© 2004 by Institute of Chartered Foresters
A review of the history, definitions and methods of continuous cover forestry with special attention to afforestation and restocking
1 School of Agricultural and Forest Sciences, University of Wales, Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2UW, Wales
Continuous cover forestry (CCF) is not a new idea in forest management but there has been renewed interest in it for the potential it has to meet the sustainability requirements which are part of the Rio/Helsinki process and certification. Broadly speaking CCF includes those silvicultural systems which involve continuous and uninterrupted maintenance of forest cover and which avoid clearcutting. However, there is considerable confusion with regard to terms and definitions and even the phrase continuous cover forestry is not universally known. CCF systems are being introduced throughout Europe, where there is emphasis on the direct transformation of existing even-aged plantations to some form of mixed, uneven-aged woodland. There is also the opportunity to establish such woodlands either at re-stocking or when afforesting former agricultural land but so far there has been little discussion of the methods that can be used to do this. One approach would be to use nurse crops to aid establishment of desired species, especially where there are difficult site conditions or the trees naturally require cover for optimal growth. The use of nurse crops is already a familiar part of forest practice and has found various applications in Britain, Scandinavia and other parts of Europe. This paper outlines the historical roots of continuous cover forestry, discusses definitions and features of the current debate and explores potential silvicultural methods with special attention to the direct establishment of mixed forest stands through afforestation and restocking.
Received 18 November 2002.
* Corresponding author. E-mail: arne.pommerening{at}bangor.ac.uk