a) Indigenous forestry is a challenge in New Zealand since we have slow growing trees and strict legal requirements.We would like to increase indigenous forest areas (it is 80% of the forests and 30% of the area), but it should be attractive for farmers. One excellent opportunity is Manuka trees for honey production (and this is a good example of the secondary use of forests, not for timber). We collaborate with Maori for planting manuka trees.

b) The other opportunity is finding niche opportunities in farms, providing shelters for livestock and avoiding erosion, and protecting waters.

c) Recognizing and valuing of ecosystem services an important new area.

d) Urban forestry, urban green spaces.

e) Carbon sequestration forestry. This is a vibrant topic of research, understanding the dynamics of above the ground and under the ground stored carbon by forest and forest management type.

f) In the US, genetically modified trees are trending.

g) Competition for land with farms needs decent and proven economic alternatives.

Thanks Robert. Yes I agree to promote indigenous tree species is difficult as well economics is major factor attached to selection of species.  As industries are main sink for commercial raw material and they not wish to do much research on utilisation aspect of indigenous species, which create problem even you find some fast growing indigenous species for bulk supply market is limitaion. Yes NTFP generation can be another part of accommodating these bu value addition of their produce is also not streamlined. But hopes silviculture can also be done for NTFPs and should not restrict to timber only.

Silviculture is a complicated subject. Actually very few papers currently deal with it and "Silviculture" as term is often missing in both title and key words.

Concerning Europe, very recently, an interesting COST action was carried out on mixed forests (https://www.researchgate.net/project/EuMIXFOR-European-Mixed-Forests-Integrating-Scientific-Knowledge-in-Sustainable-Forest-Management)

In the Italian framework, some examples may be the application of classic approaches (e.g. crown thinning) on artificial pinewoods (www.selpibio.eu) or on sporadic tree species (http://www.pprospot.it) and to made them available for private owners and enterprises, trying to include such treatments into our regulation. Other research activities are dealing with climate change projections and expected socioeconomic changes, trying to improve resilience of forest systems and provided ecosystem services.

If you are interested, a new SCOPUS and open-access journal on silviculture is here http://cra-journals.cineca.it/index.php/asr

Thanks Marchi. Yes you are correct the silviculture even being major component of Forestry is not  so much explored and researched in that context. may be papers of forest ecology, plantation forestry etc are regrouped as separate entity apart from silviculture.

The area of "novel forests".  In places like Puerto Rico invasive species are rampant.  Getting rid of them now is not an option.  The idea is to incorporate these species into new species assemblages that provide the desired ecosystem services. 

In Sudan generally silvicultural operations are applied in plantations mainly in forests where a working plan exists. The new field of research in agroforestry which applied in most areas of subsistence farming. It is Acacia based farming system under which most basic silvicultural operations and management practices could be applied. 

Silviculture is the heart of forestry. Modern era of silviculture work based on forest tree improvement, seed improvement,etc. with respect to the climatic factors, different carbon conc. parameters etc. Also with the help of Open top chamber many researcher work on carbon conc and temp to the forest crops. 

Thanks Vijay.  these already done or some in refining mode except dendro-climatological studies which some what new in India and carbon sequestration though done but need redefined is may ways linking GHGs. Open top chamber for the GHG or temperature generally in and around habitation by trees or plantations or fringe forest areas

This article provides a good summary of new/alternative silviculture techniques being used globally: 

Puettmann, K.J.; Wilson, S.M.; Baker, S.C.; Donoso, P.J.; Drössler, L.; Amente, G.; Harvey, B.D.; Knoke, T.; Lu, Y.; Nocentini, S.; et al. Silvicultural alternatives to conventional even-aged forest management—What limits global adoption. For. Ecosyst. 2015, 2, 1–16

Thanks Richard I will go through it.

As one who has studied and practiced forestry for almost 50 years now, I'm extremely frustrated at the lack of 'connecting the dots' relative to plantations. One can plant a tree, but no one but nature can plant a forest. When will researchers recognize that Nature is the master, not us or our management. When will researchers recognize that all management costs (from planting, thinning, fertilizing, site prep, or invasive removals) are all 'costs' nature does internally and naturally. If....................we can understand that nature is the master. If...............we can live within Nature's bounty and not exceed it. Industrial forestry represents a very short boom followed by generations of BUSTED....every time.... NO EXCEPTIONS.... So when does the research community wake up to this fundlemental reality?????

Summarizing, I guess the new areas can be group in:

Adding alternative value to our forests - NTFPs, tourism and ecosystem services

The ecological perspective - carbon sequestration forestry, ecosystem conservation, climate change projections, models and scenarios

(Re-) Integrating forest in our modern social framework - city/urban forests, agroforestry, managing mixt landscapes

Responsible management - new social-economic paradigm on forest management

Smart management - integrating new technologies in forest management (e.g. GIS, LIDAR, RFID)

Dear Manmohan

Silviculture has lot of area to be explored 

I know that a country like in India more than 500 tree speceis are being used as timber and around 2500 tree species are being used for the purpose of NTFPs. I am sure majority of these species donot have well developed silvicultural practices 

If you can develop silviculture practices for 10 it is great.

Apart from these you can also conduct research on response of the speceis to climate change which is the need of the hour

Best wishes

Thanks  Ciprian,  Craig and Hegde sir,

I mean to new area for advance studies in Silviculture. Yes Hegde sir you are right we have so many species for whom silvicultrual aspects are not explored and climate change aspects, will try them.

Dear Manmohan JR Dobriyal, forestry, as we know it is geared towards the sustainable management of forest resources. Although with elements already known, its main activities and research development are about:

Forestry and Reforestation - Precision Farming - Lidar Technology

Forestry Soils

Forestry Techniques and Operations

Forest exploration

Forestry Mechanization

science, management and conservation of soil

Cultural Management and Treatment

Seedling production

Operational research - linear programming, dynamic programming, goal programming and transverse models

Recovery of Degraded Areas

Many researches are being developed mainly on the use of technology dealing and biomass studies. In the major scientific journals, a significant percentage of the publications are on land use, precision mapping and technology, and biomass modeling studies and carbon stocks

Dear Robson you have give many frames for research areas in forestry partly silviculture. what I sense that silviculture as perceived growing of timber trees rather trees for diverse usufracts and so the silvicultural practices are needs to be modified for tree based NTFPs eg. bark, resin, oil seeds etc. The conventional approach of management of trees for monofocus timber to broadened for multifocus objectives

Dear Manmohan JR Dobriyal,

indigenous trees have greater potential both forestry and non forestry. hence, the developing precision forestry techniques for indigenous trees are very much needed for establishing indigenous tree plantation in the country

I am currently conducting research related to effects of intensification of silviculture on multiple ecological services across northern temperate and boreal forests.

Dear Manmohan

Silviculture has lot of area to be explored 

I am currently study about endemic forest species but exotic plantation is very important. The economic and global warming aspects in Silvicuture are hot subjects .

Thanks Kambiz. I look forward to topic specific research other than climate change.

I work on Gaps and structure in Stands and regeneration in endemic forest species and the defect dust on trees.

Need to work on Forest types in respect to different tree associations, increasing productivity, tending operations and also need work on Forest normality.

Region and site specific gap on forest need to be identify and research on tending and regeneration pattern are need to be addressed.

precision silviculture

Silviculure basically is the art and science of conservation of forest plants (indigenous and exotic) therefore any research that have to do with conservation forestry can be term as silvicultural research area.

I work on Gaps and structure in Stands and regeneration in endemic and exotic forest species and treatment about thinning. The global warming and the effect on forests are new subjects on silviculture .

seed improvement, tree improvement, carbon sequestration, tree genetics, invasive species, response of forest species (flora) to climate change, forest conservation etc

Thanks to all suggesting the different aspects from ecological services to tree improvement, stand structure, invasive species, carbon sequestration, precision silviculture, forest types and more. In current climate change scenario the forests became a hot experimental material and laboratory as bioindicator for dendroclimatological studies. We are again revisiting to have preservation/ permanent plots concepts in different forest types for long term studies.

Sir, Good afternoon. The silviculture itself is broad aspect to work, new area regarding silviculture is on forest resources aspects i.e. threat to forest resources and its conservation, this topic has not yet well documented and more specific research is expected.

Thanx for opening the forum. Have a nice time.