A Parallel Journey John Davidson
(Part 5)
CONTENTS
PART 1
1967 2
Botanical exploration 2
Preparation of a paper for the Ninth Commonwealth Forestry Conference 29
Natural regeneration of E. deglupta 30
Artificial regeneration of E. deglupta from seed 32
Grafting E. deglupta 33
Growing cuttings of E. deglupta 37
Confirmation of E. deglupta as a major native tree species for continuing study 44
I enrol in a Master of Forestry Degree at the ANU 46
PART 2
1968 47
Ninth Commonwealth Forestry Conference 47
Duty travel to Canberra and ANU for initial wood properties examination on E. deglupta 47
Density of the wood of E. deglupta 48
Structure of the wood of E. deglupta 51
Fibre length 51
Statistical design required for the proposed tree improvement programme for E. deglupta 56
Continuation of research on E. deglupta at Keravat 57
Planting trials of E. deglupta 58
Preparation of a paper for a Conference of the Institute of Foresters of Australia 59
Selection and assessment of “candidate” and “breeding” populations of E. deglupta 59
Grafting and cuttings of E. deglupta 60
First visit to Keravat by Professor Pryor of the Department of Botany ANU 62
Helicopter reconnaissance of the Gazelle Peninsula and Central New Britain 66
Flowering and fruiting studies on E. deglupta 69
Emasculation technique developed for flowers of E. deglupta 71
Vegetative propagation of E. deglupta using epicormic and coppice shoots 71
Second visit to the Territory by Professor Pryor of the Department of Botany ANU 75
Wood density variation in E. deglupta 85
Silvicultural Research Conference Bulolo 26 to 30 August 1968 87
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1968 96
Writing up a report on the fibre length and density work to date 96
Ordering of a rifle for seed and scion collection 96
Experimental proposals 96
E. deglupta fertilizer trial 98
Professor Pryor visits Mindanao in the Philippines to examine E. deglupta 98
Vegetative propagation of epicormic and coppice shoots of E. deglupta 99
Lopping and tying down branches of E. deglupta to control height growth 99
Establishment of a trial grafted seed orchard for E. deglupta 100
Ordering of a machine for removing wood samples from standing trees 102
Arrival of rifle for collection of seed and vegetative material from tall trees 103
1969 105
Collection of seed and vegetative material of E. deglupta 105
Grafting and cuttings experiments 105
Move to Canberra to take up PhD studies at the ANU 105
Aims of the experimental work to be undertaken during my PhD 104
FAO Forestry and Timber Bureau E. deglupta collecting expedition to Indonesia 106
Fibre wall thickness and lumen diameter 107
Arithmetic ratios of fibre length, wall thickness and lumen diameter 108
Cross sectional area of fibres, fibre wall material and lumens 109
Arithmetic ratios of fibre cross sectional dimensions 109
Percentage of tissue types by volume 109
Number of vessels per unit area of cross section 110
Mean cross sectional area of vessels 110
Co authored paper for 2nd World Consultation on Forest Tree Breeding 110
Formal transfer to a Commonwealth Postgraduate Scholarship 111
Chemistry of the wood of E. deglupta 112
End of wood parameter measurement 113
Associations among the primary and derived variables 114
The association between wood density and other measured wood parameters 116
Baku Forest Station 117
1970 117
Wood sampling in standing trees at Keravat 117
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Growing plants in controlled environments 119
Experimental methods for growing plants of E. deglupta in the phytotron 120
Provenance studies in the phytotron 122 Fieldwork in Keravat 123
1971 126
Species trial at Baku, Gogol 126
Membership of Forest Research Working Group No 1 Forest Genetics 127
Wood density among random and candidate populations of trees 127
Environmental and genetic variation in wood density 127
Heritability of wood density in E. deglupta 129
Selection differential 130
Selection of propagation population trees 131
Establishment of provenance trials of E. deglupta in Keravat, Dami and Gogol 132
Investigation of heart rot in E. deglupta 133
Volume tables for E. deglupta 135
1972 139
Site Quality computation for E. deglupta 139
Growth and Yield for E. deglupta 139
Completion of my PhD studies at ANU 141
Bridging Report for Silvicultural Research in PNG 142
E. deglupta seed orchard establishment in Bulolo 142
Hybrid eucalypts 145
Hybridization of E. deglupta and E. “decaisneana” 147
Provenance trials of E. “decaisneana” at Bulolo 148
Simulated pulpwood logging at Baku 151
Confirmation of the award of PhD for my work on E. deglupta 153
First species trial at Baku at age two years 154
PART 4
1972 continued 161
Exploration of E. deglupta in the Garaina area, Morobe Province 161
Latest (1972), more detailed description of E. deglupta 164
Second provenance trial of E. deglupta at Baku 168
Reconnaissance on New Britain 170
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PART 5
1973 183
JANT start up in the Gogol 1973 183
Membership of Appita 187
JANT harvesting and reforestation activities 187
E. deglupta spacing trial, Baku 190
Thinning trials Keravat 1973 192
Heartwood decay in E. deglupta 192
Continuing harvesting plots at Keravat for pulpwood volume table compilation 194
Overseas duty travel to east Africa and New Zealand 195
Travel Bulolo PNG to Johannesburg, South Africa 196
IUFRO Division 5 Forest Products meeting 24 September to 12 October 1973, Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa 198
PART 6
1973 continued 203
Rhodesia 203
Malawi 203
Zambia 207 Kenya 208
Back to Australia and on to New Zealand 210
Recreation leave in Australia from 18 November 1973 to 3 January 1974 212 1974 212
Visit by Christian Cossalter of the Centre Technique Forestier Tropical Congo 212
Visit to Bulolo by Edgard Campinhos Jr of Aracruz Florestal S A 221
Papua New Guinea Tropical Forestry Research Note series 221
Assessment of E. deglupta provenance trial No 2, Keravat, New Britain in 1974 at age 2 years 223
Second provenance trial of E. “decaisneana” at Bulolo 226
July Oct 1974: Vegetative propagation of epicormic and coppice shoots of E. deglupta 229 Bole shape of E. deglupta 234
Provenances 235
Initial spacing or initial stocking 235
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Site quality 236
Tree age and average size 237
Practical implications of bole shape 238
An updated general volume table for E. deglupta 241
Further provenance trial of E. “urophylla” 241
Forest Tree Series Leaflet on E. deglupta 243
Progress report on tree introduction and improvement 244
1975 244
Provenance seed collection of E. deglupta in the Celebes and Ceram Islands May 1975 244
Provenance seed collection of E. deglupta in Irian Jaya, Indonesia, 3 17 June 1975 247
Natural distribution of E. deglupta 261
Taxonomy of E. deglupta 268
Taxonomic characters 270
Measurements on E. deglupta leaves preserved as herbarium specimens 272
Measurements on leaves from a provenance trial at Keravat 277
Single taxon at the level of species for E. deglupta 281
Reprinting of my PhD thesis 282
Permission to publish my work on E. deglupta 284
PART 7
1976 285
E. deglupta progeny trial two years old, Kunjingini 285
XVI IUFRO World Congress, Oslo, Norway 287
1977 289
FAO/IUFRO Third World Consultation on Forest Tree Breeding 289
Post Consultation tour to Coffs Harbour 291
IUFRO Workshop, Brisbane 293
1978 293
Visit to Ulamona to investigate damage to a plantation of E. deglupta owned by the Catholic Mission and impacted by a recent volcanic eruption 293
Industrial Timber Corporation of Indonesia 300
Paper Industries Corporation of the Philippines 302
Jari Brazil 306
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Seed production from the E. deglupta seed orchard, Bulolo 308 1979 310
Conference on Forest Land Assessment and Management for Sustainable Uses 310 1980 310
Visiting Scientist at the CSIRO Division of Forest Research, Canberra 310
IUFRO Symposium and Workshop on Genetic Improvement and Productivity of Fast Growing Tree Species, Brazil 311
Case studies on forest and watershed development in Asia and the Pacific 325
Reprint of Forest Tree Leaflets 326
1983 326
Publication of the papers given at the IUFRO Symposium on Genetic Improvement and Productivity of Fast Growing Tree Species in Brazil, August 1980 326
IUFRO meeting on frost resistant eucalypts 327 1984 328
Award of the Marcus Wallenberg Prize to the research team at Aracruz working on Vegetative propagation 328
PICOP at its peak in 1984 329
1986 329
Data book on endangered tree species 329 1993 330
PICOP revisited in 1993 330
PART 8
1993 continued 333
UNDP/FAO Regional Project FORTIP 333
Publication of Eucalypt Domestication and Breeding 333 1994 334
Second edition of Eucalypt Domestication and Breeding 334
1995 335
Genetic variation in height growth and leaf colour in E. deglupta 335
1997 336
Pulping and papermaking potential of plantation-grown E. deglupta from PNG 336
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2003 336
Molecular studies on Eucalyptus subgenus Minutifructus 336
2007 342
Breeding programme for E. deglupta in the Solomon Islands 342 2008 342
E. deglupta Seed Orchard Bulolo 342 2011 342
Herbarium collections of E. deglupta by K Damas 342
Open Bay Timber Company 344 2013 345
E. deglupta chloroplast genome sequenced 345
ACIAR Project “Facilitating the availability and use of improved germplasm for forestry and agroforestry in Papua New Guinea” 347 2014 348
Reference genome of E. grandis released 348 2015 349
Article on E. deglupta in “The Forester” 349 2017 350
E. deglupta in the Adelaide Botanic Garden 350 2018 350
E. deglupta in “Trees for Life in Oceania” 350 2019 353
Our book on “Eucalypt Domestication and Breeding” 353 Geological time line with reference to some eucalypts 354
Open Bay Timber Plantations 359
Keravat 2019 360
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 361
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JANT start up in the Gogol 1973
Japan New Guinea Timbers (known as JANT), a subsidiary of Honshu Paper Co Ltd, was granted a permit to harvest wood from the Gogol in July 1972. Much of the remainder of 1972 and 1973 was spent tooling up, developing substantial sawmill and wood chip mill facilities and logging roads. Wewak Timbers, in which there was a controlling interest by the New Zealand Company Fletcher Holdings, ran the sawmill part of the Gogol operation. Initial investment was US$ 4.2 million for roading and logging equipment and US$5.1 million for the chip mill, chip stockpiling loading and wharf facilities and for the chip transport vessel.
JANT roads for Gogol were much more sophisticated than those built previously by Wewak Timbers in the North Coast TRP. JANT appeared to be giving high priority to roading for pulpwood extraction and low priority to reforestation. Roads seemed to be “over designed” without proper regard to environmental and ecological conditions, incurring also a later high maintenance cost.
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1973
Nine images are shown on the previous and this page of road construction by JANT that was underway in the Gogol in 1973. The extent and volume of the earthworks was massive.
Below: Madang is shown in early 1974. Madang airport is in the distance in the right hand photograph.
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JANT pulpwood and Wewak Timbers sawmill facilities as they were in Madang in early 1974. The site covered 19 ha and was leased from the PNG Government initially for 50 years.
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The first of two chippers was brought into production on 17 March 1974. The project was officially opened on 8 and 9 June 1974 as the first mixed tropical hardwood woodchip project of its type in the world. The chips were stockpiled from March until the first shipload of wood chips was sent to Honshu Paper Mills in Japan in June 1974, coinciding with the official opening.
Clause 13 of the 1971 Agreement between JANT and the Administration stated: “The administration will endeavour to obtain an adequate area for reforestation to maintain the industry at a viable level. The Administration may make arrangements with the Company for Company participation in the reforestation on such terms and conditions as mutually agreeable. The terms and conditions may include, inter alia the utilization from the future plantations and the possible extent of the permit period.”
20,000 ha on a 10 to12 year rotation was estimated at the time to be required at Gogol for sustainable commercial supply of pulpwood to JANT based on experience from plantations elsewhere in lowlands PNG.
However, JANT and the Administration
a) never determined the optimum range of species for the local climate and soils of the project site given the specific end use objectives. Though June to November was usually dryer than the same season in New Britain, floods were a regular feature of the wet season in the Gogol. The silty clays and clay loams, seasonally inundated floodplains and swamps were unlike the edaphic conditions normally associated with natural occurrences of E. deglupta. In the Gogol, surface drainage was slow on the flat areas, and internal drainage was hampered nearly everywhere by heavy soil texture. After harvesting most of the existing rainforest the water table rose even more making the issue of waterlogging worse than what was indicated from the original land survey that was undertaken before the project started and while the area was still forested. A revised land suitability overlay to take this water table rise into account was not carried out before allocating areas for harvesting and reforestation.
b) never introduced agroforestry systems combining wood crops and agricultural crops. Most of the landowners were not interested in reforestation with pulpwood or timber species as a sole post logging land use. Also, they were more interested in commercial agricultural development rather than in agroforestry.
c) never considered a planting architecture other than a relatively widely spaced single species planting in lines on minimally prepared ground. More intensive site preparation that in turn may have involved windrowing of all woody debris, deep ripping, cultivation and mounding should have been tried. An equal mix of two species such as E. deglupta and a legume tree like an Albizzia sp could have been tried.1
1 Such mixtures of a Eucalypt and Albizzia were proving very successful in bioenergy plantations being grown in Hawai‘i at the time.
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In contrast to the number of overseas visitors that came through Bulolo to gather information, I cannot remember anyone from JANT contacting me to enquire about the tree improvement programme for E. deglupta.
Membership of Appita
In 1973, following my work on wood quality in E. deglupta, I was admitted as a Member of the Technical Association of the Australian and New Zealand Pulp and Paper Industry Inc. (Appita).
JANT harvesting and reforestation activities
A considerable quantity of debris was left on the ground after harvesting. Often there was a long time gap before the areas were planted. By that time woody broadleaved weeds, creepers and vines had taken over the sites, making early survival of seedlings difficult. Glyphosate application at the rate of 2kg/ha showed considerable promise as a post emergent herbicide in these mixed weed situations.2 However this was considered expensive at the time and manual application among the detritus was difficult.
Herbicide application and planting often did not follow harvesting until several months had passed (see photographs on the next three pages). 2 Lamb D 1975
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Weed control in tropical forest plantations using glyphosate.
Pest Articles & News Summaries 21(2): 177 181.
Two views of the immediate aftermath of harvesting by JANT at Gogol in 1973. Top: On flat land. Above: on undulating land.
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Two views of an area three months after harvesting but still not planted. Weed growth here was becoming an issue. Easy access for spraying herbicide and planting without burning would be more problematical.
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Recently planted seedlings of E. deglupta (arrows) shown on a logged but unburned site at Gogol. They are about to be outgrown by the profuse growth of Macaranga sp. (plants with heart shaped leaves) and other regrowth and the too wide spacing had placed them at a disadvantage from the start. In the Gogol too high an expectation was placed on the pioneer shade intolerant E. deglupta adapted only to regenerate in the complete absence of competition (other than with itself) from weeds of any kind on recently deposited river alluvia, landslides, volcanic ejecta and intensely burnt areas in well drained situations. An A4 sheet on a booking board behind the right hand arrow in front of a seedling of E. deglupta gives some idea of the scale.
E. deglupta spacing trial, Baku
A large replicated spacing trial was laid out and planted with Keravat provenance in Compartment 3 Baku in 1973. Because of the poor, variable site, it produced no usable results.
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E. deglupta spacing trial, Compartment 3 Baku, soon after planting in 1973. After pulpwood logging the residual vegetation was clearfelled and burnt prior to planting in randomized blocks. In this photograph the trial was already adversely beset by waterlogging and affected by localized ash bed effects, with better growth of the few trees seen here on ash beds and/or slightly elevated positions. Surface water was visible in many places and had ponded next to the road at the top of the photograph (no culverts under the road?). This poor, uneven start meant the trial did not produce any statistically meaningful results.
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Heartwood decay in E. deglupta
Further study of heartwood decay was possible in trees harvested in thinning trials and volume plots. There seemed to be two contributing factors. The rot was more prevalent on waterlogged sites and often able to be traced to an entry point through a poorly occluded small branch stub. Both would be amenable at least in part to better site selection to avoid waterlogged sites and to paying more attention to branch architecture and shedding in selection criteria for tree improvement. Also, deliberate brashing (breaking or cutting off) the lower branches of young trees during early
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Thinning trials Keravat 1973.
tending operations should be prohibited.
Keravat 1973. Thinning trials in E. deglupta. Left: Row thinning (complete removal of every second row). Right: Conventional thinning from below on an area basis, favouring the release of potential final crop trees (marked in advance with a band of white tape at breast height).
Samples of cross sectional discs and median longitudinal sections from a 10cm diameter tree from a waterlogged site at Gogol on the left and a 20 cm diameter tree from Keravat on the right illustrating how the decay has gained entry through a branch stub. Stained areas were high in polyphenols, which did not affect yield very much but could affect pulp brightness if not removed during the pulping process. (Sampled and photographed by Jeff Fairlamb, 1973.)
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Keravat 1973. Harvesting plots of E. deglupta for pulpwood volume table preparation. Felled stems were measured for diameter over and under bark at ground level (10 cm stump), breast height and one metre height intervals and for total height. Billets were cut to one metre length and stacked with bark on and with bark off to calculate stacked round wood volumes. The data were processed using graphical methods to provide whole tree volumes over and under bark. Two way volume tables were prepared based on diameter at breast height and total height and separately to several top diameter limits.
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Continuing harvesting plots at Keravat for pulpwood volume table compilation
Overseas duty travel to east Africa and New Zealand
I proposed a tour of duty overseas to discuss and promote work on breeding eucalypts in general, and in breeding E. deglupta specifically, and try to obtain as much relevant feedback as possible from face to face contacts.
W L Conroy, Secretary, Foreign Relations Division, Department of Foreign Relations and Trade wrote to the Director of Forests approving my tour of duty to Africa and New Zealand from 21 September to 17 November 1973 with full salary and a generous overseas travel allowance. To meet this timetable, which was planned around several international meetings and workshops, I had to request a deferment of recreation leave for five months, so that leave could occur after the duty travel. The Public Service Board also granted that request. The itinerary was arranged by various conference organisers and incorporated parts of post conference tours in Africa. The then East African Agriculture and Forestry Research Organisation (EAAFRO) provided assistance with the itinerary in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Personal forestry contacts assisted also with suggestions on what to see and where to see it.
Principal route planned to be followed 22 September to 7 November 1973. Solid lines by air, dotted lines by road. Zimbabwe on this map was still called Rhodesia in 1973. Zimbabwe gained international recognition as an independent state in 1980. The actual tour closely followed the planned route and schedule.
The planned itinerary for the overseas duty travel was:
Friday 21 September 1973, LAE SYDNEY, dep. Lae 11.30 AM, via Port Moresby dep. 1:30 PM, TAA Boeing 727.
Saturday 22 September, SYDNEY JOHANNESBURG, dep 10.15 AM, via Perth and Mauritius, South African Airways Flight SA421 operated by Qantas Boeing 707. Overnight Johannesburg.
Sunday 23 September, JOHANNESBURG CAPE TOWN, South African Airways Flight SA349.
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Monday 24 to Saturday 29 September, CAPE TOWN, IUFRO Division 5 Meetings, visits to University of Stellenbosch and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Stellenbosch.
Sunday 30 September, Post Conference Tour, by road, Garden Route, CAPE TOWN PORT ELIZABETH, via Outshoorn (left), tour expected to end on Saturday 6 October.
Sunday 7 October, PORT ELIZABETH JOHANNESBURG, South African Airways Flight SA404.
Monday 8 October, Post Conference Tour by road JOHANNESBURG to Kruger National Park via Nelspruit and return to JOHANNESBURG on Sunday 14 October.
Monday 15 October, JOHANNESBURG BLANTYRE (Malawi), dep 11.00 AM, South African Airways Flight SA172. From Blantyre, travel by road to inspect forest nurseries and plantations and return to Blantyre.
Tuesday 16 October, BLANTYRE LUSAKA (Zambia), dep 10.30 AM, Air Malawi Flight QM022.
Wednesday 17 October, in Lusaka and environs, EAAFRO activities.
Thursday 18 October, LUSAKA NAIROBI (Kenya), dep 7.30 AM, Zambia Airways Flight QZ514; NAIROBI ENTEBBE (Uganda), dep 7.00 PM, East African Airways Flight EC919.
Friday 19 and Saturday 20 October, in Entebbe and environs, EAAFRO activities.
Saturday 20 October, ENTEBBE NAIROBI, dep 8.40 PM, East African Airways Flight EC918.
Monday 22 to Friday 26 October, Nairobi, attend joint meeting on tropical provenance and progeny research and international cooperation by IUFRO Working Parties S2.02.8 Tropical Species Provenances and S2.03.1 Breeding Tropical and Subtropical Species.
Saturday 27 October to Thursday 1 November, by road to and in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, EAAFRO activities.
Friday 2 November, DAR ES SALAAM TANANARIVE (Madagascar), dep 11.35 AM, Air Madagascar Flight MD737.
Saturday 3 to Sunday 4 November, tours in Tananarive and environs, Madagascar.
Monday 5 November, TANANARIVE MAURITIUS, dep 10.40 AM, Air France Flight AF477.
Wednesday 7 November, MAURITIUS SYDNEY, via Perth and Melbourne, South African Airways Flight SA242 operated by Qantas Boeing 707.
Thursday 8 November, SYDNEY AUCKLAND (New Zealand), dep 8.00 AM, Qantas Flight 250; AUCKLAND ROTORUA, Mount Cook Airlines.
Monday 12 November to Friday 16 November in Rotorua. Meeting of IUFRO Working Party S2.01.5 Reproductive Processes.
Saturday 17 November, ROTORUA AUCKLAND, Mount Cook Airlines, duty travel ends, recreation leave begins.
Sunday 18 November, AUCKLAND BRISBANE, dep 8.00 AM, Air New Zealand Flight TE80.
Travel Bulolo PNG to Johannesburg, South Africa
We travelled by road from Bulolo to Lae on Thursday 20 September and stayed overnight at our usual location, the Huon Gulf Motel. We flew out on schedule from Lae to Port Moresby on the Friday. The Lae airport was still located in the city in those days. We changed aircraft and boarded a TAA 727 in Port Moresby, again flying out on schedule via Brisbane for Sydney. Overnight was spent in a motel at Randwick before returning to Mascot for our first ever long haul international flight.
We proceeded through immigration departures and left Sydney at 10.15 on Saturday 22 September in a Qantas 707 V jet (photograph). The flight had a South African flight number but was operated by Qantas. We had seats together in front of a bulkhead with our son Ivon accommodated in a bassinet attached to the bulkhead.
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The first leg was to Perth with a stop to take on maximum fuel for the long hop westwards across the Indian Ocean to Mauritius. In Perth we could disembark and walk to the terminal and wait there until walking back out to the aircraft, there were no air bridges and no security checks in those days! The long leg over the Indian Ocean following the sun to the west, the refuelling stop in Mauritius, and setting off again west south west for Johannesburg and arriving just after sunset made for a longer than usual day and brought on an acute attack of jetlag in the hotel that night. However, our son decided he could continue to operate on Australian time, which meant he woke us up several times during the night!
On Sunday 23 September we flew from Johannesburg to Cape Town. To our surprise the flight was operated by a South African Airways Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet (photograph), set up with high density seating to operate on what was at the time one of the busiest domestic air routes in the world. This was a new experience for us of an aircraft that had been recently introduced to international airline services around the world.3
3 Qantas
but
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had introduced the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet to its fleet only two years earlier in late 1971 and was using it on services to USA and Europe,
had not used it on the Sydney Johannesburg route by 1973, possibly because of too low passenger numbers.
South African Airlines Boeing 747 200B “Jumbo Jet” ZS SAN operated the high density Johannesburg Cape Town route in 1973. The Afrikaans name of the airline “Suid Afrikaanse Lugdiens” was on the other side of the aircraft.
More than 120 leading wood scientists and technologists from 22 countries met in Cape Town. Among those who attended were Dr Walter Liese, an eminent wood biologist from Hamburg, Germany, who acted as international chairman at the opening ceremony; Dr Herbert Fleischer, Director of the U S Department of Agriculture’s Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin and Coordinator of IUFRO Division 5; and the Deputy Coordinator Dr Bertil Thunell of the Swedish Forest Products Laboratory. Dr D R Redmond of Canada, the Vice President of IUFRO, attended the second stage of the proceedings in Pretoria. There were 140 technical papers, 79 presented in person and 61 in absentia. I presented two papers, one each to the two Working Parties of IUFRO Division 5 that were meeting in Cape Town and Pretoria with the theme “Wood in the service of man”: Working Party S5.01.9 Non destructive evaluation of wood and wood based materials4 and Working Party S5.01.3 Wood quality.5 This provided significant exposure of the work being done in PNG to a large international audience.
4 Davidson J 1973 Decayed wood in living trees of Eucalyptus deglupta Blume. IUFRO Division 5, Working Party S5.01.9, Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa.
5 Davidson J 1973 The association between wood basic density and some measurable wood parameters and possibilities of growing wood of optimum density in tropical plantations of Eucalyptus deglupta Blume. IUFRO Division 5, Working Party S5.01.3, Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa.
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IUFRO Division 5 Forest Products meeting 24 September to 12 October 1973, Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa
Me (arrow) in the midst of the large number of delegates from all over the world attending the meetings of IUFRO Division 5 in Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa, September October 1973. The delegates and their wives had lunch at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Pretoria, with the President Dr. C v.d.M Brink, and assembled for this photograph before visiting the laboratories of the Timber Research Unit.
Left: At the closing ceremony in Pretoria, Dr H O Fleischer, Coordinator of IUFRO Division 5 Forest Products, presents a Certificate of Honorary Life Membership of IUFRO Division 5 to Ivon Davidson, aged 11 months, in the presence of his parents. Right: Gloria and Ivon out and about.
Tours were conducted of particleboard, laminating, veneer and plywood factories, sawmills, a pulp mill, forest products research organisations, afforested and scenic areas.
E. grandis was the major eucalypt in South Africa’s plantations, at the time of our visit occupying more than 300 thousand hectares. The wood was used for mine timbers, poles, pulpwood and sawn timber. The main objective of the selection programme run by the South African Department of Forestry (SADF) was for improved recovery of sawn timber by selection for straighter stems, better branching and especially reduced end splitting after felling. Along with the wood quality breeding programme for E. deglupta (wood density for pulping) in PNG, at the time this SADF work was the only other eucalypt breeding programme in the world with a major emphasis on wood quality (end splitting in relation to sawn wood recovery).
There were opportunities to visit the Head Office of the SADF and the South African Forest Research Institute in Pretoria and to travel to Sabie a “forestry town” surrounded by thousands of hectares of plantations, to discuss eucalypt provenance and tree breeding research at the D R de Wet Forest Research Station.
Near Tzaneen, for E. grandis, the J D M Keet Forest Research Station (formerly the Zommerkompst Forest Research Station) had two grafted seed orchards, a number of diallel progeny trials and selfing studies. The grafted orchards were managed by pollarding on a three year rotation. A set of control
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pollinated seedling seed orchards was located next to the grafted seed orchard. Numerous publications on the E. grandis breeding work at the Station were available.
IUFRO Conference delegates toured a number of wood products and forestry institutions. Mostly the emphasis on eucalypts was on the wood quality of sawn timber and veneer, examples of which were laid out for inspection.
The South Africans were keen to demonstrate their work at the time on stress grading of sawn eucalypt timber.
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In South Africa, E. grandis was being grown typically on a 20 25 years rotation with four or five thinnings between 4 and 19 years of age progressing from about 1,100 stems/ha down to about 100/ha. Some older stands (40 years old) contained trees 70 metres in height. End splitting was an issue for veneer and sawn timber production. In the bottom right hand photograph end splitting was starting less than 24 hours after felling.
One of the post conference tours was from Johannesburg/Pretoria to Kruger National Park with visits to forest areas near Nelspruit and Sabie on the way.
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Post conference tour to Kruger National Park and nearby forest areas. Gloria, centre, keeps an eye on Ivon who is practising crawling during a rest stop.
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Ivon and me and just three of the many kinds of animals that were viewed close up i n Kruger National Park.