15.2 Sustainable forest management practices and forest restoration: Review of recent research on continuous cover silviculture

We need different types of forests and a variety of management practices to meet different objectives. There are many different types of forests and forest owners, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to forest management. The best result in terms of sustainable forest management is achieved when the method is chosen according to the characteristics of the target site.

Traditionally, the most common forest management method in Finland has been even-aged regeneration. The aim of continuous cover forestry is to keep the stand growing with trees of different ages and sizes at the same time. In our synthesis report, published in summer 2022, we took a broad look at continuous cover forestry: what does it mean, and what do we know about forest regeneration, genetics, growth or yield? The report also looked at forest planning and harvesting, forest damage, biodiversity, carbon cycles and the impact of forestry on water systems.

The report provides a synthesis of the latest research on these topics. The work showed that there are still many knowledge gaps, but that research in this area is active.