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5. Present level of production and use of genetically superior propagules

Though various tree species are planted every year, 90% of the plantation programmes consist of bamboos, Eucalyptus, Acacia, Albizia, Prosopis juliflora, P. cineraria, Dalbergia sissoo, conifers and teak. During the late eighties and early nineties, 3x109 plants were planted annually. Of these, a certain percentage of seeds were obtained from seed production areas (SPAs). There are 3100 ha of SPAs for teak and an additional 900 ha of clonal seed orchard (CSOs) for teak. The seeds from these can supply 30-35 % of the demand.

Similarly, nearly 8000 ha of conifer seed stands have been identified (not seed production areas). There are 24.6 ha of SPAs for Dalbergia sissoo available and 91 ha for eucalypts. For various other species, for which there is only limited local demand, seeds are collected from respective SPAs. An estimated 155 000 kg of teak seeds are available from the 3100 ha SPA for teak annually. With germination of 35% and survival of 60%, a little over 16 000 ha can be planted with these seeds. The CSOs produce much less than the expected amount per tree. Often many clones flower at different times resulting in poor seed set. On average, 30 kg of seeds are collected per ha. From the 900 ha of CSOs of teak in the country, 27 000 kg of seeds are collected which are sufficient for planting of 3 000 ha with 30% germination and 60% survival. While establishing CSOs, it is essential to consider the need for synchronous flowering.

For Dalbergia sissoo, around 300 kg of seeds can be obtained from the 24 ha of SPAs, which is sufficient to plant 9000 ha. There are 90 ha of SPAs for eucalypts providing 450 kg of seeds sufficient to plant 40 000 ha. The work done on conifers is not reliable as most of the areas classified as seed stands are unculled. The seed yield varies highly from tree to tree. In the case of bamboo, a large amount of seeds is collected, but these cannot be classified as superior seeds. They are collected in bulk when the entire plantation flowers, as for many years there may not be any collections at all.

It is obvious from the above that teak is the single most important species collected from SPAs. Significant quantities of eucalypts and Dalbergia sissoo are also available. The annual planting of tree seedlings in the country exceeds 3020 million seedlings with 180 million seedlings originating from SPAs; majority of the planted species being teak, Dalbergia sissoo and eucalypts.

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