The discipline of silviculture is at a crossroads. Silviculturists are under increasing pressure to develop practices that sustain the full function and dynamics of forested ecosystems and maintain ecosystem diversity and resilience while still providing needed wood products. A Critique of Silviculture offers a penetrating look at the current state of the field and provides suggestions for its future development.
The book includes an overview of the historical developments of silvicultural techniques and describes how these developments are best understood in their contemporary philosophical, social, and ecological contexts. It also explains how the traditional strengths of silviculture are becoming limitations as society demands a varied set of benefits from forests and as we learn more about the importance of diversity on ecosystem functions and processes.
The authors go on to explain how other fields, specifically ecology and complexity science, have developed in attempts to understand the diversity of nature and the variability and heterogeneity of ecosystems. The authors suggest that ideas and approaches from these fields could offer a road map to a new philosophical and practical approach that endorses managing forests as complex adaptive systems.
A Critique of Silviculture bridges a gap between silviculture and ecology that has long hindered the adoption of new ideas. It breaks the mold of disciplinary thinking by directly linking new ideas and findings in ecology and complexity science to the field of silviculture. This is a critically important book that is essential reading for anyone involved with forest ecology, forestry, silviculture, or the management of forested ecosystems.
Preface Acknowledgments Introduction
Chapter 1. Historical Context of Silviculture -Major External Factors Influencing Development of Forestry and Silviculture -The Development of Silviculture -Fundamental Concepts and Practices That Influence Silviculture -Development of Silvicultural Systems -Adoption versus Adaptation -Integration of Scientific Advancement into Silvicultural Teachings -Conclusion
Chapter 2. Silviculture: Challenging Traditions -A Dominant Focus on Trees -Management of STands as Uniform Entities -Applying an Agricultural Approach to Silvicultural Research -The Scale-Independent View of Forestry Practices -Focus on Predictability -Conclusion
Chapter 3. Ecology: Acknowledging Complexity -Origin of Ecology -Review of Past and Current Concepts in Ecology -Ecological Complexity and Complexity Science -Conclusion
Chapter 4. Silviculture and Ecology: Contrasting Views -What Do Silviculturists and Ecologists See When They Walk into a Forest? -Who Do Silviculturists and Ecologists Talk to? -What Do Silviculturists and Ecologists Read? -Concepts and Theories Can Provide a Linkage between Silviculture and Ecology -The Evolution of Contemporary Large-Scale Silvicultural Experiments -Conclusion
Chapter 5. Managing Forsts as Complex Adaptive Systems -The Science of Complexity -Forests as Complex Adaptive Systems -Silviculture and Complexity -Managing Complexity -Steps toward Managing Forests as Complex Adaptive Systems: Where to Start? -Conclusion
Glossary References Index About the Authors
"...the authors conduct an excellent review of ecological concepts and the value of those concepts in application to management."
