Representatives of the forestry industry explained how seedlings are grown and timber is harvested at the Logoysk Forestry
16:45, 11 September
Photo: soyuz.by
On the eve of the press tour “A Woman’s Perspective on Forestry: Visiting the Best Forester of the Minsk Region, Tatyana Kolesnik,” the Belarusian media visited the Logoysk Forestry, where they familiarized themselves with the internal work processes, a Soyuz.by correspondent reports.
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NOTE: The length of the forestry from north to south is 67 km, and from west to east – 55 km.
The total area of forests under the jurisdiction of the Logoysk forestry is 115.2 thousand hectares, including 106.6 thousand hectares of forested land.
The production structure of the enterprise consists of 11 forest districts, the “Pleshchenitsy” production workshop, a forestry center, and a forest nursery.
Coniferous plantations predominate on the territory of the forestry (72.5%), mainly represented by pine stands (51.8%); soft‑leaved plantations (26.3%) are mainly represented by birch (19.6%), aspen (3.3%) and black alder (3.1%) plantations. Hardwood plantations occupy 0.6% of the entire forested area of the forestry and are mainly represented by oak stands.
The first facility that journalists visited as part of the press tour was a permanent forest nursery, recognized as an exemplary one in the industry. According to Pyotr Shikshnyan, the chief forester of the Logoysk Forestry Enterprise, the nursery grows the main forest‑forming species. Due to the drying out of spruce plantations, more than 50 % of spruce forest crops are grown in a closed root system (CRS).
“This year, we have grown the first rotation — about 650,000 spruce trees with a closed root system. For the second rotation, we have grown 860,000 pine trees also with a closed root system, which will be used to supplement forest plantations. Seedlings with a closed root system allow us to increase the time for planting and supplementing forest plantations. We have started this work today. In addition, when growing seedlings with a closed root system, we are not dependent on weather conditions: we carry out watering ourselves, maintain the optimal temperature, and also carry out fertilizing,” said the chief forester.
Every year, 3.5-4 million seedlings of planting material are grown in the nursery, both in the CRS and decorative planting seedlings for landscaping and sale to the public.
The nursery has special greenhouses for growing seedlings in the CRS. They are equipped with a weather station that maintains optimal temperature and humidity by itself. An automatic irrigation system is installed inside the greenhouses, which can also fertilize plants.
At the moment, the Logoysk Forestry is engaged in collecting linden seeds. As noted by Tatyana Kolesnik, a forester at the Krasno‑Shvabsky forestry, this was previously done from felled trees; now, a tractor has been brought in to assist the forest workers.
The journalists also got acquainted with the process of shipping timber products. Alexander Khomich, a forest master at the Krasno‑Schwabsky forestry, notes that the forest is harvested by industry workers throughout the year, specifically during the period when it is “ripe.”
“We work all year round under any conditions. First, the timber is harvested, then we put it on an intermediate timber yard. Soon, the equipment transports the timber products either to the processing plant or to the railway station,” said Alexander Khomich. He added that about 1,400 cubic meters of timber have been harvested in the Krasno‑Shvabsky forestry.
Among the responsibilities is also the care of forest crops. At present, it is mechanized; its task is to remove excess vegetation that will hinder their growth. Gradually, the forest crops develop, and by the age of seven, a full‑fledged young forest will be established here.
