Farm Forestry New ZealandPoplar Action Group
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Promoting and supporting the growing, processing and marketing of poplar wood and poplar and willow fibre/ chemical products.
The poplar action group formed in April 2023 to encourage the planting and utilisation of poplar trees in New Zealand. Poplar is an important timber species in the northern hemisphere and is a popular farm tree in New Zealand for soil conservation. A number of hybrid poplars have been bred in New Zealand with improved growth and form, thus unlocking the timber potential for the species.
Objectives
- Investigate and report on matching poplar cultivar to climatic region providing climatic and growth data where possible.
- Encourage research into timber properties of different poplar cultivars
- Build knowledge of milling, drying, sawing and storing of poplar timber. including knowledge on where timber varying in density can best be used, e.g., timber may require high density wood, whereas other products require good compressibility (low density).
- Encourage research into the opportunities for use of poplar and willow for the production of products based on fibre/chemical content
- Establish code compliance for poplar timber and high value end products.
- Identify potential markets for poplar timber and high value end products
- Establish a business case for producing timber from plantation and spaced poplar on a commercial scale in NZ.
- Promote the knowledge gained to encourage the wider planting and commercial management of these species.
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