310052 Silviculture of Temperate Forests

Details
Forest & Landscape
Earliest Possible YearMSc. 1 year
DurationOne block
 
Credits7.5 (ECTS)
Course LevelMSc
 
ExaminationFinal Examination

oral examination


All aids allowed

Description of Examination: Oral examination based on two questions from the curriculum. The student is granted 30 minutes of preparation immediately prior to the examination with all aids allowed.

Weight: Oral exam: 100%



7-point scale, external examiner
 
Organisation of TeachingLectures: 3-6 hours per week. Classroom exercises: 1-2 hours per week. Field trips, including open-air lectures and practicals: 4-8 hours per week.
 
Block PlacementBlock 4
Week Structure: C
 
Teaching LanguageEnglish
 
RestrictionsNone
 
Course Contents
- Brief overview of temperate forest ecosystems, forest development types and major tree species
bio-geography, vegetation history, forest ecology, anthropogenic influences / the role of pines, spruces,
oaks, beeches, poplars and other tree species in temperate forest ecosystems).
- Silviculture as a means of achieving management objectives and a basis for sustainable forest management.
- The silvicultural practices of regeneration, tending and harvesting.
- Forest production and long-term productivity.
- Regeneration and afforestation (natural regeneration, direct seeding, planting, site preparation,
choice of species, managing game, rodents, weed, nutrition, fertilizers and other biotic and abiotic factors).
- Managing forest productivity, stand density and wood quality (major determinants of forest productivity,
initial spacing, thinning regime, harvesting operations, pruning, modelling effects of site, species, stand
density and forest type, planning of operations at strategic and tactical level, implementation of operations
and quality assurance).
- The layout and design of managed forests (sustained yield, risk management, aesthetics, forest recreation).
- The protective functions of forests (erosion, water, deadwood, biodiversity, cultural remains, amenity values).
- Management of forest health (biotic and abiotic factors, climate change).
- Classical silvicultural systems in a contemporary context (objective-oriented and site-specific silviculture,
coppice and high forest systems / clearcutting, shelterwood systems, selection systems, conversion /
intercropping / the 'normal forest' concept vs. nature-based silviculture and near-natural forest
development).
- Summarizing the silvicultural practices of regeneration, tending and harvesting for major forest production
systems and forest development types (pines, spruces, oaks, beeches, poplars, other tree species).
- Adjusting silviculture to forest policy demands, technologies available for forest operations, and
administrative practices, illustrated by case-studies on certification, forest conservation, and bioenergy.
 
Teaching And Learning Methods
During the course the presentation and discussion of topics gradually progress from basic to advanced level. Teaching and learning methods include lectures, classroom exercises, field trips, field practicals, student presentations and interactive discussions (cf. Teaching section above). The construction and use of visual, verbal and mathematical models for optimization and decision-making in silviculture forms an integral part of the course. Throughout the course, management alternatives for selected tree species and genera will be used to illustrate major principles and practices of silviculture. Students are required to participate in practical problem solving, write brief essays and compile reports for presentation during classroom exercises and field trips on a regular basis throughout the course. Results from these form an integral part of the curriculum for the final examination.
 
Learning Outcome
The objective of the course is to provide students a comprehensive understanding of silvicultural principles and practices for the sustainable management of temperate forests. Throughout, the course emphasizes and demonstrates scientific knowledge, derived from long-term field experiments and other empirical investigations, as a solid foundation for silviculture.

After completing the course, the student should be able to demonstrate knowledge, skills and competence as follows:

Knowledge:
The student should
- be familiar with major issues and methods in contemporary silviculture of temperate forests,
- know the factors that influence tree growth, wood quality and forest dynamics, including plant-soil
interactions.
- know, how such factors can be investigated, quantified and modelled for the testing of specific
hypotheses,
- understand major silvicultural models and theories.

Skills:
The student should be able to
- evaluate alternative silvicultural strategies and their application,
- apply silvicultural principles to problem solving in forestry practice and at the forest policy level,
- identify and communicate compromise solutions to conflicts over the application of alternative
silvicultural practices.

Competence:
The student should
- be aware of and able to discuss scientific and ethical issues in silviculture,
- understand and be able to discuss the relevance, reliability, validity and interpretation of empirical
silvicultural observations,
- know how to quantify and model the effects of silvicultural practices to understand their limitations
with regard to human utilisation and the sustainable use of temperate forests.
 
Course Litterature
Part of the course is based on selected scientific papers and extracts from international textbooks. All course literature, except books, will be made available as pdf files.
The course literature includes:
- Matthews, J.D. 1989: Silvicultural systems. Oxford Univ. Press. ISBN 0-19-854670-X.
- Skovsgaard, J.P. 2008: Silviculture of temperate forests - Lecture notes.
 
Course Coordinator
Jørgen Bo Larsen, jbl@life.ku.dk, Forest & Landscape Denmark/Forestry and wood products, Phone: 35331688
 
Study Board
Study Committee NSN
 
Course Scope
lectures32
theoretical exercises8
preparation109
examination1
practicals56

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