Forest Resource
Overview
Germany is a large, densely populated country in central Europe. Forest accounts for nearly a third of the land area and consists principally of high forest with some coppice and coppice with standards. Forests are located mainly in the south, centre and east of the country, with relatively little on the northern plain. Nearly all the forest is available for wood supply. The remainder is unavailable for wood supply mainly for economic reasons. All the forest is classified as semi-natural; there remain no areas undisturbed by man. No areas of plantation are reported, although large parts of the semi-natural forest were originally planted (regeneration or afforestation), and poplars are cultivated intensively in some areas. Two thirds of the volume of growing stock consists of coniferous species, the main species being Norway spruce and Scots pine. Beech and oaks are the commonest broadleaved species. The growing stock per hectare is, as in other central European countries, very high and has been increasing. This has been the result of net annual increment, which on a per hectare basis is the highest in Europe, exceeding annual fellings in recent decades. Over half the forests are publicly owned, partly by the federal States (Länder) and partly by municipalities and communes. The remainder are owned by private individuals. Hunting and recreation are major forest activities.
Forest Types
Geographic Description
The Federal Republic of Germany, located in central Europe, has a total area of 357 020 km2, measuring about 800 km north to south and about 600 km west to east.. It is bounded on the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; on the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; on the south by Austria and Switzerland; and on the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
The country’s terrain ranges from low-lying coastal flats along the North and Baltic seas, to a central area of rolling hills and river valleys, to heavily forested mountains and snow-covered Alps in the south.
The northern lowlands, called the North German Plain, occupy approximately the northern third of the country. The plains are low and nearly flat, mostly less than 90 m above sea level. There are dunes and marshy areas along the coast and a number of islands offshore. The region is drained by major rivers flowing to the north into the North or the Baltic seas, including the Elbe, Ems, Oder, Rhine, and Weser. The river valleys have good soil, but between the valleys lie large areas (heathlands) covered with sand and gravel, the result of past continental glaciation.. The southern part of the region, however, has highly fertile loess soils and is intensively cultivated.
The Central Highlands are plateaus and low mountains ranging in height from about 300 to 750 m, although a few of the higher mountains exceed 900 m. The plateaus are dissected by steep river valleys and gorges, such as that of the Rhine River. While most of the soils are rocky and poor, some of the river valleys have fertile basins. In the south, the land is more hilly with rocky ridges and fertile valleys. The major river drainages are the Rhine, its tributaries, the Main and Neckar, and the eastward-flowing Danube.
The far southern part of the country is mountainous. The region includes the Swabian and Franconian mountains, the foothills of the Alps, and two large forests, the Black Forest in the south-west and the Bavarian and Bohemian Forest in the east. The Black Forest region (named for its thick forest cover) consists of granite and sandstone uplands (averaging between 750 and 900 m elevation, with peaks to 1 200 m) cut by sharp valleys. The Bavarian Alps exceed 1 800 m in elevation. The Zugspitze is the highest point at 2962 m.
Germany has a mostly mild climate, moderated by the influence of the sea. It has cool winters and warm summers, but the temperature and precipitation are greatly influenced by topography. The river valleys tend to be humid and somewhat warmer while the mountains can be much colder. The average temperature in January, the coldest month in Germany, is usually above 1 °C, but occasionally cold winds from the east result in lower temperatures. The July temperature averages about 18 °C, but cooler in the mountains.
Precipitation averages 500 to 1 000 mm per year, but precipitation is heavier in the south. In the northern part of the country, precipitation is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year, but inland more precipitation occurs during the summer. Mountainous areas in the south receive heavy snowfall throughout the winter.
Ecological Zones
Forest Industry
Management
Forestry in general is organized at the level of the federal states (Bundeslaender), and most of the forest management projects are implemented by the forest administrations of the federal states. The large forest owners are the federal states, but not the federation which owns only about 4 % of the total forest area. Germany is one of the cradles of forest science and forest management in Europe. All forest areas in the country are considered “semi-natural” and managed, i.e. there is not one acre of forest left untouched or virgin, after the long historical development. Forest damage, mainly from air pollution and storms is an important issue for the forestry sector. Air pollution (above all, automobile exhaust and industries) and agricultural runoff are the primary causes of damage to Germany´s forests. About 65 % of forests are under protection, corresponding mainly to the IUCN protection categories III to VI (7.1 million ha, including landscape conservation areas and nature parks); 105 thousand ha are under a protection status, corresponding to the IUCN categories I & II (National Parks and other strictly protected forest areas).
