Silvicultural monitoring in uneven-aged highland dry Eucalyptus delegatensis forests in Tasmania

Summary

Poor early establishment and growth of regeneration following clearfelling of highland dry Eucalptus delegatensis forests in Tasmania in the 1970s led to the development of alternative practices. Shelterwood retention, shelterwood removal, potential sawlog retention and advance growth retention systems were developed and implemented by forest owners as preferable alternatives to clearfelling in most instances.

Less than optimal outcomes following partial harvesting led to the development of formal monitoring procedures. These procedures assess the pre-harvesting forest structure, guide development of the harvesting prescription, follow the course of harvesting, return information on progress to the harvesting contractor, and allow for continuous improvement of operations. Together they ultimately provide improved outcomes for the forest grower.

The paper discusses the development of uneven-aged management and describes the processes used to develop and monitor the outcomes.

Keywords:

• natural regeneration
• silviculture
• monitoring
• Eucalyptus delegatensis
• Tasmania