Two-day training on close-to-nature silviculture and multifunctional forest management took place on the 13-14th of June in the Carpathian Regional Training Center within the framework of its regular training courses for foremen and due to the financial support of the project "Skilled Foresters = Better Forests". It was held on the basis of two sample plots, established in different types of forests in Rosilnianske and Maniavske forest ranges of the state enterprise "Solotvynsky forest management unit" (within Ivano-Frankivsk regional forest and hunting administration). The participants of the training were masters of the forest (foremen) of the state forest enterprises from Transcarpathian, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv and Chernivtsi regional forest and hunting administrations.
This time the training on close-to-nature silviculture was conducted by Yuriy Derbal, expert on forestry issues from the Agency for the Sustainable Development of the Carpathian Region "FORZA”. Half of the first day of the training was devoted to the theoretical basis of close-to-nature silviculture, in particular: the history of this idea; the concept of the gradual transformation from one-aged and single-layer tree stands (where forest management is or was conducted by the method of age classes) to the multi-aged and multi-layer tree stands; the comparative characteristic of two systems of forest management – clear-cuts and close-to-nature silviculture; the use of natural processes occurring under the tent of the parent planting (biological preparation of soil, self-regeneration, self-clearing, self-tending, natural selection); reasons, principles, approaches, features and advantages of the implementation of close-to-nature silviculture in the forests of the Carpathian region of Ukraine.
In the second half of the first day and during the next day of the training, the participants visited the sample plots established along the informational paths – educational sample plots on close-to-nature silviculture "Mizhhirya" and "Maniava" with pine-beech and fir-pine tree stands. Each of them consists of three training plots and six information stands. Participants got the information on the past and current state of the tree stands, forestry interventions during last decades (mostly selective sanitary cuts and clearing from clogging), that contributed to the current state of the demonstration forest stands, and discussed the application of the close-to-nature silviculture approach. During practical exercises the participants were grouped into three groups and carried out exercises on marking the trees according to the principles of close-to-nature silviculture. Then they all participated in the discussion of the correctness or falsity of the proposed decision about cutting of individual trees from the tree stand in order to form a high productive, multi-aged and multi-species tree stands, resistant to climate change, pests, diseases and natural catastrophes.
At the end of the training, the project expert paid attention of the participants to the information on close-to-nature silviculture available at the web sites of NGO FORZA and “Foresters towards life-long learning”.
The photos of NGO FORZA are available at the link: https://goo.gl/photos/Z521XdDYbZNmsUgp6
Additionally: “Skilled foresters = better forests” project is implemented in the framework and under the financial support of the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service International Programme. The project goal is to increase competences, particularly practical knowledge and skills of forestry practitioners and forestry students in multifunctional close to nature forest management approaches and tools.
