Significant reduction in the failure rate thanks to POLYGRAIN
In the spring of this year, Geras Abbey, under the direction of head forester Markus Philipp, carried out mechanical reforestation in cooperation with the company Steinwendner Agrar Service. The aim of this measure was to significantly reduce the failure rate of new sessile oak plantings and to ensure that the young plants are already above the crop in the second year after planting in order to minimize the maintenance effort. A central element of this reforestation was the use of the water-retaining granulate POLYGRAIN, which enabled a significant improvement in the planting results.
The results of this measure clearly exceeded Markus Philipp’s expectations. Under comparable weather conditions, such as those that prevailed this year, the failure rate is normally 30-40%, according to Philipp. This usually results in additional costs and a high level of maintenance.
“In a dry year like this, we would normally have a 40% failure rate for sessile oak. By adding water-retaining granulate, we only have a 7% failure rate this year,” says head forester Markus Philipp.
The growth of the young trees was also better than expected. While it had been assumed that the trees would only grow above the crop in the second year, the plants treated with granules were already above the accompanying vegetation after the first year. This gave them a clear advantage over competing grasses and shrubs.
The use of POLYGRAIN has not only significantly reduced the failure rate, but has also considerably reduced maintenance work and the associated costs. This is a great success and illustrates the potential of modern technologies in forestry.
