One of the most important prerequisites for forest regeneration and sustainability is the choice of high-quality forest seedlings. When applying to the Rural Support Service (LAD) programme for forest establishment, regeneration and replacement, as well as for tending established areas and thinning young stands, forest owners can choose high-quality, selectively bred forest seedlings grown at the nurseries of AS “Latvijas valsts meži” (LVM).
The consequences of climate change are increasingly evident in Latvia – warm winters and severe storms during the summer season – which adversely affect forest growing conditions. LVM owns 10 modern nurseries where selectively bred seedlings are grown that, once planted in the forest, will grow faster and improve the forest's resilience to storms, disease and other risks arising from climate change.
Māris Druvaskalns, Director of “LVM Sēklas un stādi”, explains:
“Planting with selectively bred forest seedlings is the right choice for responsible forest managers who think long term, and it is also an opportunity to shorten the time needed for forest regeneration, increasing the efficiency of land use. I therefore encourage forest owners to think ahead about choosing the most suitable seedlings and to reserve the quantities they need for planting. This will help avoid any possibility of a shortage of seedlings.”
Forest seedlings can be reserved:
- by logging in to the online shop i-bode
- by calling 22034102 or writing to mezastadi@lvm.lv
LVM manages some of the most modern forest nurseries in Europe, where genetically superior young forest tree seedlings of outstanding quality are grown from specially selected seed. The nurseries produce around 60 million high-quality forest seedlings each year, which are used to regenerate forests in both Latvia and neighbouring countries, considerably increasing the value of the forest. Selectively bred seedlings deliver an effect around 20-23% greater than that of planting stock collected in a forest stand. The selection effect consists of several characteristics, one of the most significant being the volume of the timber stock, which is around 15% greater for progeny of the first selection stage and as much as 20-25% greater for progeny of the second selection stage, compared with planting stock obtained from forest stands.
Forest owners have until 6 March this year to submit project applications in the LAD Electronic Application System for two support measures in the field of forestry.