Background

Farm forestry (or agroforestry) is the planting and growing of trees to complement agricultural systems.  The products of farm forestry help diversify income streams and provide many other benefits.

In South Australia commercial scale forests are largely confined to three main regions, (i) the South East, (ii) the Mount Lofty Ranges/Mid North and (iii) Kangaroo Island.  The main species grown are radiata pine (Pinus radiata) and Tasmanian blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus).  A total of about 123,000 ha of softwood  and 58,000 ha of hardwood was established in South Australia up until 2008.  Farm forestry plantings in South Australia, using a broader range of species, totals about 7300 ha with roughly 86%, 11% and 3% of this total in each of the above regions respectively.

Trees are generally established on farms to help land owners achieve objectives such as:

• income diversity (timber products),
• soil conservation,
• shade and shelter,
• habitat and aesthetics, and
• salinity control.

Growing Trees

Growing trees successfully involves many steps, the main ones being:

• planning:
  • this should begin at least 12 months before planting, and involves site selection, designing setbacks and roads and selecting suitable species and methods of propagation.
    
• establishment - involves operations around actually getting trees into the ground:
  • site preparation - appropriate for the site (soil and climate)
  • weed control – may be needed before and after planting for high survival and potential for maximum early growth,
  • planting – how the trees will be planted to ensure good survival and achieve the required stocking.
    
• management - will be ongoing over the life of the rotation:
  • survival checks are needed after planting to quantify success and determine any need for refilling,
  • weed control over the first 1-2 years is vital to ensure a uniform healthy plantation is achieved,
  • application of fertiliser may help to ensure good early growth, 
  • protection against browsing by vertebrates and insects, and monitoring for disease will enable early intervention, if required. 
  • pruning of trees will maximise their value for some products and give the grower the best chance of getting higher returns,
  • thinning may bring in early income and also concentrates growth on final crop trees to increase their value.
• harvesting and marketing will normally be the growers responsibility:
  • growers will need to decide on a harvest age appropriate to their products or objective, taking account of opportunities that may be presented close to the end of the rotation, 
  • growers will need to find markets for their products, preferably well in advance , and prior to actual harvest and have appropriate methods in place for measurement of the crop and for payment,
  • growers may need to manage contractors, and look after legal, financial, operational and OHS&W issues.  Suggested online sources of information include PIRSA Harvesting factsheet, RSSA factsheets, Australian Prices and URS Forestry Document.
• second rotation - If a grower is considering a new tree crop after the first rotation, some important topics include:
  • correct location of roads in the first rotation
  • possible  change of species or new genetics?
  • use of coppice or seedlings
  • conversion costs if stumps neeed to be removed.

Regional Information

Frequently Asked Questions