HARDWOOD PLANTATIONS v3

Australian Sustainable Timbers is looking to work with farmers with hardwood plantations to unlock their future value.

Many landholders in NSW have ended up with young plantations on their properties from abandoned government forestry schemes (failed MIS’s (managed invest schemes)) handed back these plantations.  This has left them with the responsibility of looking after tens of thousands of trees with very few tools available for managing the timber outcomes, weeds and the fire risk of the plantations on their land.

Eucalypt plantations, planted at high densities for good forestry outcomes, need thinning as the trees grow and start to compete with each other for light, water and space.  Without thinning the trees will become stressed and vulnerable to disease and insect attack and it becomes difficult to maintain a healthy forest.

Good plantation management ‘thins’ out (removes) the weaker trees progressively as the forest grows to focus growth onto the best trees and ensure a healthy productive forest is maintained for timber and for biodiversity. This thinning process is usually undertaken early to keep the trees growing as fast as possible, it is staged process and should start as early as years 5-12 depending upon how fast the trees are growing. Traditionally it is difficult to justify thinning operations as there are few market options for the small, low-quality trees being removed due to their small diameters and high proportion of sapwood.

On the north coast of NSW we have beautifully diverse forests with some of the most versatile timber species in the world. Managed well, these forests are capable of providing both biodiversity outcomes as well as timber for generations of landholders in perpetuity.

At AST, we work with farmers in a FSC group scheme to regenerate their forests both big and small.  We carry out the planning, certification, tree marking and harvesting of native forests and plantations on private land as well as milling and marketing a wide range of timber products.  It has always been our aim to find uses for small logs to enable the rehabilitation and renewal of native forests and plantations on private land.

Our systems are focussed on restoring the ecological function as well as the commercial productivity to the forest. Each forest is unique, and we cannot simply apply a recipe book to management. The key to our approach is the development of a comprehensive and site-specific management plan for each area of forest we work in.

Australian Sustainable Timbers is a forest management and timber company based in NSW.  Established 2007, Australian Sustainable Timbers was the first company in Australia to achieve the internationally recognised Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification in native forest.

Primarily we are passionate about good forestry and a major part of this is retaining the potential of young plantations on private land into the future.  If you would like to discuss how we can unlock the value of your plantations today call James on 0415 457 973.