![]() One concerns Red Maple (we often call them ’Swamp Maples’ around here, on the end of Long Island)…When a red maple topples in a wetland area, but still continues to send new, live shoots upward, perpendicular to the trunk, what is this kind of growth called? And, is the reason they topple so easily because of the ‘sogginess’ of the soil and a shallow root system? I have a question about secondary sprouting on certain tree species and the correct terminology for these…suckering? coppicing? adventitious growth? I’m a little confused by the proper use of these terms. In the Nilgiri Hills in India it has been successfully grown for fuel wood in rotations of 10 years for the past century.Įxtracts from Managing blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus) coppice TreeNote No.I received the following question, and offer this response. Shoots should be removed when they are about 2 m in height (about 18 months of age after harvest in a typical area), when shears (rather than chainsaws) can still be used and the dominance of the selected stems limits new shoots.īlue gum is capable of coppicing over many rotations. the shoots are on opposite sides of the stool.the shoots are co-dominant and showing good growth and form .the stool is not below average diameter for that stand .the surrounding stocking of live stools .the characteristics of the shoots on the stool.With a two-stemmed tree, wastage is also likely to be slightly higher.Ĭurrent knowledge suggests it is best to decide the number of shoots to be retained for each individual tree by considering in combination: .two stems have the potential to hinder harvesting.Two-stemmed trees supress further shoots.A single stem will result in handling fewer logs at harvest.Single stem coppices are more likely to create new coppice shoots.The ultimate aim is to maximise the wood volume of the utilisable stems and it is recommended that one or two shoots per stool are retained, with the following considerations Access problems can be partly overcome by directing the bulk of the trash into alternate rowsīy pruning unwanted stems, growth can be channelled into selected stems, giving them a greater chance of survival to harvest. Although trash retention may cause access problems and a fire hazard, it is desirable as it retains nutrients, conserves soil moisture and minimises erosion. Spreading trash is preferred so it acts as a mulch. ![]() Trash can be used to protect the stools while harvesting of nearby trees takes place, but should be removed before the coppice shoots begin to appear. A low-cut stool will direct growth into more choice stems which are stronger and less prone to wind damage. The ideal stool should be 10 to 20 cm high, with a smooth surface on a slight angle (to shed water) with good bark attachment. Harvest timing affects stool survival and cutting in autumn is ideal unless the area is prone to frosts, when felling should be delayed until late winter. Cutting in summer will delay sprouting and increase the chance of the stool drying out and may also lead to the separation of bark from the stool. More details will be available after our field day in May 2017Ĭoppicing involves a shoot reduction operation and removal of trash from the stumps.ĭisturbance to the structure and function of a tree during harvest will result in some deaths. If coppicing, harvest operations must maximise the survival of stools (living stumps) from which coppice grows. Stumps have been mulched, some burnt and pulled out, some coppice has been killed off with herbicide with the slash pushed up into winrows for burning and some has been left to grow. There are a number of methods being trialled to remove coppice and stumps post harvesting to return the area to farmland. This difference arises from not only the saved costs of site preparation, seedlings and planting but also herbicides and fertiliser. The cost saving in coppicing over replanting may be some 20 to 30 per cent. Coppice on good quality sites where there is sufficient stocking it may be more economic to coppice.Replant new genetic material or species could deliver yield benefits but these would have to outweigh the costs of re-establishment.There are three post-harvest options for the management of these types of plantations: It is generally accepted that a tree grown from coppice will produce greater yields than a seedling of the same age as the stems grow from a large and well-established root system. Many Eucalyptus species coppice readily and overseas, large areas of blue gum plantations are actually managed in short rotations as coppice. There are many things to consider for managing land following the harvest of a tree crop, but the first is how to manage the coppice - the stems that naturally regenerate from the base of a harvested tree
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