Page 8 - Georgia Forestry - Summer 2017

FOREST MANAGEMENT
Planning for the Future
even if timber prices stay flat. Equally important, planting the best also reduces the risk of not achieving financial goals in timberland manage- ment, since timber prices fluctuate over the length of a forest rotation.
Gains in return have increased dramatically over the old days of “first” and “second” generation. Planting the best control pollinated families or varietals, for example, can increase revenues by more than 50 percent and rates of return by 12-18 percent. With that in mind, additional seedling costs will be recovered in the cash flow from the first thinning, which can come as early as age 10.
JOHN PAIT IS THE VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES, MARKETING AND PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT FOR ARBORGEN, INC. HE HAS WORKED
IN RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT ROLES IN THE FOREST PRODUCTS INDUSTRY FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS.
by John Pait, ArborGen
For Georgia landowners, the best defense for stagnant timber prices is a good offense consisting of advanced seedling genetics and forest management.
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largely unchanged in most of the state. During that same time period, however, the availability of the most advanced seedling genetics has increased substantially. Now, all landowners in the state, not just the large industrial and institutional owners, can plant the very best that genetic technology has to offer.
The cost for the best is higher, but the growth and financial returns can far exceed those costs — which creates a large value opportunity
ince the Great Recession, pine timber prices in Georgia declined and then have stayed
6 | GEORGIA FORESTRY
ARBORGEN