MANAGEMENT OF THE KARST FORESTS FOR THE PURPOSE OF CATTLE-BREEDING
Main researcher
: TOPIĆ, VLADO (50244) Assistants
ŠUPE, DANE (188470)
Type of research: applied Duration from: 01/01/91. to 12/30/95. Papers on project (total): 4
Institution name: Institut za jadranske kulture i melioraciju krša, Split (91) Department/Institute: Forestry department Address: Put Duilova 11 City: 21000 - Split, Croatia
Communication
Phone: 385 (0)21 355-266, 355-582
Fax: 385 (0)21 554-616
Summary: The degraded forest areas on of the coastal part of the
karst represent a vast land potential. It will be possible to convey
only the part of these areas in the foreseeable time to the economic
interesting production of the wood mass, while it is possible to use the
other, greater part only for the need of cattle breeding. This
utilisation should be done in a new modern way by which the forest fund
will not only be preserved but also improved. These conditions can be
only provided by forestry, which manages these areas. The former
investigations done on this project show how the degraded forest areas
are the important source of cattle feed: the leaf of some investigated
species of trees and bushes is 30-50% more nutritious than the good
meadow hay; the yield of dry leaf in the investigated types of
devastated forest amounts to 15-30 q/ha and the yield of the grass mass
on the carst grassland can by the simple prohibition of pasture be
increased 3-11 times in a few years. In the submediterranean karst areas
of Dalmatia the wood and leaf mass in the shrubs of hornbeam oriental was
exactly established for the first time. The volume of wood varies from
15,38 to 18,10 m3/ha, and the volume of leaf from 3,51 to 4,41 m3/ha. The
volume is conditioned by the heigh and covering of the shrub. On 19 May
1992 the experiment with cattle (goats) started and since then not only
positive effect (browsing) on goats has been observed, but also the
negative effect of goats on the forest and soil, which is the main
purpose and aim of the future research.The damage on the plots done by
grazing and browsing is great and they are in accordance with the
production of biomass and the number of goats. Four goats browse on one
ha 73 % of leaf mass or almost everything they can reach. A long year
browsing causes the drying of Oak downy on shallow skelet soils. The
entire growth of kids on milk and grassland during the period of 4
months is 21,7 kg a kid, and the average daily production of milk is 1,54
l a goat.
Research goals: The purpose of these investigations is to establish
such way of management by which a greater and more qualitative production
of cattle feed in forest can be ensured and on the other side to aim the
development of forest vegetation in the progresive direction, so that it
can better and entirely fulfil its beneficial functions of improvement and
protection of ecosystem. The forest vegetation represent from ancient
times the important source for cattle nourishment in all mediterannean
countries, also on our karst areas. But unrational way of utilistion of
forest for cattle breeding often resulted in full or very strong
devastation of forest vegetation with all harmful consequences which
accompany such devastation, first of all the soil erosion and
impoverishment. The forest and agricultural science and practice occupied
themselves very little with the problem of the relation of forest and
cattle breeding. The forestry considered the exploiting of karst forest
entirely from the aspect of wood mass production and the agriculture
solved the problem of cattle breeding on the karst area mainly by
improvement of breed of the livestock. The main problem on which the
improvement of cattle breeding on karst areas depends - cattle feed -
remained unsolved until present time. With regard to the considerable
shortage of animal feed which can partly be made up for from the
devastated forests and karst grassland, these investigations get a special
significance. The results gained will give an insight into the production
capability and value of forests and brushland to the cattle-breeding
practice, which in the ecologic karst conditions have great importance for
cattle feed. The most favourable form of forest will be shown to the
forestry practice, which will meet the needs of cattle-breeding, provent
the process of devastation and inprove production capability of soil. Other information about the project.