ALPINE FORESTS

Alpine forests of Pakistan are found at very high elevations in the mountainous regions of Himalaya,
Karakoram and Hidukush. The timberline, or elevation limit of tree growth, is exceptionally high in
these mountains, rising upto 4000 m above sea level. These forests are subdivided into Sub Alpine
forests, Alpine scrub and Alpine pastures.

Alpine pastures of Yarkoon Valley in Chitral, Pakistan

The Sub Alpine forests grow to the tree limit and due to harsh climatic conditions tree density is low
and growth is stunted.Alpine scrubs include shrub formations 1 m to 2 m high extending 150 m or
more above the sub-alpine forests. Alpine pastures are situated above the tree line of 4000 meters,
where growing season is very short and vegetation mainly consists of perennial, herbaceous plants.
These high altitude pastures are found mostly in the northern districts of Gilgit, Diamer, Chitral and
Skardu.
 TROPICAL THORN FORESTS
A thorn forest is a dense, scrublike vegetation characteristic of dry subtropical and warm temperate
areas with a seasonal rainfall averaging 250 to 500 mm (9.8 to 19.7 in). This vegetation covers a large
part of southwestern North America and southwestern Africa and smaller areas in Africa, South
America, and Australia. In South America, thorn forest is sometimes called Caatinga, and consists
primarily of small, thorny trees that shed their leaves seasonally. Trees typically do not exceed 10
metres (33 ft) in height, usually averaging between 7 and 8 metres (23 and 26 ft) tall. Thorn forest
grades into savanna woodland as the rainfall increases and into desert as the climate becomes drier. [1]
 SUB TROPICAL SCRUB FOREST
The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest biome, also known as tropical dry forest, vine
thicket, and vine scrub is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in
climates that are warm year-round, and may receive several hundred centimeters of rain per year,
they have long dry seasons which last several months and vary with geographic location. These
seasonal droughts have great impact on all living things in the forest.

Deciduous trees predominate in most of these forests, and during the drought a leafless period occurs,
which varies with species type. Because trees lose moisture through their leaves, the shedding of
leaves allows trees such as teak and mountain ebony to conserve water during dry periods. The newly
bare trees open up the canopy layer, enabling sunlight to reach ground level and facilitate the growth
of thick underbrush. Trees on moister sites and those with access to ground water tend to be
evergreen. Infertile sites also tend to support evergreen trees. Three tropical dry broadleaf forest
ecoregions, the East Deccan dry evergreen forests, the Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests, and
the Southeastern Indochina dry evergreen forests, are characterized by evergreen trees.
 RIVERAIN OR BELA FOREST
The riverine forests in the province of Sindh occur along both banks of the Indus River. They rely on
inundation by the River for irrigation and therefore their existence is heavily dependent on the
intensity, duration and frequency of river water flow.

The newly deposited soils support the growth of species like Saccharum bengalense, Saccharum
spontaneum, Tamarix dioica, Tamarix indica and Populus euphratica. As the land becomes stable
vegetation comprises of species like Acacia nilotica, Prosopis cineraria and Cynodon dactylon. Under
arid conditions vegetation is comprised of species like Prosopis cineraria,Salvadora persica,

S. oleoides, Capparis decidua, Acacia senegal, A. jacquemontii, Rivereine forests are the mainstay of
forestry in Sindh. Besides providing a source of livelihood for thousands of people, these forests
provide fuel wood, timber, fodder, honey and tannin. Moreover, they serve as carbon sinks and also
protect the surrounding areas from the severity of floods.

In recent times, only 50 percent of the gross area of riverine forests is inundated even in high floods.
As a result, the riverine forest area is shrinking alarmingly while less salt tolerant species have almost
disappeared. The existing condition is likely to further deteriorate with the construction of new dams
and barrages, enabling only 20 percent of the original forest area to get inundated.
 MANGROVE FOREST
Mangroves are various large and extensive types of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow
in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics—mainly between latitudes 25° N and
25° S. The remaining mangrove forest areas of the world in 2000 was 53,190 square miles
(137,760 km²) spanning 118 countries and territories.

Mangroves are salt tolerant trees (halophytes) adapted to live in harsh coastal conditions. They
contain a complex salt filtration system and complex root system to cope with salt water immersion
and wave action. They are adapted to the low oxygen (anoxic) conditions of waterlogged mud.

The word is used in at least three senses: (1) most broadly to refer to the habitat and entire plant
assemblage or mangal, for which the terms mangrove forest biome, mangrove swamp and
mangrove forest are also used, (2) to refer to all trees and large shrubs in the mangrove swamp, and
(3) narrowly to refer to the mangrove family of plants, the Rhizophoraceae, or even more specifically
just to mangrove trees of the genus Rhizophora.

The mangrove biome, or mangal, is a distinct saline woodland or shrubland habitat characterized by
depositional coastal environments, where fine sediments (often with high organic content) collect in
areas protected from high-energy wave action. The saline conditions tolerated by various mangrove
species range from brackish water, through pure seawater (30 to 40 ppt (parts per thousand)), to
water concentrated by evaporation to over twice the salinity of ocean seawater (up to 90 ppt).
 IRRIGATED FOREST PLANTATIONS IN DRYLAND AREAS
It is possible to establish irrigated plantations for commercial fuelwood, pole, timber and fodder
production. Irrigation allows us to use water-demanding species which would not grow under arid
and semi-arid conditions. We may use a continuous or intermittent water source, or even wastewater.

1. Irrigation using a continuous water source

Three types of irrigation systems may be used depending on topographical and soil conditions:
gravity irrigation; sprinkler irrigation; or focalized irrigation.

a. Gravity irrigation

Surface flooding is the simplest form of gravity irrigation. It is easy to implement on gently sloping
land. Water is conveyed in ditches, then released and allowed to spread over the area. The drawback
here is that the water is not evenly distributed. This system is not very suitable for tree and shrub
crops.

Border irrigation is a form of surface flooding where the water is guided by parallel ridges 3 to 30
metres apart. The land should slope regularly but moderately, and the ridges should run parallel to
the slope. Sandy soil is not suitable for this type of irrigation, unless the strips are fairly short. A
drainage ditch should be dug at the bottom of each strip to collect excess runoff. In agro-forestry, this
technique allows tree planting along the ridges and crop planting on the strips.

Imbibation irrigation involves dividing the land into small horizontal compartments which are filled
with water that is then left to seep into the soil. This method calls for considerable labour to prepare
the land and fill the compartments.

Furrow irrigation is a commonly used method. The furrows extend from the main feeder channel.
They may run along parallel, regularly spaced lines to provide moisture to the root zones of the trees,
usually planted on one side of the furrow, or follow the contour lines, allowing for better water
distribution. Maintaining the channels is the main constraint with this type of irrigation.

b. Sprinkler irrigation

This is the most commonly used method in topographically irregular areas that are not easily levelled,
or on irregularly sloping land, or again where a quick supply of relatively small quantities of water are
required temporarily. This type of irrigation is used mainly to help young trees develop their roots in
the direction of the groundwater.

c) Focalized systems

Focalized irrigation systems, a generic term used to designate the various drip irrigation methods, are
among those that provide moisture at the base or around the root system of the plant. Water is
brought through supply pipes, placed below or above the soil surface, in which holes have been made,
or which have been fitted with calibrated nozzles.

The essential components of these systems are: a pressurized water source, a regulatory device, and a
main canal with lateral branches and distributors.

To obtain the required pressure of water source, a pump or tanks and reservoirs are usually
necessary. The regulatory device is placed at the highest point. The advantage of these systems is that
they do not require a perfectly level terrain as do the gravity systems. They enable the correct
quantities of water to be applied and are easy to use, requiring little labour after installation. Their
main drawback (apart from their cost) is the risk of the pipes, especially the orifices and nozzles,
becoming blocked with sand, earth, organic matter, or even algae. Another drawback is that they
promote root development over a very small area. In the event of a system breakdown, prompt repair
is essential to ensure that the trees with insufficiently developed root systems do not die.

2. Irrigation using an intermittent water source: rainwater harvesting

For tree plantations, rainwater is used directly and does not have to be stored. Four techniques are
used:

- runoff cropping;

- alternate strip cropping

- terrace cropping;

- flood water spreading;

a. Runoff cropping

The drainage basins are divided into several micro-drainage basins depending on the area each tree
requires (between 20 and 100 m² depending on rainfall and water requirements). The trees are
planted at the lowest point of each micro-basin. If the roots have difficulty penetrating the soil (stoney
or laterite soil), 1.5 m deep holes are dug and filled with loose soil. The trees are always planted at the
bottom of a small depression about 40 cm deep. The depression collects and stores the runoff from
the rest of the micro-drainage basin.

b. Alternate strip cropping

Alternate strip cropping uses runoff from gentle slopes through a system of terraces which blocks the
water in an adjacent strip of land where crops are planted (figure 1).

When the soil is moderately permeable and the natural gradient exceeds 6 %, we use one-sided
micro-drainage basins, but when the soils are very permeable and the gradient less than 4 %, we use
two-sided ones.

Figure 1
c. Terrace cropping

The reason for building the terraces is to slow down and collect all the runoff between the terraces.
Terraces are essential on steeply sloping land. They may consist of barriers running along the contour
lines perpendicular to the slope, which hold the earth carried along with the runoff water. The
barriers may be made of stones, logs, earth or hedges.

d. Flood water spreading

This technique involves using the flood water from heavy rainfall to water an area that has not
received any rain.

Site selection is fundamental for the success of this type of irrigation. Slopes on the downstream side
of escarpments, alluvial deltas and flood plains are particularly suitable.