Comparison of Forest Stand Condition Between Thinned and Unthinned Blocks Under Collaborative Forest Management of Western Lowlands of Nepal

BackgroundAfter a successful implementation of community forestry practices, since 2003 collaborative forest management has been implementing in Nepal. Due to naive approaches of managing forest land in Nepal, the information regarding the forest condition under silviculture practices is very low. The purpose of the study was to understand the regeneration status in the harvested plot and make the comparison of crop stands between the thinned and unthinned plot. MethodHarvested, Thinned, and Unthinned block of Tilaurakot Collaborative Forest was chosen for the study. Eccentric circular plots with radii 11.29m was taken for trees, 5.64m for poles, 2.82m for saplings, and 1.78m for seedling was taken to collect data from each of the selected blocks. Altogether, 71 plots were taken from harvested (11), thinned (30), and unthinned (30) block. Results The result shows seedling and sapling in the harvested block were 14,974 and 3,368 per hectare, respectively. Also, the study identified that the number of seedling and sapling in the thinned block were higher than the unthinned block. However, the growing stock and basal area per hectare in the thinned block were lower than the unthinned block. The number of trees per hectare was lesser in the thinned block (86 per ha) than an unthinned block (140 per ha). Similarly, the number of poles per hectare were lesser in the thinned block (346 per ha) than an unthinned block (370 per ha). Also, the important valve index (IVI) of Sal (Shorea robusta) was found more than other species in harvested, thinned, and unthinned blocks. ConclusionsThe study suggest that the condition of regeneration was better after the opening of the canopy and thinning promotes the growth of trees and undergrowth vegetation. Thus, policy makers should give emphasis on using the silvicultural operations in forest management to maintain the forest health.