Rotational Harvesting
A forest is divided into separate plots. Each year only one plot is cut, so the others have decades to grow back before they are cut again.
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In the picture
- Freshly cut plot: bare soil and low cut stumps
- Regrowing plot: young trees taller than saplings
- Untouched canopy plot: dense tall trees left uncut
Examples
- A woodlot where one strip is cut each winter while the other strips keep growing.
- A community forest that harvests a different block every ten years.
Key takeaways
- Cutting only one plot at a time gives the other plots time to regrow.
- When the same plot is cut again, it has already grown back into mature forest.
Carry on in the app
Three questions on this lesson. It has left the free week, so its quiz is for subscribers.
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