Eucalyptus Volume in Tons per Hectare by Rotation

Eucalyptus volume per hectare and rotation

To estimate the total standing volume at harvest, use volume (m³) = area (ha) × MAI (m³/ha/year) × rotation (years), where MAI stands for the Mean Annual Increment. In Brazil, plantations of Eucalyptus grandis, E. urophylla and high-yield clones such as GG100, Eldorado and AEC 144 commonly hit 35–45 m³/ha/year. Those figures rank among the best anywhere, and the credit goes to a favourable climate, decades of genetic improvement and intensive silviculture.

How long the rotation runs comes down to what the wood is for. Pulp, paper and MDF usually mean 7 years (think Suzano, Klabin), sawmills and solid wood stretch to 12–15 years, and charcoal works on shorter cycles of 5–6 years. Most of Brazil’s 7.6 million ha of planted forest sits in SP, MG, MS and BA. Sustainable management carries FSC and PEFC/Cerflor certification, and standing biomass keeps gaining value for carbon credits through ICT/REDD+ projects.

Applications

Silviculture engineers and forest inventory teams reach for this, and so do the pulp & paper companies (Suzano, Klabin, Eldorado Brasil), carbon-credit project developers, and rural investors sizing up eucalyptus as a long-term asset to sit beside cattle or soy.

FAQ

What is MAI? Mean Annual Increment is the average number of cubic metres of wood a hectare puts on each year across the rotation. In commercial forestry it's the productivity number everyone watches.

How many rotations before replanting? The usual pattern is 2–3 coppice rotations off the original stump. After that you replant the whole stand with improved clones to bring the vigour and yield back up.

Does eucalyptus “dry up” the soil? When you manage it well, with sensible spacing, organic matter kept in place and the inter-rows looked after, its water and nutrient use is on par with other fast-growing crops. What actually happens depends heavily on the site.