Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 8.6
A litchi plantation
known as the “litchi forest”
near Maoming, China.
(©Diczbalis)
Forest Crops
Forests planted for timber and wood pulp now occupy approximately 300 Mha or
2 % of global land area (FAO
2006
). Forest plantings range in size from smallholder
plots to large agro-industrial scale plantations and occur over a range of climatic
zones. Planted forests are long-term investments that require careful planning prior
to establishment, in order to avoid negative impacts. Hence, issues such as germ-
plasm selection, site preparation, nursery production, planting, agronomic manage-
ment and harvesting will all impact on the success of the plantation
In 2015 the projected forest plantation area is 327 Mha with approximately a
50 % split between non-tropical and tropical forests. By 2020 an estimated 412 Mha
will be produced with 62 % coming from tropical based plantations (Anon
2007
).
Internationally; plantation forests account for approximately 95% of wood pulp
production, 85 % of reconstituted panels, 25 % of plywood and 22 % of sawn wood
production. The situation changes depending on continent with a high proportion
of wood products coming from plantation forests in Latin America and the Carib-
bean while most African forest products are largely dependent on wood supply from
natural forests (Anon
2007
).
Plantation forest areas are increasing rapidly to meet the rising demand for wood
products. The global outlook to 2030 and recent areas of planted forests by country
and the role planted forests play for the future of the worlds forest resources is cov-
ered by FAO (
2009
).
Case Studies
Three case studies are presented which attempt to define the past, evolution and
future of plantations.
