Management and Performance of Eucalyptus camaldulensis in the Murewa and Mutoko Districts of Zimbabwe

Abstract

The standards of management achieved by eucalypt growers in Zimbabwe's rural areas affect the performance of the woodlots. Several woodlot achievement indicators - basal area growth, height growth, survival rates and estimates of mean annual increment were recorded and related to levels of management. Management inputs in eucalypt woodlots in Murewa and Mutoko districts are low. Resource constrained tree-growers operate below technical optima. Consequently, the performance of their woodlots is poor. The mean annual increments of woodlots in the two districts are well below the standards achieved under commercial silvicultural conditions and projections made for the Rural Afforestation Programme. The use of these lower mean annual increments in cost-benefit analyses weakens the economic justification of massive expansion of eucalypt plantings. The estimated mean annual increments of eucalypt woodlots in the two districts were similar to those for local indigenous woodland. This level of performance does not justify the clearing of natural woodlands for establishment of eucalypt woodlots. Current and future social forestry programmes must continue to emphasize a much broader approach linking a multiple species planting strategy to satisfy a wider set of smallholder needs with a more intense management of existing indigenous woodland