Volume increment

Volume increment is an important metric for forest management and planning. It can be calculated from radial growth measurements, modelled using volume increment/basal area ratios or machine learning methods, or estimated using mean annual volume increment.


 * Calculation from radial growth measurements: Stand volume increment can be calculated from radial growth measurements of increment cores or from stem analysis data . This method involves taking a core sample from a tree and measuring the annual growth rings to estimate the volume increment of the stand.


 * Modeling using volume increment/basal area ratios: A stand growth model can be developed using volume increment/basal area ratios to estimate growth values at a stand level from easy field measurements from forest inventories . This model compares stand volume increment and basal area to the site quality and stand age.


 * Machine learning methods: Machine learning methods such as artificial neural networks, support vector machines, random forests, and nearest neighbor analysis can be used to develop plot-level volume increment models for uneven-aged mixed forests . These models use physiographic data of the forest as input for model development.


 * Mean annual volume increment: Mean annual volume increment (MAI) is defined as the merchantable stand volume at harvesting divided by the stand age (rotation length) . It is a metric that compares the productivity of different forest plantation species in developing countries.