Harvesting Costs and Utilization of Hardwood Plantations’

The use of short rotation, intensive culture (SRIC) practices in hardwoods to meet fiber supply needs is becoming increasingly widespread. Total plated area of short rotation hardwood fiber plantations is currently about 22,OfKI ha (McDonald and Stokes 1993). That figure should certainly to grow in response to public concerns over loss of natural hardwood stands. With many of the plantations currently approaching first harvest, questions have been posed about the adaptability of conventional harvest systems to SRIC stands. Past efforts in development of specialized SRIC equipment have achieved some success (Stuart and others 1983), but markets sufficient to justify commercialization of the concepts are not likely in the near future. Without SRIC-optimized equipment available, conventional harvesting machinery will have to be used. This study was initiated to test the use of harvest equipment common in the Southern United States in SRIC stands. Objectives were to determine productivity, costs, and recovery of felling, skidding, and processing short rotation sycamore (platanur occid~aEs L.) stands.