FT unveils new state-of-the-art seedling facility at Forest Nursery

Construction of a $1.4 million glasshouse at Forestry Tasmania’s Forest Nursery and improvements to its Tasmanian Seed Centre are now complete.


The new state-of-the-art germination facility at Perth can grow high volumes of native and exotic tree species for industry and public land managers.

“Forestry Tasmania’s business partners will benefit from the increased capacity and reliability”, said Bob Gordon, Managing Director of Forestry Tasmania. “The combined new facility puts FT in a better and stronger position for the long-term.”

“The FT glasshouse provides 2,600 square metres of growing space, or enough room for 1.3 million eucalypt plantation seedlings. Its innovative, modern design includes a computer-driven system that automatically adjusts heating and air circulation to create the best growing environment for eucalypt plantation seedlings.

“The efficiency of the glasshouse ensures that seedlings germinate and grow at an even pace. This allows for peak productivity of transplantable seedlings and substantially reduces the need for the time-consuming task of manually sorting the seedlings according to their growth stage.

“The glasshouse will also provide the Forest Nursery with the flexibility to grow a wide range of tree crops, including an increased capacity to grow seedlings for forestry companies.

“For now, the glasshouse primarily grows Eucalyptus nitens (Shining Gum) seedlings, which are sensitive to temperature changes when germinating. These seedlings are provided with the best possible growing environment.

“We have said that there will be more forest in 90 years time, and this glasshouse will help us meet that commitment. This facility is contributing to the increase in the number of trees in Tasmania.

“As these seedlings grow into trees, they will absorb and store carbon. They will contribute to Forestry Tasmania storing an average of 720,000 additional tonnes of carbon each year for the next 43 years.

“In addition to germinating seeds, the glasshouse also has the capacity to be used for other purposes such as raising new trees from cuttings produced from hydroponically grown stock plants.

“A new building has been added to the Tasmanian Seed Centre. It has been reorganised and merged with the Forest Nursery to better serve industry and individual clients. FT encourages Tasmanians to plant native tree seeds, which can be purchased from the Tasmanian Seed Centre’s web site at http://www.forestrytas.com.au/shops/seedcentre.


David Tuck, Corporate Relations 6233 8249
ENDS
18 April 2008