Natural restoration of deforested woodlots in South Korea

The forests of Korea suffered severe degradation between the early 1900s and the mid-1950s. The Korea government has been successfully undertaking reforestation since 1959. However, this program has brought about certain problems such as simplified stand structure and species composition. To understand the natural regeneration patterns of original species such as Quercus sp. and Pinus densiflora in artificially planted woodlots, six plots were selected for study in Kyonggi and Kangwon Provinces. In the stands planted with Pinus rigida, Robinia pseudoacacia and Alnus species for reforestation in Kyonggi Province, the naturally regenerating species was Quercus. In Kangwon Province, the stands planted with Pinus koraiensis and Larix kaempferi were mainly replaced by P. densiflora or Quercus species. However, if weed controls, tending and thinning are conducted, P. koraiensis stands may be feasible for timber production. L. kaempferi stands showed good growth mostly in valley areas, but were replaced by naturally regenerating P. densiflora in other areas, such as ridge sites.