district institutions or directly within district institutions (see also chapter 3.4). Until the end of this year further steps are planned to integrate these tasks into the administration.
ANNEX 1a: Terms of Reference (Björn Wode)
for an international short-term consultant on the a nalysis of forestry trials and development of guidelines for silvicultural management of major ty pes of forest land
1. Objectives The main objective of the consultancy is to elaborate guidelines for silvicultural management of the main types of forest land existing in the project area. The basis for the guidelines will be the analysis of the existing forestry trials.
The guidelines will cover technical, economic as well as gender aspects focussing on basic management schemes for community forest management. The main objective of the consultancy is to elaborate guidelines for silvicultural management of the main types of forest land existing in the project area. The basis for the guidelines will be the analysis of the existing forestry trials.
2. Time frame 0.5 month, first half of November 2000
3. Required profile The consultant must be familiar with predominant tree species in Vietnam and silvicultural techniques for community forest management.
A technical background in forestry is required. Experience in Mainland S.E. Asia is prerequisite, experience in Viet Nam is an asset.
4. Background Since 1996, SFDP has established all together 25 forestry trials – so-called experiment and demonstration plots (E&D plots) on community forest management – in the pilot areas of Yen Chau and Tua Chua districts. Another 12 plots have been established by partner institutions in Son La. In these E&D plots, forest management options are introduced on a trial basis to test and to demonstrate the viability of community forest management. At the same time basic silvicultural research and monitoring is conducted by either national research institutions, the project staff or by the villagers. With these plots SFDP provides villagers with technological options to improve practical forest land management. The E&D plots focus on management options for the major types of forest stands existing in the project area and on basic silvicultural treatment applicable by local communities. Based on the results of the E&D plots guidelines for silvicultural management need to be elaborated to promote application of the identified options on a wider scale.
5. Organization: The consultant will work together with the international community forestry advisor and SFDP project staff of the regional and district field offices. Results of the monitoring and evaluation as well as of the basic silvicultural research in the E&D plots will be provided. The consultancy will include field visits to selected plots.
6. Detailed Tasks: An analysis of the tested silvicultural options in the E&D plots will be the basis for the development of guidelines for silvicultural management of the major types of forest land in the project area covering technical, economic and gender aspects. The guidelines need to be applicable within a community forestry context.
1. Analyse the results of the forestry trials towards their technical and economic suitability.
2. Design a standard format for the silvicultural guidelines ("technical fact sheets").
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ANNEX 1b: Terms of Reference (Nguyen Ngoc Lung)
for a national short-term expert on a review of SFD P`s experiment and demonstration plot programme and design of a trial programme for 2001
ANNEX 2: Plot specific findings
3. Select suitable management options for the major types of forest land to be applied by local communities. Relevance for women has to be considered.
4. Develop guidelines for the selected management options covering silvicultural procedures, economic assessment, gender aspects to be applied to different types of forest land.
5. Present and discuss the guidelines in an 1-day workshop.
6. Summarise results in a short report.
1. Background Since 1996, SFDP has established all together 32 forestry trials – so-called experiment and demonstration plots (E&D plots) on community forest management – in the pilot areas of Yen Chau and Tua Chua districts. Another 18 plots have been established by partner institutions in Son La. In these E&D plots, forest management options are introduced on a trial basis to test and to demonstrate the viability of community forest management. At the same time basic silvicultural research and monitoring is conducted by either national research institutions, the project staff or by the villagers. From the results of the trial programme lessons can be drawn for the implementation of the 5 million ha afforestation programme (incl. Debt Swap project), in particular in the field of NTFP's. The consultant will review the trials and design a trial programme for 2001 in view of providing recommendations to the 5 million ha programme / Debt Swap project. Detailed tasks see below.
2. Organisation The consultant will work up to 3 weeks for the project in the timeframe October – December 2000. Under the guidance of the national project coordinator, the consultant will work together with the international consultant for formulation of silvicultural guidelines and project staff. It will be necessary to elaborate monthly plans to coordinate the activities. The consultancy will comprise field work in Son La, Yen Chau and Tua Chua districts as well as office work in Hanoi.
3. Detailed Tasks - analyse the results of the trials and identify (a) results that can be useful for the formulation of silvicultural guidelines, (b) those trials that need to be continued, adapted or intensified, and (c) impacts of the trial program at project and policy level;
- design a trial programme for 2001 considering the importance of NTFP´s including bamboo;
- explore external funding for the trial programme.
Plot No. Plot description Follow-up activities/ Recommendations
TC 2 Natural forest regeneration from coppice or seedling.
Total are of 5 ha divided into 2 ha reference plot and 3 ha intervention plot (thinning done in 96/99)
Redefine and mark plot borders
Permanent marking of target trees
Continue yearly measurement
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Species composition suitable to meet local demand for timber and fuelwood.
Appropriate density of the stand for further management options like high forest or coppice with standard.
TC 4 Plantation trial with 8 species.
3 subplots (36 trees of 8 species in each plot) out of which 1 plot was maintained to be protected by fence, the remaining 2 plots were affected by grazing animals.
One group of natural regenerated Litsea cubeba within the plot area.
Last measurement of survival rates 11/2000:
Continue to protect trial area by maintain fencing
Continue yearly measurement
It is necessary to carry out weeding and tending
Fokiena hodginsii
Cinnamomum cassia
Canarium album
Schima superba
Alnus nepalensis
Cunninghamia sinensis
Podocarpus waliichiana
Dalbergia hupeana
4/36
28/36
6/36
28/36
33/36
31/36
13/36
24/36
TC 5 Natural stand of Schima wallichii which regenerated since 1989 after abolish an unsuccessful Aleurites montana plantation.
Three subplots in north, northeast and southern direction in order to cover the whole spectrum of site conditions.
Forest is thinned and well protected by household Permanent marking of target trees
Follow up data collection of growth characteristics of main
Estimated density per ha
Average diameter [cm]
Average height [ m ]
Estimated volume per ha
Estimated mean annual increment
1300-1500 trees
D10-20
H8-12
50-70 m3
4-6 m3/ha/year
target tree species
TC 6 Natural regenerated forest, aged 20, vigour growing and mixed with bamboo in the stage of flowering.
Thinning was conducted in 1998.
Protection of the forest is contracted out to villagers with fporest protection contracts (327 programme).
Demarcation of plot and measuring have previously not been done.
Do not continue
Estimated density per ha
Estimated basal area per ha
1000 trees
16 m²
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Estimated volume per ha >100 m³
TC 7 Improvement thinning in natural regeneration aged 8-10 years. Although the density is not even, there is no need for enrichment planting. The top of the plot has a slope of 200, causing difficult access for monitoring.
Dominant species: Schima wallichii, Eurya acuminata, Cratoxylum cochinchinensis, Quercus macrocalyx.
In spite of fencing trial still damaged by grazing animals Trial was not supported by farmers
Do not continue
Estimated density per ha 1.600 trees
TC 8 Young natural regenerated forest on abandoned shifting cultivation land.
After heavy thinning the area was overgrown by grass and fern.
The reference area with no intervention shows significant better growth and development of stand structure.
Maintenance of canopy closure has to be ensured while thinning young stands
The density of 400 trees/ha should only be applied for mature stands
Setting of plot and measuring
Estimated density per ha:
a) intervention area
b) reference area
400 remaining trees
2.000 trees
have not been taken previously Do not continue
TC 12 Plantation trial of Alnus nepalensis and Cunninghamia sinensis without protection by fence.
After 2 years the plantation was destroyed by animal grazing.
Species tested successfully in other trials in the region already
Beating up or replanting is not necessary.
TC 14 Natural regeneration developing into IIa forest after abandoned shifting cultivation since 1988. Tree density very uneven with open gaps dominated by fern.
Gaps were broadcasted with 250 kg Aleurites montana seeds in 1999. Seeds germinated and grown up to the size of transplants but show very poor growth rates.
Plot needs to be protected from animal grazing and fuelwood harvest.
Dominant timber species: Talauma gioi, Schima wallichii.
Ensure sufficient light conditions for enrichment plants by cutting competing trees and shrubs.
Protection from grazing and fuelwood collection has to be improved.
TC 15 Young natural regenerated forest (age 8-10 years) well regenerated and mixed with bamboo in the stage of flowering.
Thinning was conducted in 1999.
Forest protection is contracted out to villagers (327 programme).
Dominant tree species: Schima superba, Quercus macrocalyx, Phoebe cuneata, Machilus sp.
No plot demarcation and periodically measuring done so far, therefore it has to be assessed by the appearance
Follow up data collection of growth characteristics of main target trees.
Estimated density per ha
Average diameter [cm]
Average height [ m ]
Estimated volume per ha
800-1.200 trees
D10-20cm
H5-20m
> 50m3/ha
TC 17 Teak plantation species trial on 0.3 ha with 3 repetitions. 1.5 years after planting the survival rate was still 100, in the following period the trial was destroyed by grazing animals.
Area selection was not carried out properly
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There are many Teak plantations well developed in Son La, Dien Bien and Lai Chau under the 327 programme.
No need to repeat this trial even when well protected
Do not continue
TC 18 Trial on thinning in young natural regenerated forest aged 5 years.
Thinning was carried out in 5/1999.
Dominant tree species: Schima superba, Cratoxylum cochinchinensis, Eurya acuminata, Toxicodendron succedanea, Litsea cubeba, Talauma gioi
Demarcation of plot and measuring have not previously been done
Farmers can continue by themselves, no project activities necessary.
Estimated density per ha after intervention
Crown density
vegetation cover
Average height [ m ]
2500 trees
70%
80%
H7-8
YC 1 Natural regenerated IIa forest with improvement thinning.
Regenerated species are: Schima superba, Eurya acuminata, Cratoxylum cochinchinensis, Aporusa mirocalyx, Machilus sp.
It is necessary to set up permanent plots with yearly individual tree measurement
for data collection of growth characteristics of main target tree species.
Estimated density per ha
Average diameter [cm]
Average height [ m ]
canopy closure
ground vegetation cover
2500 trees
D2-10
H5-8
0.7-0.8
0.3-0.4
YC 2 Plantation trial of Dendrocalamus membranaceus since 5/1997.
200 seedlings were planted with spacing of 8-10 m.
The survival rate is more than 50%.
Left untended for a long time.
Clumps consist of three age-classes: old, medium and young.
50 clumps handed over to villagers but no further monitoring was carried out.
Initial techniques applied must be appropriate
Left untended for too long time Animal grazing resulted in loss of bamboo shoots
Do not continue
Average diameter[cm]
Average height [ m ]
ground vegetation cover
D2-10
H2-4
100% by grass
YC 3 Plantation trial of 6 species since May 1997 The reasons for high death rate is still not clear
Khaya senegalensis
Cassia siamea
22/36; D1-5; H0.3-1.5
0/36
Lack of tending and heavy impact from animal grazing
Do not continue
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Cinnamomum cassia
Dracontomelon duperreanum
Tectona grandis
Acacia mangium
0/36
0/36
35/36; D2-3; H0.4-0.8
13/36 (remaining were cut for power line)
YC 4 Mixed plantation trial of Cassia siamea, Tectona grandis and Acacia mangium with the following mixture by rows:
Cassia siamea and Acacia mangium: 1/0; 1/1; 2/3
Tectona grandis and Acacia mangium: 1/0; 1/1; 2/3
Canarium tramdenum planting in vertical lines near the road.
Impact from animal grazing and insufficient protection
Remaining species show poor growth
Only continue if protection is ensured.
Teak can not keep up with height
Cassia siamea
Acacia mangium
Tectona grandis
Canarium tramdenum
15/16; D1-4; H0,3-2,5
12/16; D2-8; H1,8-7,0
15/16; D3-8; H1,0-6,0
0/16
growth of Acacia in this development stage
Max. each 2 rows of Teak one row of Acacia
YC 5 regulated utilisation of natural forest (IIa)
The stand covers an area of 13 ha and shows a high tree density and is suitable for harvesting fuelwood.
Thinning was carried out in 1997 with assistance of the project on 0,3 ha and continued by framers in 1998 on 0,5 ha.
Main tree species are Lithocarpus elegans, Cratoxylon cochinchinensis, Engelhardtia spicata, Aporusa tetrapleura, Mangifera foetida.
Continue to promote thinning activities in the total area of 13 ha.
Fuelwood harvest near the village is main priority.
Marking of target trees for timber production.
YC 6 Sustainable production of bamboo shoots since 4/1998.
Mainly indigenous Bambusa spinosa with some clumps of Sinocalamus giganteus and Neohuzeana sp.
Clumps in the intervention area consist of three age-classes: 5/ 3/ 2 years
Clumps without intervention consist of three generations: 8/ 6/ 4 years
No clear description of intervention method, bamboo grown from indigenous seedling, scattered bushes
Market for bamboo is too far away
Villagers are not allowed to sell bamboo shoots in Yen Chau.
3 types of interventions: light, medium, and heavy
Need to re-design and to repeat the trial with stands near the roadside for market access
Estimated number of clumps per ha
Average number of poles per clump
Average diameter [cm]
Average height [ m ]
120
8-32
D6-9
H18-22
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YC 7 Thinning of regenerated forest from 12/1998.
Species regenerated mainly coppice e.g., Quercus serrata, Cratoxylum cochinchinensis, Markhamia indica, Dalbergia balansae and Fagaceae
Criteria for thinning unclear
Establishing thinning guidelines aiming at establishment of a coppoce system with standards. Intervention and reference area.
Estimated density per ha
Average diameter [cm]
Average height [ m ]
canopy closure
>5000/ha,
D1-12
H8-10
0,7-0,9
Should be demarcated for further monitoring
YC 8,9 Fire protection trial
The trials have been designed as pure fire breaks without additional planting. The width is 10m, the length is 2 and 3 km.
Promote monitoring about impact of this practise by local forest protection unit and possible taking over for fire prevention.
YC 10 Natural regeneration with enrichment planting of Tectona grandis, Chukrasia tabularis since 6/1999. Natural regenerated trees include species as Cinnamomum cassia and Cratoxylum cochinchinensis.
Gaps range from from 100m² to several hundred m2.
Replace planting rows by group planting
Select suitable species
Choose transplants that ensure the height standard for enrichment plantings
Estimated density per ha
Average height [ m ]
canopy closure
> 1000 trees
H1-5
40%
30% covered by bamboo
Do not continue
YC 11 Natural regeneration with Tectona grandis and Chukrasia tabularis enrichment planting from 6/1999. with together with Phyllantus emblica and Mangifera foetida.
Some natural regenerated species such as Cinnamomum, Machilus, Lagerstroemia tomentosa
Planting rows are shaped like pipes.
Bamboo density is too high
Not enough light for the plants in the planting lines
Seedlings don’t ensure height standard for enrichment plantings Unsuitable species selection
Average height [ m ]
Average diameter [cm]
canopy closure
a. bamboo b. trees
H2-6
D2-10
60%
35%
Do not continue
YC 12 Natural regeneration and enrichment planting with Teak, Chukrasia, Dracontomelon from 5/2000
Dominant tree species: Cratoxylum, Trema, Caesalpinia sappan, Quercus sp., Lagerstromia
Planting rows shaped like pipes
Open lines to provide better light conditions for seedlings.
Plantings don’t meet height standards for enrichment planting
Beating up seedlings in rows.
Estimated density per ha 700 trees
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ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 1: Management of pure bamboo stands
Average height [ m ]
Average diameter [cm]
canopy closure of bamboo
ground cover
H10
D1-12
30%
30-40%
YC 13 Natural regeneration and enrichment from June 2000 with Teak and Chukrasia
The same situation like YC.11,12 but with fewer regenerated trees, lines are shaded and did not receive any tending.
Choose suitable species
Ensure height standard for enrichment plantings
Open lines to provide better light conditions for plantings
YC 14 Restoration of degraded hill forest by natural regeneration.
Investigation on natural regeneration of Pinus khasya and Quercus macrocalyx at the height of 1,000-1,100 a.s.l. at Mt. Khau Khan was conducted.
This area forms the natural limit of distribution between the 2 mountainous pines Pinus merkusii at the height of 500-1,000 m. a.s.l. and P. khasya at a height of over 1,000m a.s.l.
Natural regenerated broadleaved trees: Quercus macrocalyx, Cratoxylum cochinchinensis, Schima wallichii, Syzygium, Rhus succedana, Cassia siamea, Phyllanthus emblica.
Restauration period for 10 year with help of mother trees
Continue monitoring and yearly measurement
It is necessary to set up more ample plots for measuring the regeneration of pine.
Estimated density of pine trees per ha
Average height [ m ]
Average diameter of pine trees [cm]
canopy closure of broadleaved trees
30
H12-30
D15-30
40%
1 Technical Option
Name: Management of pure bamboo stands
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Sustainable utilisation of existing bamboo stands. Products: Culms (400 pieces) and shoots (100 kg) per hectare Rotation: Annual harvest Other Objectives: Ensure protection function of forest as well as erosion control.
3 Application
To: Natural or planted bamboo stands on slopes < 40°
Species: Dendrocalamus sp. (Loung, mai sang), Bambusa spinosa (Tre gai), Sinocalamus giganteus (Tre
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ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 2: Natural regeneration for re-establishment of forest on bare land
buong), Neohuzeana sp. (Tre nua)
4 Silvicultural Procedures
Time: For harvest of shoots, only the first shooting in the year is recommended (depending on species, usually in May-June), for harvest of culms October-November according to experience of farmer.
How: Culms have minimum age of three years, cutting under 40 cm above ground. Cutting of culms growing in the center of the clump is preferred to facilitate enlargement of clumps. Removal of dead culms for fuelwood or shred and dispose on the place.
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
� 200 clumps of bamboo are retained per hectare. � 10 culms are retained in each clump. � Dead culms are removed.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per year 15,000 VNÐ/day
20 days for culm harvest and transport 5 days for shoots harvest
c Price/unit 2,500 VNÐ per culm 2,000 VNÐ per kg fresh shoots
d Harvested amount/ha/year 400 culms 100 kg shoots
e Gross return/ha/year 1,200,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/ha/year 825,000 VNÐ
g Net proceeds/workday 35,000 VNÐ for culms 25,000 VNÐ for shoots
7 Gender Aspects
Men: Harvesting and transport of culms.
Women: Harvesting of bamboo shoots; processing of bamboo shoots.
Activities can be done jointly together.
8 Experience
Year: Since 1997
Location: Huoi Toi village; Chieng Hac commune
Area: 0,5 ha (E&D plot)
Wider application: Possible on appr. 600 ha in Chieng Hac, 150 ha in Chieng Dong, 150 ha in Chieng Khoi, depending on market (paper mill in Mai Son).
1 Technical Option
Name: Natural regeneration for re-establishment of forest on bare land
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2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Utilise natural regeneration as a cost effective and labour extensive method for large scale re-afforestation.
Products: Slender poles and fuelwood for subsistence needs.
Rotation: Time frame of 5 - 8 years
Other Objectives: Efficient soil and watershed protection, reduced management and monitoring expenses. Biodiversity conservation by vital populations of local forest types.
3 Application
To: Bare land classified as:
Ic (scattered natural regeneration > 1000 trees/ha, tree height > 1m)
4 Silvicultural Procedures
Due to the specific site conditions of each area, including duration and kind of former land-use patterns, in some cases the natural regeneration can be supported by enrichment planting in order to meet a desired proportion of target trees within the time frame of 5 - 8 years given by the MARD.
Target trees are economically valuable trees desired in a specific density in the composition of the future stand and therefore form the main criteria for the necessity of enrichment plantings.
As enrichment plantings are very labour and cost intensive options with high risk of failure it should be applied only exceptional if the below mentioned criteria are met. It is recommended to apply enrichment planting only if the farmer is interested to increase the economic value of the stand. The minimal required numbers of target trees per hectare grouped in three age-classes are listed below.
Either
2,000 target tree seedlings with 0.3 - 1.3 m height
or
500 young target trees with heights > 1.3 m and dbh < 5 cm
or
100 target trees > 5 cm dbh
Coppices from the same stem are counted as one tree only. The number of target trees will be determined based on a random sampling of 3-5 sample plots per hectare during site mapping and afforestation planning. The sample plots will be of circular shape with 5.64 m radius (100 m²). The average number of target trees in the sample plots will be multiplied by 100 to calculate the number of target trees per ha.
Out of this data the following Index can be calculated as:
Target tree index = NA+0.2*NB+0.05*NC
NA = target tree; > 5 cm dbh
NB = young target tree; height > 1.3 m; dbh < 5 cm
NC = target tree seedling; 0.3 - 1.3 m height
If the Index value will not reach the threshold value of 100 enrichment planting has to be taken into consideration. The natural regeneration can be considered as sufficient with an Index value of over 100 resulting in no enrichment planting activities.
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a) enrichment planting in areas of insufficient natural regeneration
Enrichment planting will be carried out along control lines. The distance between the lines is 8 m, while the width of the line is 1m. Planting of seedlings is not done on the line itself, but alternately every 3 m (400 trees/ha) or every 4 m (300 trees/ha) on the right and left side in a zig-zag like system. The distance to the centre of the control line will be around 1.0-1.5 m. This so-called "crocodile teeth-model" is recommended in order to minimise damages by animals grazing along the lines. This model should be applied flexible to avoid any planting activity near target trees as well as to concentrate additional planting in spots over 2,500 m2 where only a low number of target tress can be found.
Planting holes should be of 40x40x40 cm. A growing space of 1.0 - 1.5 m in radius is cleared around the seedlings by cutting all competing vegetation.
Seedling requirements are as follows: 1 year old, 60 - 80 cm in height, nursery bag 13x18 cm. The use of wildlings should be promoted.
Target trees should be permanently marked. While silvicultural treatments such as singling, pruning and adjusting of growing space are applied to target trees, it is not necessary to apply improvement thinning on the entire area.
First to third year:
- Control lines are cut every 8 m and walkable, - seedlings are planted and tended, survival rate should not decrease below 75%, - at least 400 natural regenerated target trees are marked.
Fourth to seventh year:
� Control lines are cut every 8 m and passable, � at least 600 trees/ha (natural regenerated and planted trees) are marked and have enough growing
space, � marked trees have an average height of 4 m.
Recommended species for enrichment planting:
a) shade-demanding tree species
Illicium verum Cinnamomum cassia Peltophorum pterocarpum
b) shade-tolerant tree species (shade tolerant when young, 2-3 years after planting more light demanding)
Canarium album Canarium tramdenum Chukrasia tabularis Pygeum odoratum Dracontomelon duperreanum
b. natural regeneration without additional planting
In order to achieve a desired density of economic valuable timber species for further production functions the following main silvicultural techniques should be applied:
first to third year:
� Annually improvement thinning on the entire area, including: � Removal of climbers, competitive shrubs and herbs by strictly protecting young regenerating trees. � Singling and pruning of coppices of desired species. � Removal of bad forms, diseased trees, and undesired species.
� Selection and permanent marking of at least 500 vigorous target trees per ha equally distributed. � Species selection of target trees in agreement with the local population.
fourth to seventh year:
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� Ground vegetation cover and young regenerating trees are retained and protected. � At least 500 healthy target trees are marked and have enough growth space. � Adjustment of density of and growth space for target trees is guided by giving space for the crown of
the trees. � Target trees have an average height of 4 m. � Guiding principle for adjustment of density is to select healthy and well-formed target trees and provide
space for their crown by removing competitors which interfere into the crown. � Thinning should be done at the end of the rainy season (Nov.-Dec.) or at the beginning of the rainy
season (March -May). � For singling and pruning of coppices see details in Technical Fact Sheet No. 4. � Outcome estimation per hectare during establishment phase: � first year: 2 m³ fuelwood � second year: 1 m³ fuelwood � third year: 1 m³ fuelwood � fourth year: 3 m³ fuelwood, slender poles � fifth year: 3 m³ fuelwood, slender poles
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
a). enrichment planting in areas of insufficient natural regeneration
first to fourth year:
� Competing groundcover is cleared in a radius of 1 m around the seedling, remaining ground vegetation cover is protected.
� The stand has at least 500 vigorous target trees/ha relatively equal distributed, plus additional 300 supporting trees/ha.
fifth to eighth year:
� Adjustment of density and growth space for target trees in form of improvement thinning is done in the entire stand.
� The restored forest should have at least 500 vigorous target trees/ha with an average height of 4 m. � Ground vegetation cover and tree seedlings (< 1m height) are retained and protected.
b). natural regeneration without additional planting
� The stand has at least 500 vigorous target trees/ha permanent marked and relatively equal distributed, plus additional 300 supporting trees/ha.
� Target trees are pruned in order to improve stem form and timber quality. � Regenerating trees are protected from fire, cutting and grazing. � Adjustment of density and growth space for target trees in form of improvement thinning is done in the
entire stand. � Coppices are singled to one to three branches.
6 Economic Assessment
a) enrichment planting in areas of insufficient natural regeneration
a Expenses/ha 300,000 VNÐ for seedlings
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
175 labour days for whole period of 8 years per hectare
c Price/unit 60,000 VNÐ/ stacked m³ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/rotation 8 stacked m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/rotation 480,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/rotation - 2,235,000 VNÐ equals -1,982,000 VNÐ net present value (8 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday n. a.
b) natural regeneration without additional planting
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per rotation 120 labour days for whole period of 8 years per
Page 24 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 3: Natural regeneration for re-establishment of protection forest on bare land
15,000 VNÐ/day hectare
c Price/unit 60,000 VNÐ/ stacked m³ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/rotation 10 stacked m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/rotation 600,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/rotation -1,200,000 VNÐ equals -1,047,000 VNÐ net present value (8 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday n. a.
7 Gender Aspects
no specific aspects
8 Experience
a) enrichment planting in areas of insufficient natural regeneration.
Year: Since 98/99 Location: Several communes in Yen Chau Area: Circa 60 ha planted by Debt Swap and 4 ha tested by SFDP.
b). natural regeneration without enrichment planting.
Year: Since 1996 Location: Tua Chua and Yen Chau district. Area: Approximately 800 ha in Tua Chua and 400 ha in Yen Chau within the framework of the Debt Swap, 20 ha E&D plots established by SFDP.
1 Technical Option
Name: Natural regeneration for re-establishment of protection forest on bare land
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Utilise natural regeneration as a cost effective and labour extensive method for re-establishment of protection forest land.
Time frame: 5-8 years for establishment
Rotation: Permanent forest cover
Other Objectives: Efficient soil and watershed protection, reduced management and monitoring expenses. Biodiversity conservation by vital populations of local forest types.
3 Application
To: Bare land in protection forest areas and in special use-forest areas including buffer-zones classified as:
Ic (scattered natural regeneration > 1000 trees/ha, tree height > 1m)
Ib (shrubland with scattered trees)
4 Silvicultural Procedures:
Page 25 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 4: Regulated management of natural forest (II a, IIb) by means of coppice with standards
The management options will focus primarily on the establishment and further maintenance of a permanent vegetation cover in form of a multilayered mixed forest stand made up of local tree species highly adapted to the specific site conditions.
Protection also includes silvicultural treatment of the stands, in particular for aspects of forest hygienics, to provide fuelwood and timber for the local population. Through this benefit sharing the local population will be involved in the protection activities, increasing their personal responsibility and consequently reducing monitoring and management expenses.
All thinning and harvest activities have to be done in a selective manner in order to maintain a closed canopy layer and to improve the vertical stand structure reducing impact from soil erosion. In contrast to production forest no selection nor preferential treatment for target trees should be carried out in order to secure the natural species composition.
Especially on sloping land the strict protection of the undergrowth including shrubs and herbal vegetation cover is of further importance to reduce erodibility of the site.
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
� Regenerating trees are protected from fire, cutting and grazing.
� Ground vegetation cover and young regenerating trees are protected. � Forest canopy after restoration should be at least 0.6 with shrub vegetation at the ground.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
80 labour days for whole period of 5-8 years per hectare
c Price/unit 60,000 VNÐ/ stacked m³ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/Rotation 8 stacked m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/rotation 480,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/rotation -810,000 VNÐ equals -693,000 VNÐ net present value (8 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday n. a.
7 Gender Aspects
no specific aspects
8 Experience
Year: Since 1993, within the framework of 327-program. Location: Tua Chua and Yen Chau district. Area: 10 ha E&D plots established by SFDP, appr. 1400 ha within the 327-program. Approximately 800 ha in Tua Chua and 400 ha in Yen Chau within the framework of the Dept Swap project.
1 Technical Option
Name: Regulated management of natural forest (IIa, IIb) by means of coppice with standards
2 Management Objective
Page 26 of 37
Main Objective: To satisfy the local demand of forest products through sustainable management of natural regenerated forests stands.
Products: Construction timber, fuelwood, and non-timber forest products such as fodder, rattan and bark from Lithocarpus sp. for tannic acid
Rotation: Continuous forest management system
Other Objectives: Ensure protection function of forest and erosion control.
3 Application
To: Natural regenerated forest stands of IIa and IIb according to forest land-use classification in Vietnam.
IIa = young regenerated forest after shifting cultivation (average dbh > 8 cm)
IIb = regenerated forest after exploitation (average dbh < 20 cm, basal area 5 - 10 m²)
4 Silvicultural Procedures for:
Target tree selection:
� Selection and permanent marking of 100-200 (depending on size of final diameter) equally distributed target trees per ha with economic value.
� Target tree selection is done by local population according to needs.
Coppice:
� Application only possible to species with good ability to coppice (e.g. Quercus spp., Lithocarpus spp., Schima walichii, Cratoxylon cochinchinensis).
� During the first process of singling one to three erect, vigorous coppices should be retained per stump. � Coppices which grow at the upper side of roots on slope should be favoured. � During the second process of singling after one to two years the best two branches per stump have to
be selected. � In the third process after three to four years encourage growth of the best coppice standard per stump
by cutting away the rest.
� If necessary pruning up to half height of the coppice standard can be carried out in order to improve the tree shape and to increase the yield of branches for fodder and fuelwood.
� The underwood is managed as simple coppice and may be harvested two or more times before the overwood is cut.
� Harvesting can be done throughout the whole year whenever fodder or fuelwood is needed.
Standards:
� An overwood of 1/3 canopy is retained to grow into dimensions of larger poles. � The height of the stump to be left should be 40 to 50 cm over the ground or of 1/3 of the tree diameter. � For each standard removed 2 or 3 trees from the underwood should be selected to grow through into
the overwood to provide a replacement. � In order to improve the timber quality of the standards in the overwood pruning is done up to 2/3 of tree
height at the same time reducing the chance of fire reaching the overwood. � Stumps have to be trimmed in order to make their surface smooth and slightly sloping for easier drain
of water to prevent from fungi infection.
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatment
first year to fourth Year:
� Coppices are singled to one to three branches. � 100-200 healthy target trees/ha equally distributed have been selected. � The remaining underwood and ground vegetation cover is retained and protected. � Protection of regenerating trees from fire, cutting and grazing as replacement standards. � Target trees are pruned in order to improve stem form and timber quality. � Flowering and fruiting must be encouraged in order to get natural seedling regeneration to replace old
Page 27 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 5: Gradual transformation of young restored f orest into high forest management systems
stumps. � Further treatment after selective cutting of standards according to point 4 leading to continuos forest
stand structures.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
338 labour days for whole period of 25 years per hectare
c Price/unit 700,000 VNÐ/m³ stem-wood 60,000 VNÐ/stacked m³ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/rotation 45 m³ stem-wood 58 stacked m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/rotation 33,240,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/rotation 28,170,000 VNÐ equals 7,471,000 VNÐ net present value (25 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday 22,100 VNÐ
7 Gender Aspects
Jointed planning of activities in the under- and overwood is essential to adjust the sustainable growth of the standards. Men: Harvest and transport of standards and poles. Women: Harvest of bark and fuelwood during singling, coppicing and pruning.
8 Experience
Year: Since 2/1999 Location: Dong Tau village; Chieng Dong commune Area: 5.0 ha.
1 Technical Option
Name: Gradual transformation of young restored forest into high forest management systems
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Improvement thinning in natural regenerated forest stands to foster the growth on desired target trees. Products: Construction timber, slender poles and fuelwood for subsistence needs. Species: Main target trees Schima walichii and Castanopsis spp. Rotation: To be decided after establishment of stand; circa 25 years. Other Objectives: Watershed protection, erosion control
3 Application
This technical option can be applied to forest land classified as IIa; to forest land classified as protection forest as well as production forest land.
Limited to areas where fuelwood for subsistence need is not the primary demand on forest land due to sufficient supply of forest resources.
IIa (young regenerated forest after shifting cultivation; average dbh > 8 cm)
4 Silvicultural Procedures
� Support of target trees by removing competitors to concentrate growth yield on the desired target trees.
Page 28 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 6: Management of mixed pine/ broadleaf tree s tands
� All harvest activities have to be carried out in a selective manner in order to minimise gaps in the canopy layer to prevent invasion of grass and undesired shrubs.
� Final diameter for harvest cut should be at least 30 cm for house construction timber. � For each felled target tree 2 or 3 trees from the underwood should be selected to grow through into the
upper layer to provide a replacement. � Flowering and fruiting must be encouraged in order to get natural seedling regeneration to replace
harvested trees. � Bark and branches with diameters < 2 cm should be remained within the forest to minimise
translocation of nutrients and to reduce erodibility of the stand.
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
� Improvement thinning is done in the entire stand. � Adjustment of density and growth space for target trees is done in the entire stand. � � Coppices are singled. � Stand with at least 500 healthy target trees/ha with an average height of 4m. � In order to improve the timber quality pruning should be done up to 2/3 of tree height. � Ground vegetation cover and tree seedlings (< 1m height) are retained and protected.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
190 days protection 170 days harvesting å 360 days
c Price/unit700,000 VNÐ/m³ stem-wood 200,000 VNÐ/m³ poles 60,000 VNÐ/ stacked m³ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/Rotation
60 m³ stem-wood 20 m³ poles 10 stacked m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/ rotation 45,200,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/ rotation 39,800,000 VNÐ equals 11,000,000 VNÐ net present value (25 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/Workday 30,600 VNÐ
7 Gender Aspects
Men: Harvest of fuelwood and slender poles for roof and fence construction; men have better knowledge of target trees. Women: Harvest of fuelwood, improvement thinning areas usually near residential areas, lesser walking distance.
The work can be done jointly together.
8 Experience
Year: Since 1999 Location: Dong Phi 1 village, Muong Bang commune Area: 87 ha
1 Technical Option
Name: Management of mixed pine/ broadleaf tree stands
Page 29 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 7: Management of Teak plantations
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Production forest management of natural mixed pine forest stands Products: Pine construction timber with a final diameter of at least 30 cm; fuelwood. Species: Pinus khasya, Quercus acutissima, Syzygium emblica Rotation: Continuous forest management Other Objectives: Watershed protection, erosion control.
3 Application
To: Mountain forest in the natural range of pine forests with limited growth rates of deciduous trees due to poor site conditions.
4 Silvicultural Procedures
� Main focus on natural regeneration and growth improvement of pine target trees through improvement thinning.
� A minimum of 40 mother trees/ha should be maintained to stimulate seed production for natural regeneration.
� Creation of gaps by group-selection method of cutting (femel cutting) in order to meet the light requirements for regeneration of Pinus khasya.
� Pruning should be carried out up to 2/3 of tree height in order to improve the timber quality of target trees.
� Remaining deciduous trees have serving functions in the understory and for fuelwood production for subsistence. Regeneration through coppice or seeds.
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
� Natural regeneration of Pinus khasya is stimulated by creating gaps in the canopy. � Pruning has been carried out in the entire stand. � Adjustment of density and growth space for target trees is done in the entire stand. � Target trees have enough growth space, competitive deciduous trees have been extracted.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha --
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
150 days protection 10 days pruning
c Price/m³70 days harvesting å 230 days 250,000 VNÐ stem-wood 60,000 VNÐ fuelwood
d Harvested amount/rotation 40 m³ stem-wood 5 m³ fuelwood
e Gross return/rotation 10,000,000 VNÐ stem-wood 300,000 VNÐ fuelwood
f Net proceeds/rotation 7,000,000 VNÐ equals 992,000 VNÐ net present value (30 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday 4,300 VNÐ
7 Gender Aspects
Joint planning of activities is essential to adjust species composition in favour of the desired target trees. Men: Harvest of large pine timber; management of overwood. Women: Harvest of fuelwood during thinning and pruning.
8 Experience
Year: Since 1997 Location: Na Pan village; Chieng Dong commune Area: Circa 50 ha
Page 30 of 37
1 Technical Option
Name: Management of Teak plantations
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Sustainable timber production. Products: Valuable timber with minimum diameter of 30 cm. Rotation: Dependent on period of reaching final diameter; circa 35 years. Other Objectives: Minimise erosion by strict protection of undergrowth.
3 Application
To: Establishment of - and/or management of existing Teak plantations on production forest land or in areas classified as less critical watershed on slopes up to 25°.
Species: Tectona grandis
4 Silvicultural Procedures
a) for: Establishment of Teak plantations
� Planting of 1,500 Teak stumps per hectare with a spacing of 2.6 x 2.6 m. � Teak seedlings may be interplanted with Leucaena leucocephala in order to provide mulch cover to
reduce the impact from erosion and fodder for livestock breeding if enough local capacity for further tending and control of free grazing is available.
� For interplanting of Leucaena the spacing between the lines should be around 3 to 4 meters. � Management according to the thinning cycle by stem count in table 1 using dbh as main thinning
criteria due to lack of growth characteristics for the area. � Therefore monitoring of diameter increment is recommended every second year. � Thinning is controlled by removing 1 tree in a selected group size. � Trees to be removed are selected for stem form, size or other criteria in agreement with the
landowners.
b) for: Management of already established plantations
� Management according to the thinning cycle by spacing in table 1 using dbh as main thinning criteria due to high variations in stem number at date of planting.
� Therefore monitoring of diameter increment is recommended every second year. � Spacing as the main thinning criteria will lead to an iterative standardisation of the remaining stem
number.
Table 1: Thinning cycle for Teak plantation
dbh stem spacing trees/ha
[cm] count [m] removed remaining
10 1 in 3 3.2x3.2 500 1,000
15 1 in 4 3.7x3.7 250 750
20 1 in 3 5.0x5.0 250 400
30 1 in 4 5.8x5.8 100 300
35 -- -- 300 --
5 Minimum Requirements to Stand after Treatments
� Strict protection of undergrowth in order to lower erosion. � Stem number has been reduced according to bhd following table 1. � Ground vegetation cover and young regenerating trees are protected.
6 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/ha 1,050,000 VNÐ for seedlings
Labour/per rotation 100 days planting and tending 245 days protection
Page 31 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 8: Shellac production
b 15,000 VNÐ/day 150 days thinning 300 days harvesting å 795 days
c Price/m³ 4,000,000 VNÐ for stem-wood 1,000,000 VNÐ for poles
d Harvested amount/rotation 200 m³ stem-wood 50 m³ poles
e Gross return/rotation 850,000,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/rotation 837,000,000 VNÐ equals 162,929,000 VNÐ net present value (35 years, 5% depreciation rate)
g Net proceeds/workday 204,900 VNÐ
7 Gender Aspects
Men: Harvesting and transport exclusive task of men. Women: Collecting and transport of felling refuse for fuelwood.
8 Experience
Year: Since 1996 established during 327-program. Location: Chieng Hac commune Area: Circa 70 ha
1 Technical Option
Name: Shellac production
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Generation of complementary income apart from agricultural cash crops. Products: Seed lac Rotation: 6 month Other Objectives: Promote agroforestry land-use systems.
3 Application
To: forest gardens around residential areas with existing Dalbergia host trees and/or scattered trees on upland fields.
4 Agroforestry Procedures
� Forest stands for shellac production should have a relatively low density (200 host trees/ha) in order to secure air humidity of less than 85% and enough diffused light suitable for the insects.
� Dalbergia hupeana and D. balanasae with natural range in the Song Da watershed are traditionally used with the first breeding cycle in the third to fourth year after planting.
� In May or October infected pieces of bark containing the insect Laccifer lacca syn. Kerria lacca are tied around branches of the host tree.
� During a period of 6 month the infected branches will be covered by thick layers of secretions produced by the insect in order to protect their brood.
� During harvest these branches will be cut of and the infected bark will be taken of and traded as so-called seed lac.
� Parts of the infected bark will be retained and used for further production. � The trees will be managed in a pollarding system. � Frost can threat the development of the insects. � Between 60 to 100 host trees scattered on farm land or in the village area can be managed by a single
household.
Page 32 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 9: Apiculture
5 Economic Assessment
a Starting expenses 20,000 VNÐ one kg infected bark
b Labour/per rotation 15,000 VNÐ/day
4 days planting of 60 host trees 2 day for application of insects to 30 host trees 2 days for tending 5 days 30 host trees cropped per person by cutting of the infected branches.
c Price/kg
15,000 VNÐ dried, unprocessed seed lac sold in the village 20,000 VNÐ dried, unprocessed seed lac sold at the market
d Harvested amount/year 150 kg resin per 60 mature trees per household 1/2 of these yearly cropped
e Average gross return/year 2,250,000 VNÐ on the basis of 5 kg per tree and 30 trees per harvest per year
f Average net proceeds/year 2,115,000 VNÐ per household per year
g Average net proceeds/workday 162,700 VNÐ
6 Gender Aspects
The work is done by both gender without specific division of labour except cutting of the infected branches is usually done by men.
7 Experience
Year: Since 1996 seedlings of Dalbergia provided; in 2000 seed lac insects distributed
Location: Phi Ding 2 village, Xinh Phing commune; Pokadau village, Trung Thu commune
1 Technical Option
Name: Apiculture
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Provide income besides main agricultural cash crops. Products: Wax, honey Species: Apis spp. and Trigona spp.
3 Application
To: Local households
4 Apicultural Procedures
Methods of bee keeping:
a) Traditional wild nests in trees or caves are smoked out, caught and brought home for keeping Apis cerana and Trigona spp. in hollow tree trunks with fixed combs.
Introduced method:
b) square boxes with top-bar hives.
Page 33 of 37
ANNEX 3: Fact Sheets
Table 10: Fungus cultivation
During harvest only ½ of the total number of honey combs are extracted in order to prevent absconding of the colony. 20 days later the second harvest can be carried out.
After extracting the combs out of the hives the honey parts are squeezed for honey while the brood parts are eaten.
One household can own up to 30 colonies of bees which can result in a considerable additional income due to the high prices fetched even at local markets.
5 Economic Assessment
a Starting expenses per colony *(10 units/colony/year)
220,000 VNÐ square box incl. 1 colony 50,000 VNÐ square box 5,000 VNÐ feeding tray 2,500 VNÐ/sheet wax foundation* 250,000 VNÐ honey extractor (optional)
b Labour/per colony 15,000 VNÐ/day 2 colonies can be harvested per 1 morning
c Price/unit 20,000 VNÐ per kg honey 40,000 VNÐ per kg wax
d Harvested amount/year 5 kg honey/colony 0.5 kg wax/colony
e Average gross return/20 colonies/year 2,400,000 VNÐ
f Average net proceeds/20 colonies/year 1,675,000 VNÐ
g Average net proceeds/ workday 111,700 VNÐ
6 Gender Aspects
Beekeeping could become a meaningful source of income especially for women but at present mainly men take care for the colonies.
7 Experience
Year: since 1996
Location: Tapao and Desehu village, Xinh Phinh commune; Trung Thu commune
1 Technical Option
Name: Fungus cultivation (black mushroom)
2 Management Objective
Main Objective: Provide income besides main agricultural cash crops.
Products: Auricularia polytricha
Rotation: Twice a month from May to July.
3 Application
To: Homegardens and under stilt houses of Thai people.
4 Agroforestry Procedures
� Harvest suitable cuttings (» 120cm x 20cm e.g. Ficus benjaminii, Ficus elastica, Ficus glomerata, Ficus
Page 34 of 37
Annex 4: Explanation of technical terms
Coppice: New growth of shoots from tree stumps occurring by a number of broadleaf species. Coppices show rapid early growth compared to seedlings. However, stumps have limited lifetime and loose their coppicing ability when they are cut many times. Thus stumps need to be replaced by other trees regenerated from seeds.
Coppice with standards: Forest management system in which forest has a distinct overwood (standards) of around 1/3 cover providing poles and construction timber and a dense underwood of coppice regrowth for fuelwood harvest.
Dbh: Diameter measured at breast height (1.3 m).
Group-selection method of cutting ( femel cutting): Thinning technique in which small groups of trees are selected for cutting in order to create gaps for natural regeneration.
Improvement thinning: Harvesting of a certain proportion of trees in the stand by removing undesired species, trees with poor shape or vitality in order to foster the growth on the target trees.
Pollarding system: Repeated harvest of total crown material from the same tree.
Pruning: Managed cutting of branches from trees in order to improve the shape of the bole, at the same time
auriculata, Artocarpus heterophyllus) to provide new culture medium for fungus cultivation in a 3 years rotation.
� Growing season from May to July with up to 6 cycles of fungus cultivation. � Small holes are cut out of the trunk and filled with a mixture of lime and clay and the end section is
whitewashed in order to prevent infection by other undesired fungi. � Spraying of water in order to maintain humidity may prolong the growing season.
5 Economic Assessment
a Expenses/m³ timber 16,300 VNÐ (incl. hammer for inoculation)
b Labour/3 m³ timber/per year 15,000 VNÐ/day
2 days for transport and preparation of cuttings 12 days harvesting and drying of fungus
c Price/unit 30,000 VNÐ/kg dried 10,000 VNÐ/kg fresh
d Harvested amount/3 m³ timber/year 40 kg dried fungus
e Gross return/3 m³ timber/year 1,080,000 VNÐ
f Net proceeds/3 m³ timber/year 821,000 VNÐ
g Net proceeds/workday 58,600 VNÐ
6 Gender Aspects
Men: Provide suitable cuttings for fungus cultivation.
Women: Cultivation, harvest and drying of fungi.
7 Experience
Year: Since 2000
Location: Chieng Khoi commune
Households: Circa 50 households involved in fungus cultivation
Page 35 of 37
providing fodder and fuelwood for local consumption.
Singling: Treatment of natural regeneration from coppices and bushy shrubland in order to transform such stands into a high forest or a coppice system with standards. One or two erect and healthy branches out of a number of branches are retained (singled), all remainders are cut.
Stem count: Thinning is controlled by removing 1 or 2 trees in a selected group size, e.g. one tree is to be removed in a group of 8 trees (1 in 8).
Target trees: Economically useful trees on which the management of some stands is focused on and which are envisioned to grow into bigger dimensions. Trees are selected according to local preferences.
Target tree index: Due to the uneven vertical structure of natural regenerating forest stands the target tree index provides a practicable way to estimate the minimum required number of target trees per hectare taking into account variations in diameter and height.
ANNEX 5: List of target tree species in the Song Da watershed
No. Tree Species Family Vietnamese Name
Ecology Timber Group
Uses
A: Target trees
1 Anthocephalus chinensis Rubiaceae G¸o P VII Carpentry, Carvings
2 Betula alnoides Betulaceae C¸ng lß P VI Constr.
3 Burretiodendron hsienmu Tiliaceae NghiÕn L II Constr., Furniture
4 Canarium tramdenum Burseraceae Tr¸m ®en St VII Constr., Fruits
5 Castanopsis indica Fagaceae Cµ æi L III Constr., Furniture
6 Chukrasia tabularis Meliaceae L¸t hoa St I Constr., Furniture
7 Dalbergia balansae Fabaceae Tr¾c balansa L Furniture
8 Dracontomelon duperreanum Anacardiaceae SÊu St VI Constr., Furniture
9 Duabanga grandiflora Sonneratiaceae Phay P VI Constr.
10 Engelhardtia chrysolepis Juglandaceae CheÏo P VI Constr., Boards
11 Fokienia hodginsii Cupressaceae P¬ mu L I Furniture, Oil
12 Keteleeria davidana Pinaceae Du sam St I Constr., Furniture
13 Lagerstroemia sp. Lythraceae B»ng l¨ng L III Furniture
14 Lithocarpus elegans Fagaceae Såi b«ng L Constr., Furniture
15 Litsea monopetala Lauraceae Bêi lêi l¸ trßn L Poles, Boards
16 Machilus spp. Lauraceae Kh¸o L IV
17 Mangifera foetida Anacardiaceae Muçn L VI Constr., Boards
18 Melia azedarach Meliaceae Xoan P VI Constr., Poles
19 Pinus khasya Pinaceae Th«ng ba l¸ P IV Plywood, h. impl.
20 Podocarpus imbricatus Podocarpaceae B¹ch tïng St IV Constr., Furniture
21 Pometia pinnata Sapindaceae Trêng mËt St III Furniture
22 Quercus spp. Fagaceae DÎ L V Constr.
Page 36 of 37
Explanation:
Ecology: P = pioneer tree species, L = light demanding, St = shade tolerant when young, S = Shade bearing
Timber group: According to Decision 2198/CN (1977) Ministry of Forestry, Vietnam
Uses: Constr. = Construction purposes
23 Schima superba/ wallichii Theaceae Vèi thuèc L VI Constr.
24 Styrax tonkinensis Styracaeae Bå ®Ò L VIII Matches, Oil
25 Talauma gioi Magnoliaceae Giæi L IV Constr., Furniture
26 Toona sinensis Meliaceae T«ng dï L VI Constr., Furniture
27 Vitex pubescens var. ptilota Verbenaceae B×nh linh P III Tools, Appliances
B: Supporting trees
28 Alstonia scholaris Apocynaceae Mß cua (S÷a) L VII Plywood
29 Elaeocarpus spp. Elaeocarpaceae C«m L IV Boards
30 Litsea cubeba Lauraceae Mµng tang P V Fuel, Oil
31 Syzygium spp. Myrtaceae Tr©m St VII
Page 37 of 37
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