Reforestation

In the system of the Ministry of Forestry it is built and successfully operates a system of afforestation and reforestation. All conditions for growing healthy, high-quality forests – from harvesting, processing of seed materials and storage of forest seeds, the cultivation of standard planting material, as well as silvicultural works – up to thinning the forest are created in this branch. Advanced technology on processing of forest seed raw materials and storage of forest seeds which makes it possible to obtain high quality seeds and ensure its full, long-term storage is implemented and operates.

Forest seed production

In order to fulfill the program for the development of a permanent forest seed base 30,6 hectares (105,5% to an annual task) forest seed plantations are created in 2016.

- 25,9 tons of seeds of forest plants (161% of an annual task) are prepared, including:

- 12,1 tons of acorns of an oak (138%), from them 791 kg selection;

- 6,3 tons of seeds of forest plants of coniferous breeds (223,5%), from them 1,4 tons of selection;

- 7,5 tons of seeds of forest plants of other breeds.

In total on the long storage (refrigerators) there are 30,3 tons of seeds of coniferous species, including ordinary pines – 11,7 tons, European fir-trees – 18,6 tons, that will provide four-year need of forestry enterprises for sowing material of coniferous breeds on a case of poor harvest years.

Processing of cones of coniferous breeds was carried out in the Republican forest selection and seed-growing center and in 4 forest seed plants: Gluboksky model-shop and Ivatsevichy, Shchuchin and Gorky forestry enterprises. More than 6.0 tons of high-quality coniferous seeds were obtained.

Forest nursery

For silvicultural works in 2016, nurseries of forestry enterprises grown 319,6 mln pcs of standard planting material. From total in greenhouses more than 34,39 mln pcs and 9,97 mln pcs of planting material with closed root system were grown up. In total in nurseries over 285 species and forms of wood plants were grown up.

For creation of forest cultures and providing with selection planting material in reporting year by forestry enterprises of branch up to 71,69 mln pcs of such seedlings and saplings were grown up, including ordinary pines – 57,93 mln pcs, European fir-trees – 11,62 mln pcs, European larches – 0,65 mln pcs and a pedunculate oak – 1,49 million pieces. This quantity of seedlings and saplings would allow to implement fully the task of national program for 2017 on creation of forest plantations with selection landing material and also to supplement the forest cultures created in previous years.

In general the industry's investments into forest nursery economy have made 1,72 million rubles or 209,3% of a task.

In reporting year incomes from sales of products of forest nursery economy amounted to more than 5.54 million rubles (168,1% of an annual task) or 138,1 % compared to last year. The task is performed by all state production forestry associations (SPFA)

Reforestation and afforestation

Reforestation and afforestation were carried out on a total area of 34.87 thousand hectares (136,7% of the target approved by the Government of the Republic of Belarus), taking into account that due to sowing and planting of the wood 29,73 thousand hectares of the new woods were put (131,1% to the annual plan). In a total amount of silvicultural production coniferous and hard-wooded broadleaved breeds occupy 95,8% (28,49 thousand hectares), soft-wooded (a birch, a linden, a common alder and other) – 4,2% (1,24 thousand hectares).

Overfulfillment of the established plans was caused by need to eliminate consequences of a squally wind in the forest fund and implementation of the project on planting forest in the autumn period on plots of developed windthrowen and windbroken felled areas.

Reforestation of damaged (windthrowen and windbroken) plantings was carried out in autumn of 2016 on the area of 5 313 hectares, including forest planting – 4 921 hectares.

Reconstruction of invaluable forest plantings by silvicultural methods from the total volume of seeding and planting was done in the area of 2 238 hectares (117,2% to the plan ).

Forest plantations from selective sowing and planting materials were created on the area of 12 629 hectares.

In a total amount of artificial reforestation and afforestation the mixed forest cultures were created on the area of 26 102 hectares (87,8%) or 4 984 hectares more than the actual figures for 2015 Specific weight of the mixed forest cultures exceeds by 2.3% compared to last year and more than 20% of the average annual level of such crops over the last 10 years.

Since 2015, the industry is actively introducing technologies similar to those used in Finland, for the creation and addition of forest crops planting material grown with closed root system. During the reporting year, these activities were carried out in the area of 2 251 ha (7.6% of the total volume of the plantation) or 1 592 hectares more than 2015.

Genetic and selective bases of reproduction of the forests of Belarus in the context of implementation of the Convention on biological diversity

Reforestation and afforestation in the Republic of Belarus provides:

• mandatory reforestation of felling sites, burnt areas and other categories of forest lands in the period not exceeding 2-3 years after their formation;
• correspondence of tree species to conditions of a place of growth;
• rational use of lands of forest fund;
• conservation of biodiversity and gene pool of the woods;
• increase in the area of the oak, ashen and lime woods;
• creation of the forest plantings which are mainly mixed on structure;
• improving water-conservation, protective and recreational forest values as well as their productivity and sustainability;
• saving (increase) of forest cover of the Republic of Belarus and its administrative-territorial units;
• satisfaction of social and economic requirements of society for various forest production and utilities of the forest.

The order of design and production as well as technical acceptance of work and inventory of sites of forest and plantation cultures, protective forest plantings, assistance to natural forest regeneration, preservations of subgrowth of the main breeds at entire fellings, associated renewal when carrying out selective fellings of the main use and fellings updating plantings natural reforestation is carried out according to "The Technical Code of the established practice of" [TKP 047-2006 (02080 "Instruction on reforestation and afforestation in the Republic of Belarus".

TKP "Instruction ..." is introduced for the first time, establishes requirements for conducting of works on organization and technology of artificial reforestation, afforestation and natural regeneration of forests on the territory of the Republic of Belarus, is an integral part of the group of legal acts "Sustainable forest management and forest use" and is intended to provide practical assistance to forestry workers, to play a positive role in the reproduction of forests and improvement of their species composition, increase of productivity of forests and strengthening of environment forming, water protective, protective, sanitary-and-hygienic, recreational and other functions.

Priority directions of genetically-selective bases of reproduction of forests of the republic are the development and improvement of the forest seed base.

Development and perfection of constant forest-seed base (DPCFSB) should provide forest enterprises with valuable seeds of forest tree species. When creating a forest for the future it is planned to use 50% of seeds from objects of DPCFSB and 50% from the best natural plantings.

Development of two directions of seed farming is provided for this purpose: population and plantation. The forest seed base of selection of population includes - plus plantings, forest seed wildlife areas, constant forest seed sites. To enhance population-based effort, allocation of selection seed forest stands is supposed.

Clonal plantation seed farming is accepted as the main direction оf conversion of seed farming to a selection basis.

In the development of forest breeding the main objective is to improve quality and to increase productivity of forests by controlling the heredity and variability of woody plants. It is associated with forest seed production, the purpose of which is to obtain high-quality certified seeds and zoning for their use.

The realization of these objectives involves the use of the following breeding methods: mass, group, individual, combination, and mutation breeding, cultivation of isolated cells and tissues

At the selection directed to improvement of quantitative and qualitative signs of plantings, the main direction is the population selection based on the use of superiority on selection signs of the perspective populations revealed at comparative tests in cultures.

Experiments on test of posterity are provided in both directions of selection.

Creation of a new selection population of a common pine by carrying out controlled crossings of the checked parental forms will become one of the main tasks.

The main point of scientific support for the selection works is the development of a long-term program of genetic improvement of forests.

In actions for preservation of forest genetic resources two main directions are allocated: preservation of a gene pool of populations and types of in situ (i.e. in natural plantings) and ex-situ (i.e., outside natural growth of populations). As the basic the first direction as only it allows to keep a gene pool of populations of forest types in full is considered.

The solution of these tasks will be carried out on the basis of established in the republic Forest selection seed-growing centre and its branches, and also gene bank of forest seeds organized at the Institute-of- Forest.