Silvicultural systems
Last updated on June 25, 2025A silvicultural system is a planned program of silvicultural treatments designed to achieve specific stand structure characteristics to meet site objectives during the whole life of a stand.
New for 2025, a comprehensively revised and updated Silvicultural Systems Handbook for British Columbia is now available with a focus on developing silvicultural pathways for diverse forest stand and landscape goals.
This program of treatments integrates specific harvesting, regeneration, and stand tending methods to achieve a predictable yield of benefits from the stand over time. Naming the silvicultural system has been based on the principal method of regeneration and desired age structure.
Silvicultural systems on most sites have been designed to maximize the production of timber crops. Non-timber objectives, such as avalanche control and wildlife production, have been less common. Recently, ecological considerations and resource objectives have increased.