Timber Farming Products
Tissue Culture Teak Plant
TEAK CULTIVATION
Teak (Tectona grandis) is one of the most important hardwood timber trees ofIndia and is distributed naturally in the peninsular region below 24oN latitude.Teak forests are found in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu,Karnataka, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh (small extent), Gujarat, Orissa, Rajasthan,Andhra Pradesh and Manipur. The species is indigenous to India and the South-eastAsian region.
Teakisadeciduoustreeandcanattainaheightofmorethan30m.Youngleaves are red in colour but become dark green atmaturity.Inflorescence is large,flowers are white in colour, producing sticky pollens for cross pollination, andbecome inflated at maturity.The flowers appear from June to September andfruits ripen from November to January. Teak sheds leaves from November to January.
Importance of Teak :
Teakwood is the best timber for the manufacture of door, window frames andshutters, wagon and carriage, furniture, cabinets, ships, agricultural implements,decorative flooring and wall panelling due to its moderate weight, appropriatestrength, dimensional stability and durability, easy workability and finishingqualities.
In indigenous medicine, the leaves are employed, and their extract shows fullsuppression of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Flowers are said to be beneficial inthe treatment of disorders such as biliousness, bronchitis, and urine discharge.The leaves contain yellow and red dyes that are suitable for coloring silk, wool,andcotton.Thebark isconsidered anastringentandcan helpwith bronchitis.
Trade:
The commerce in teakwood has increased significantly in recent years. Teak isstill highly valued and in high demand in Europe, providing its legal andsustainable origin is proven. Because teak species do not tolerate competitionand are site specific, the emphasis should be on using improved planting stockand early deployment of silvicultural treatments to achieve fast growth and highyieldsfromplantations.
The increased trade volume of teakwood necessitated the use of system at ic approach for monitoring supply chain.Thus, from1st January,2022 .
the international trade in teakwood will be recorded in Harmonized Systemnomenclature 2022 (HS 2022) Edition. HS 2022 will be used for the uniformclassification of goods traded internationally all over the world. Developed bythe World Customs Organization (WCO),theHSsystemaims to
facilitate collection of customs tariff and international trade data. With theseinnovations in the teakwood trade, it is sure to see a great emphasis onpolicy,fordevelopmentofteak sectorinnearfuture.
The International Tropical Timber Organization:
(ITTO) promotes sustainable management and conservation of tropical forestsand the expansion and diversification of international trade in tropical timberfrom sustainably managed and legally harvested forests. It develops policyguidelines and norms to encourage sustainable forest management (SFM) andsustainabletropicaltimber industries andtrade.
Marketing:
Teakwood is very valued due to its quality timber, good woodworking, finishingcapabilities, and most appealing grain, texture, and color, which makes it veryprecious and boosts its use for furniture, carving, cabinet making, door andwindow making. Decking, deck houses, rails, bulwarks, hatches, weather doors,andplanking haveallbeenmade fromit.
Teak wood of Godavari valley in Andhra Pradesh is used for furniture andcabinet making for its ornamental figuring. Teak wood markets and depots areavailableinallteakgrowingstates in India.
Role of Forest based industries in tree plantations:
Forest-based companies were very profitable since the majority of themreceived raw materials at subsidized prices, resulting in non-sustainable usageof forest stocks. However, due to increased demand and harvesting limits innatural forests. Forest-based industries began plantations on private propertieswith the help of farmers, to whom they provide financial and technicalassistance. Forest-based enterprises have also approached the governmentabout leasing degraded forest lands for plantings in order to meet their rawmaterial needs.
Soil:
Deep,well-drainedalluvialsoils,amoderatelymoist,warm,tropicalenvironment, andpHlevelsrangingfrom6.5to7.5.Becauseteakispronetosoil deterioration, plantations should be planted on undulating and somewhat flatterrain,with slopesgreaterthan 12oavoided.
Light:
A high light intensity, between 75 and 100% of the full sunlight is required forbettergrowthanddevelopment.
Drainage and irrigation:
Teak is very sensitive to poor drainage, so irrigation should be applied duringstressperiodto boostthe growth.
Pre-plant operations:
Land should be thoroughly cleaned and well prepared with bush clearing andburning to reduce the level of the fuel load within the site. Lining out and pittingshould start well in advance before the onset of rains. In India, a spacing of 2 x 2m with an initial planting density of 2,500 tress/ha is practiced. Quality pits (25cm long by 25cm wide by 25 cm deep) will allow seedlings to establish a properrootingsystemthatensures survival.
Teak can also be raised along with agricultural crops at a spacing of 4m x 4m or5m x 5m. For this 45 x 45 x 45 cm sizes pit should be filled with a mixture ofFYM,Fertilizers,and soil.
Gap Filling:
Should be done within the same rainy season, and during procurement ofseedlings, an extra 20% should be reserved for this operation. If mortality issignificant,then farmersshould optforreplantingthefield.
Weeding:
Weeds and other species will have an adverse effect on their growth. Thus,weed control is a critical inter-cultural activity in teak plantations. Weed controlcan be accomplished by a combination of chemical and manual weedingprocedures.
Pruning and Thinning:
Pruning should be done during the active growing season. To protect trees fromfires, all epicormic and branches should be moved 6 m inside while pruning, andany debris around the trees should be removed. To limit disease transmission,keepcutsclean.
Protection and management:
Forest fire management should be planned, with a clear strategy for monitoringandsuppression.
In India about 300 species of insects have so far been reported to be associatedwith teak. Teak defoliator (Hyblaea puera and Eutectona machaeralis) causeextensive damage to young plantations. Root rot due to Polyporous zonalis isalso common in the plantation. Pink disease fungus causes cankers and barkflaking. Powdery mildew caused by Olivea tectonae &Uncinula tectonae leadstopremature defoliation.
Fresh leaf extracts of Azadirachta indica were found to be most effective againstteakskeletonizers.
Harvesting:
Firstquality teakyields at09-10yearsofage,when theaveragediameter is
27.2cmandtheaverageheightis23.2m.
Tissue Culture Teak (Tectona Grandis) Production and Field Plantation Important Point
Tissue Culture–Forestry Species
Timber Yielding Trees:
- World’sfirstteaktissuecultureplantswereraisedinIndia,
- Teak (Tectona grandis), is a genus ofTropical Hard wood trees in the familyVerbinaceae.
- Theyarelargetrees,growingto30-40 mtall,deciduous in thedryseason
- Teak timber qualities include attractiveness in colour and grain, durability,lightness with strength, ease of seasoning without splitting and cracking , ease ofworking andcarving,resistanceto termite,fungus,andweathering.
Teak TissueCultureProcess:
- Tissue culture is the modern Plant Biotechnology that is applied for massproductionofsuperior planting material.
- Tissue culture technology be utilized as a means to produce uniform desirableplanting materialonalargescaleinTeak.
- Teak in all major growing states and developed the tissue culture techniques formass multiplicationwithclonemarking.
Advantage:
- Left Image: Tissue culture plants come with well established root system, growsstraight,lessbranching.
- Right Image: Stumps made from Seed grown nurseries, less root establishment,grows bushy,motherplantcharactersnotknown.
- Tissuecultureplantsdevelopedfromsingle,meristemtissues
- isolatedfromknown,establishedPlusTrees,With all desirable characters.
- Henceyiel disatexpected level
- Thinning is not required