FOREST REGENERATION

Timely and qualitative forestation is one of basic conditions guaranteeing the principle of constancy, resources conservation, preservation of forest flora biodiversity and genetic potential in forestry of Belarus.

Forestry Development Program of Republic of Belarus for 2007-2011 provides for realization of forest regeneration and forestation measures in 2007 on the area of 50,5 ths ha, including forest sowing and planting on 44,6 ths ha.

Area of forest uncovered lands, which suit for artificial forest regeneration, made at the beginning of current year 62,0 ths ha.

In 2006 in forest nurseries there were grown 315,3 million standard seedlings and saplings of forest species. This allowed guaranteeing the execution of afforestation plan and exporting a part of planting stock. There were harvested 288,3 t of seed of deciduous and coniferous species; 9,6 t of high-quality pine and spruce seed were stored long-term.

In spring 2007 forest sowing and planting were realized on the area of 39,3 ths ha, including activities on :
 cleared space – 17,1 ths ha (43,5%);
 low-output agricultural lands, transferred into forest resources category – 13,6 ths ha (34,5%);
 glades and waste lands – 5,1 ths ha (13,0%);
 fire-sites and destroyed stands – 719 ha (1,8%);
 forest covered lands – 2,7 ths ha (6,8%);
 exhausted peat bogs and rock products pits 144 ha (6,8% and 0,4% accordingly).

On the area of 3864 ha there was accomplished the reconstruction of not valuable stands.

There were created 152 ha of sylvula plantations for supplying of Belarusian news-print manufacturer with raw wood and 191,5 ha of fast-growing species plantations for supplying of energy plants with fuel wood.

Forest regeneration and forestation in Belarus guarantees:
 obligatory forest regeneration on cleared areas, fire-sites and other categories of land during 2-3 years after their formation;
 compliance of tree species with conditions of vegetation;
 rational use of forest resources lands;
 preservation of forest biodiversity and gene pool;
 enlarging of oak, ash, bass forest area;
 creation mainly of mixed forest stands;
 improving of protective and recreational characteristics of forests, their productivity and sustainability;
 preservation and increasing of the percentage of forest land in the Republic of Belarus;
 satisfaction of social and economic needs for various forest products.

Projection and production; technical acceptance of work and inventory of forest and plantation cultures, protective stands; natural forest regeneration maintaining; underwood preservation of main species in clear fellings; attendant regeneration in selective fellings of final harvest and in improvement fellings are accomplished according to Technical codex of common practice “Instruction on Forest Regeneration and Forestation in the Republic of Belarus”.

Priority directions of genetic and selection forest regeneration in republic are:
- development and improving of forest seed stock;
- selection of forest tree species;
- preservation of forest genetic resources.

Development and improving of constant forest seed stock (CFSS) must provide forestry enterprises with valuable seed of forest tree species. It is planned to use by forest creation 50% of seed from the CFSS and 50% from the best natural stands.
For that there are developed two directions: population and plantation seed growing.
Forest seed stock of population selection includes: advantage trees, forest seed reserves, forest seed plots. It is intended allotting of commercial selection seed stands.

Main task of forest selection is quality improving and productivity increasing of forests through heredity and variability control of woody plants. The objective of forest seed growing is getting of varietal seed and earmarking for a given area.
To achieve these goals the following selection methods are used: mass, group, individual, combined and mutational selection, cultivation of separate cells and tissues.

For improving of quantitative and qualitative attributes principal direction it is planned to use population selection.
For improving of qualitative attributes of trees and wood, mass augmentation in short growing cycles individual selection is used.

Both directions foresee initiation of posterity trial plots.

The key pillar of scientific base for selection activities is developing of long term program of forest genetic improvement.

They are two directions of forest genetic resources preservation: preservation of population and species gene pool in-situ (in natural stands) and ex-situ (outside of natural stands). Primary is the first direction, because it allows preserving of gene pool of forest species in corpore.

These tasks are solved by the Forest Selection and Seed-Growing Centre and its branchs, as well as in forest species gene bank attached to Forest Research Institut.