Review of forestry site studies in South Kalimantan

Forest plantation growth in Indonesia is influenced primarily by rainfall, and in particular the distribution rather than the total amount. Where the dry season is short (less than three months) there is less of a requirement for deep soils to act as a reservoir during the tree’s time of need. When there is a marked dry season, (four to five ‘dry’ months with a monthly total less than 100mm), the role of the soil to compensate becomes more critical. Accurate rainfall information is thus vital. With the substantial variations that are experienced in annual rainfall in Indonesia, it is important to use rainfall data that has been collected over a 20-year period. Soils are best assessed during that season when they are at their most limiting to tree growth. Therefore, those soils that, for instance, suffer from impeded water drainage, are best assessed during the height of the wet season. Alternatively, those soils that become hard and develop strong structure that may inhibit rooting, are best assessed during the dry season.

The relatively good tree going conditions in Indonesia, relative to drier countries such as Australia and South Africa, make the main focus of any site potential survey the matching of different species to particular sites, rather than the determination of whether or not trees should be planted. The previous land use history is important to any site survey. Sites that have been under alang-alang behave differently to those used in agricultural fields, which in turn are different to those that have been converted directly from forest to HTI
The remaining HTI plantations included in this study fall into the Southern coastal plains subregion. Within this subregion, the Jerong-Telakai coastal plain includes the Pleihari and Kintap plantations, and the Laut-Sebuku islands include the Pulau Laut plantations.
The RePPProt report is designed for large scale planning and with the paucity of soils information available, is not designed or able to provide the detailed soils and site information required for this study. Soils types for fast growing tree plantations and their distribution in southeastern South Kalimantan, Turvey and Ruhiyat (1990). This report was designed to locate a large expanse of open land in the southeast of the province that could be developed for a plantation project to feed a pulp and paper mill. Five areas were targeted and included the Riam Kiwa area in the vicinity of the Riam Kanan reservoir, a large tract of coastal land running from Jerong in the south to Pagatan in the north, and the southern part of Pulau Laut. Ten soil types were identified and rated in terms of their site potential. In was concluded that eight percent of the area was highly suitable for tree plantations, 13 percent moderately high, 49 percent of moderate to low suitability and 30 percent as very low suitability. The largest area of soils considered suitable for plantation development were the southern portion of Pulau Laut. An assessment of the soils and nutrient status of the trial plantations at Riam Kiwa, Simpson (1992). This report was part of the Indonesian-Finland project investigating the rehabilitation of degraded (alang-alang) grasslands using fast growing plantations in the Riam Kiwa area. Simpson found no reliable soils literature for the area, and after an initial assessment concluded that the soils were generally deeply weathered, heavy textured, acid, well drained and well structured with little textural variation between sites. The three major soil groups (red and yellow podzolics, and alluvials) were not obviously related to plantation productivity. Soil chemical data was obtained from limited samples and indicated moderate fertility levels. Simpson also considered that plantation productivity might be related to total potassium levels, as was indicated by limited foliar analysis of Acacia mangium. Simpson advocated that further fertilizer trials should be established to more adequately investigate the nutritional needs of the different species on the different sites at Riam Kiwa. He considered that while soils and foliar chemical data provide good background information, only on-the-spot fertiliser trials allow for the determination of optimal amounts of fertiliser and the corresponding growth responses
South Kalimantan site productivity study: location of soil profiles and growth plots
1. The Marabahan site is a woodlot scheme on the Barito river floodplains approximately 15 km north-west of Banjarmasin. Young stands of Paraserianthes falcataria, both less than three years old, were assessed on sites inundated by flood waters in the wet season.
2. Kirana Rimba lies north of Riam Kiwa plantations in the undulating foothills of the Gunung Meratus. Belonging to PT Hendratna, it consists mainly of Paraserianthes falcataria and Gmelina stands planted around the mid-90s. Altitudes are close to 200m which are regarded as relatively high for this province.
3. The BTR-Riam Kiwa plantations include the substantial trials established under the FINNIDA project between 1989 and 1995. A large number of species and provenances were trialed in a scheme which was partly responsible for the wide-scale adoption of Acacia mangium as a commercial species. Altitudes ranged from 100 to 120m.
4. The Inhutani III plantations at Riam Kiwa lie between Kirana Rimba and the above-mentioned BTR-Riam Kiwa plantings. These plantations are located on the rolling foothills of the Meratus range at altitudes between 100 and 150m. Two plots were laid out in young teak plantings.
5. The Inhutani III plantations at Pleihari are located on the low altitude plains (5 to 20m) in the south of the province. Large scale trial plantings of a variety of species has occurred since the early 1990s. These plantings are of interest as they include Eucalyptus species.
6. The substantial plantations belonging to PT Menara Hutan Buana at Kintap were established around 1995 and are essentially Acacia mangium from local Subanjerji seed sources. Altitude is low (40 to 50m) and topography gentle.
7. The Inhutani II plantations on Pulau Laut are situated on the large island in the south-east of the province. Altitude is less than 50m and topography gentle. A wide variety of species has been planted including a series of well established trials established by the Shell organisation in 1992.

Lichens as indicators of environmental conditions

Lichens as indicators of environmental conditions

The use of lichens as indicators of `old- growth forest’ with long term ecological stability was first developed in Britain from extensive surveys of the lichen flora of woods with independent documentary evidence (Rose 1976, 1992). The increasing need for evaluation of sites has led to the development of the New Index of Ecological Continuity where widespread faithful species form the basic indicator list and specialist or regionally rare species are counted as “bonuses” (Rose 1992). Similar techniques have been used to define species of `old-growth’ forests in the USA and Canada, and further developed to assess habitat diversity in managed forests of the Pacific Northwest by arranging species in functional groups (Rosentreter, 1995). This research has been undertaken in areas where the lichen flora is reasonably well known, and in a continuum of management options from a base-line of undisturbed old-growth forests. Lichens have also been used widely as indicators of atmospheric conditions in particular acid rain deposition, where absence of sensitive species and presence of tolerant species has been used to construct a scale of atmospheric pollution (Hawksworth & Rose, 1970).

Lichens as indicators of environmental conditions in tropical forests

Lichens have been used to interpret the effects of fire history in tropical forests of Thailand where the replacement of fire-sensitive evergreen forest by fire-tolerant deciduous dipterocarp forest could be assessed over time using lichen taxa associated with each forest type (Wolseley et al., 1997b). In lowland dipterocarp forests of Peninsular Malaysia and Danum Valley Sabah lichens and bryophyte taxa were assessed in plots within established 50 ha Forest Dynamic Plots, and in a range of logged, regenerating and planted forest conditions. The highest diversity of lichens and bryophytes was found in the 50 hectare plots where no known extraction had occurred, and plots in logged forests where canopy trees were retained showed a higher diversity and retention of sensitive species than that of heavily logged forest (Wolseley et al., 1998a, 1998b).

Medicinal and other useful wild plants

A survey of useful plants was conducted in the upper part of Kabupaten Tabalong, during the period 11 – 23 July 2001. The intention was to identify wild plants used by the local community, other than timber trees and rattans. A total of 169 numbers of voucher herbarium specimens were collected (not all are “useful” plants; examples of any available flowering and fruting wild plants were collected). Of the total collection, at least 68 species identified scientifically were stated by local informants to be used by the local community. Of these, 52 (76%) are used medicinally, 4 are used in traditional ceremonies (other than medicines to cure specific wounds or diseases), 4 are used as spices in cooking, 4 are used primarily as edible fruit trees, 2 are used to enhance sense of smell in hunting dogs, 2 are used to stimulate growth of rice seeds, 1 is used as rope and 1 is used as poison to catch fish for consumption. The 52 medicinal plant species are used to treat stomach ache / diarrhea (8 species), malaria / fever (6), wounds (5), jaundice (3), acne (3), pain in lower back / abdomen (3), aphrodisiac (3), hypertension (3), diabetes (2), nosebleed (2), snake bite (2), bruises (2), skin complaints / itching (2), toothache (2), eye infection (2), abscess (2), cough (2), birth control (2), mothers after childbirth (1), sprains / muscular pain (1), headache (1), rheumatism (1), neutralization of poison (1), scabies (1), influenza (1), head lice (1) and sprains / muscular pain (1).

Prominent plant families with species used medicinally include Euphorbiaceae (4 species recorded in this survey), Asteraceae , Fabaceae (= Leguminoase), Melastomataceae, Menispermaceae and Moraceae (all with 3 species each).
45 of the 68 species recorded as used in upper Tabalong do not appear to have been recorded previously as useful or medicinal plants in the available literature on this subject.
A useful product of this survey is a list of local names with equivalent scientific names. It was found, for example, that the name akar kuning (used to treat jaundice and malaria) is represented by at least two genera (both in the family Menispermaceae) while the so-called “male” and “female” forms of saluang belum which are mixed together are two species of one genus (Luvunga). True kapulaga (used as a spice and in jamu medicine and harvested as a non timber forest product in upper Tabalong) appears to be Amomum compactum, but other species in the family Zingiberaceae might incorrectly be referred to as kapulaga.
Local names include some names which appear to be used only in upper Tabalong and names which are widespread in Kalimantan and Indonesia.
Medication by dukun (traditional healers) involves use of plants for their chemically active ingredients, and as mantera (traditional conditions, rules or forms of treatment) to ‘support’ the chemical effects. Although most plants collected during this survey are not confined to old growth forest, this result probably reflects the greater familiarity of people with plants that grow near to villages, rather than lack of potentially useful chemical compounds in forest plants. Conservation of natural forests is important in order to conserve medicinal and other useful plants. As elsewhere, traditional knowledge of useful plants is declining, but there remains a considerable reservoir of knowledge in upper Tabalong