Last week, SFE “Forests of Ukraine” adopted the Strategy for Close-to-Nature forestry. Effective implementation of this Strategy requires changes in approaches and thinking among foresters, including additional staff training.

 

A key goal is the gradual transition from traditional clear-cutting practices to selective and gradual logging, forming uneven-aged forest structures over time.

 

The approach to close-to-nature forestry varies depending on forest type. Pine forests, for example, require different methods than broadleaf or mixed stands, primarily due to species biology and forest growth conditions.

 

According to scientists, during the first 3–5 years of transitioning to close-to-nature forestry, efforts should focus on forestry education and training, the creation of demonstration plots, and training programs in every region.

 

One of the most effective methods for teaching and practicing various approaches to close-to-nature forestry is the establishment of educational and research plots known as “marteloscopes.”

 

Their main purpose is to enable simulation of different silvicultural interventions — such as thinning, final felling, or stand restructuring — without any actual impact on the forest.

 

What does this method involve?

 

✔️ Creating a digital map of the plot.

Each tree receives its own coordinates and a detailed description of dendrometric indicators (height, diameter, species, condition, and other characteristics). This approach combines field observations with digital tools for analyzing and visualizing forest stands.

 

✔️ Establishing marteloscopes.

They are set up in demonstration forest plots that best represent the properties of a given stand. The standard area is 1 hectare, and site selection depends on the training objectives.

 

✔️ Conducting practical training.

With complete data for each tree, participants can perform practical exercises — selecting trees for felling, assessing the impact of their decisions on forest structure, productivity, and ecological condition.

 

The first training sessions for foresters took place in the Carpathian region. Over the summer, 200 foresters from the Carpathian branch participated in hands-on exercises on six marteloscope plots established by scientists from Ukrainian National Forestry University (UNFU).

 

They learned how to plan stand transformation cuts, describe plots, select trees for harvesting, and transform even-aged (pure and mixed) stands into uneven-aged, mixed forests.

 

By the end of the year, specialists from the Boyarka Forest Research Station (a separate division of NULES), commissioned by SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” will develop projects for creating demonstration plots in the Polissia forests (Poliskyi, Stolychnyi, and Pivnichnyi Forest Offices).

 

In the Carpathian forests, new demonstration plots will be developed by the Ukrainian Research Institute of Mountain Forestry named after P.S. Pasternak.