Groups teach better forestry techniques
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Staff Writer
A tree fertilized when it is mature may produce more timber than one fertilized from its seedling stage, even though the fertilized seedling starts out a lot quicker.
A Hawai'i forestry study with that conclusion was presented last week to the Hawai'i Forest Industry Association's conference, "Growing Working Forests for Hawai'i's Future," which was held on Kaua'i.
The focus of the three-day symposium was providing practical information to the people who do forestry on the Islands. They learned about thinning and pruning, about fertilizing and seed selection, about windbreaks and tax breaks.
"This was for the people who put it in the ground," said Andrea Gill, the organization's director.
A key issue is sustainability — managing forests so they continue to be productive over time but also provide habitat for forest species, said Keith Argow, of the National Woodland Owners Association.
The association, along with the National Forestry Association and the Association of Consulting Foresters, has developed the Green Tag program, which is a lumber certification process. It ensures buyers of lumber that the timber has been produced in a way that supports natural diversity in the forests.
He said 60 percent of the nation's wood comes from independent forest lands rather than government or industrial forests. And almost all of Hawai'i's woodlands fall into the independent category.
Gill said keys for landowners in the Islands are that no single species of tree is appropriate for all sites and no set of practices is the most environmentally appropriate for all sites.
"One of the lessons I hope people are taking away from this is the importance of creating a management plan," she said.
Before landowners start planting trees, one of the issues they need to consider is what their goals are.
They might be planting to provide a college education fund for their children, or to provide income for future generations, or perhaps simply to improve watersheds, to restore native species, or to control soil erosion.
Each of those might require a different approach to the management and species mix for a particular piece of land.
Kaua'i forester Bill Cowern said that in some parts of the country, people can choose a tree to plant.
"In Hawai'i we don't have that luxury. You start with the land you have, or the land you think you can get, and then you figure out what can grow well on it," he said.
See the Hawai'i Forest Industry Association web site at hawaii-forest.org.
Jan TenBruggencate is The Advertiser's Kaua'i bureau chief and its science and environment writer. Call him at (808) 245-3074 or e-mail jant@honoluluadvertiser.com
