Tree Growth & Product Differentiation

Initial growth in a plantation is exponential and reaches a maximum biological growth rate during early to mid-rotation. One could assume that this would be the time when financial growth rate is at a maximum. However, as the stand continues to grow and biological growth rate begins to slow, the trees begin to enter into the next product class where values can double, triple, or in some cases quadruple later in rotation age. Starting around age 15, the trees begin to enter the chip-n-saw market, and around age 25 the trees enter the sawtimber market. As the stand ages the total tonnage per acre rises but the number of trees per acre declines and each tree becomes more valuable.