Planting And Establishment Of Tropical Trees

A guide for non-specialist on how to plant and establish the right trees for any particular area. With line drawings and diagrams, it shows how to select the specimens, planting methods, and how to ensure that newly planted trees thrive.

Planting tropical trees is often hampered by the difficulty of obtaining enough good seed of the right species. After describing the process of sexual reproduction in trees, this manual first looks at the possibilities for stimulating flower formation and for increasing the setting of fruits. It provides all the information necessary to choose the best sources for seeds, and to select the best seeds for a particular planting site. Practical instructions are given on how best to germinate the seeds, and how to nurture and care for the young seedlings.

This Manual is the fourth in a series of readable, well illustrated handbooks for propagating and planting tropical trees.The five Manuals have been designed to provide clear and concise information on how to select, grow, plant and care for tropical trees. They are intended for anyone interested in growing trees, from the small-holder to the large-scale grower, from local communities to national governments and from school and further education teachers to research and extension staff of agricultural and forestry departments. They provide illustrated, step-by-step instructions, practical guidelines and an outline of the thought process lying behind them.Manual 4 is concerned with the key choices that lie between propagation of good planting stock, and its planting and successful establishment. These usually include:• good communication between all those with an interest• some understanding of how tropical ecosystems function• a consideration of the type of planting site• choosing which groups of trees to plant• deciding on a suitable growing system for the young trees• preparing the site for plantingThe procedures described in this series of Manuals may be used with the majority of woody species to provide diverse seedling or clonal mixtures. They include techniques for ‘domestication’, so that superior planting stock can increasingly be used – this can help to capture more rapidly the great potential for multiple usefulness offered by tropical trees, while also encouraging conservation of their genetic resources.

Even as they increase the beauty of our surroundings, trees provide us with a great many ecosystem services, incl. air quality improvement, energy conservation, stormwater interception, and carbon dioxide reduction. These benefits must be weighed against the costs of maintaining trees, including planting, pruning, irrigation, admin., pest control, liability, cleanup, and removal. This report presents benefits and costs for representative small, medium, and large trees in the Tropical region based on research carried out in Honolulu, Hawaii. Average annual net benefits increase with tree size and differ based on location:. Two hypothetical examples of planting projects are described to illustrate how the data in this guide can be adapted to local uses.

Over the past several decades, the U.S. cityscape has changed radically. Large areas have been cleared of natural vegetation to accommodate new development. The “urban forest,” which consists of all city trees, natural and planted, has been severely and negatively impacted. A 2003 study indicates that we are losing through clearing and grading four trees for every one planted. This is a wake-up call for greatly increased planting in the urban forest and the need to popularize small trees (defined as trees that grow up to thirty feet high) for diminished city spaces. Small Trees for the Tropical Landscape describes and illustrates 129 species and subspecies and 48 named varieties, cultivars, and forms plus 23 hybrids appropriate for the home garden and confined public landscape spaces. The authors have also included a section on “Tailored Small Trees,” large shrubs that are readily transformed into small trees through intelligent, selective pruning. They identify and describe 67 species and subspecies; 40 named varieties, cultivars, and forms; and 21 hybrids that are appropriate for this conversion. Several appendices will assist the gardener with tree selection for specific purposes (screens and windbreaks, coastal gardens, edible fruit, and colorful flowers and foliage). Species that may cause skin irritation or that are poisonous are identified in the text as are those trees with the ability to fix nitrogen. The authors also warn against planting a number of species known to be invasive in Hawai‘i and advise caution when planting others that have the potential to escape cultivation and become weeds.

Large numbers of tropical trees from natural forests or plantation forest are available for human consumption and management. This book focuses on the prospects and utilization of tropical plantation trees in context of economic and business, planting, managing stocks, and uses of trees converted to various wood-based products. It provides information on key areas of tropical plantation trees including growth performance, nursery practices, soil properties, planting stock production, raw material cellulose, anatomy, pulping and papermaking, fiber modification, and properties of wood composites. Features: Comprehensive information on prospects and utilization of tropical plantation tree species. Features information on potential products derived from tropical plantation trees including cellulose-based wood products, particleboard with bioplastic binder, and laminated veneer lumber. Discusses species usage of economic importance other than wood production. Presents information on nursery practices, growth performance, and soil properties of tropical trees. Illustrates methodologies for repeating investigations on work that has been done previously in tropical tree research. This book introduces information for entrepreneurs or researchers before undertaking work with these tree species illustrating technical methodologies allowing for repetition or previous successful works. This information proves valuable to researchers if further work is needed for improvement on these plant-derived products.