MANAGEMENT OF ACACIA NILOTICA
- Common Name: Kikar, Babul
· The crown form varies from conical to spreading.
· The flowers are yellow, fragrant.
· The pods are variable 4 to 22 cm long.
· It is an important constituent of deciduous Tropical forests and tropical thorn forests.
· At an elevation Range of 200 – 500 meters.
· Pods ripen April to June.
· The tree is native to Pakistan and found in Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan, and KPK.
o SILVICULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS
· An intolerant, drought resistant tree.
· With minor problems with seed insects.
· It is usually reproduced from seed pretreatment of seed with boiling water.
· It is relatively fast-growing species.
· It will yield 4 to 15 m3/ha/year in 20 years.
· It has a great potential as a Farm Forestry.
· It is useful for controlling erosion in gullied areas and also can be grown on saline, sodic sites for soil reclamation and biomass production.
· Seed weight: 7000 to 11,000 seeds/kg.
· It reproduces naturally mainly through seed by direct sowing by broadcasting (seed rate 2.5 – 3 kg per hectare); dabbling in lines, patches or mounds in June.
· It is light demander, drought resistant, forest tender.
· It’s coppicing power is very variable.
· Leaves and pods are widely used as fodder.
· Best popular general utility timber for construction of carts, Persian wheels, Agricultural tools and implements, door, windows, mine props, fencing material etc.
· Babul bark is one of the best tanning materials.
· Babul gum is the earliest commercial source of gum Arabic; it is used in inks, paints, matches, and confectionery.
o SILVICULTURAL SYSTEM
· Babul plantation is management by clear felling system, followed by Artificial propagation.
· Rotation for fuelwood and small timber is usually 20 – 25 years; for Bark Tannin 15 20 years.
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