Forest owners are becoming increasingly interested in forest regeneration. More and more are prepared to pay for saplings that grow faster and are better able to withstand the actions of the pine weevil. And, according to forest regeneration company Svenska Skogsplantor, it’s something that pays for itself in the long run.
Sveaskog’s subsidiaries sell 125 million saplings every year. This represents one third of all saplings sold in Sweden. Demand for saplings increased in the wake of the Gudrun and Per storms. According to Hans Thyr, Marketing Manager at Svenska Skogsplantor, demand is now starting to return to normal levels:
“But we believe that levels will remain higher than what they were before the storms.”
Forest owners are now planting more of their felled areas than before. This is a more reliable method than self-regeneration.
Work on cultivating seeds and saplings has produced results, which will become increasingly noticeable in the future. Cultivated saplings are now more even in terms of size and showing 10-20% faster growth. In order to further increase the level of improvement achieved, seeds are being taken from selected trees that grow tall, straight and quickly, and have perpendicular knots.
New technology can increase the level of improvement still further, up to 35-40 %. Trials are currently underway in which cuttings are taken during the seed stage also known as somatic embryogenesis. The embryonic seed is then grown in laboratory conditions and, after a few weeks, evolves into a sapling. In this way, the very best trees can spread more quickly and in increasingly large volumes.
“It’s just like taking a cutting from your geranium at home. The cutting also has the same genetic characteristics as the parent plant,” says Finnvid Prescher, Head of Seed Development at Svenska Skogsplantor.
Manual cell division
The process of somatic embryogenesis, which has so far only been successful in spruce trees (and then on a manual basis), remains somewhat shrouded in mystery.
“We need to automate and commercialise the process, which may take up to 10 years. At the moment, each sapling produced in this way costs SEK 12-15. No-one wants to pay that much. But things will become more exciting if we can manage to get the price down,” says Prescher.
Today, the process of refining seed in seed plantations takes 15-20 years; from sowing, through sapling growth to the point at which seeds are released. Using somatic embryogenesis, genetic advantages, such as more rapid growth and straighter trees, could be realised in the space of just one year.
“We’re currently working on automating the process by building a pilot facility in which one million saplings will be produced during 2012. We will ensure genetic diversity by using 50 different cell lines from unrelated cell families. Research shows that this produces the level of variation required by the forest,” explains Prescher.
The company is also on the hunt for technology that will make production more efficient. The aim is to accommodate more saplings in the company’s expensive greenhouse facility by initially cultivating the plants in small pots and then transferring them to larger pots outdoors.
There is a certain degree of confusion concerning the concept of microplants and what they actually are. Small plants that are planted out in the forest are known within the industry as ‘miniplants’. ‘Microplants’ are the product of a production method used in nurseries.
Expansion on the cards for Conniflex
Svenska Skogsplantor is expanding, allowing more nurseries to protect their plants using Conniflex, an efficient and environmentally friendly mechanical protector that defends against the actions of the pine weevil. The protector covers container plants in a ‘protective vest’ of glue and sand, which acts as a barrier to pine weevil attacks.
“Conniflex remains in place for two years and is thereby more effective than the chemical treatment alternative. Chemical treatments must by reapplied one year after the plant has been bedded, if you want to guarantee that infestations are kept at bay. It’s cheaper to use plants that have been treated with Conniflex. You also avoid the necessity of handling insecticides and wearing protective clothing,” says Thyr, who predicts a reduction in the use of chemicals in the future:
– Insecticides can continue to be used until 2014. After this time, the Swedish Chemicals Agency will gradually refuse to issue new permits. Forest owners whose holdings are certified in accordance with FSC® criteria had to apply for special dispensation to spray chemical protectors by this spring.