It's crucial for growers to be able to accurately predict the ultimate yield from a plantation, since that yield, along with wood prices and their cost of capital, will determine the grower's investment return.

This is where "Growth and Yield" models become so crucial.

These powerful mathematical models were created by monitoring thousands of tree samples in permanent sampling plots (PSP's) over numerous growth cycles. These growth and yield models allow foresters to accurately forecast volume yield for any given species or provenance on any given growing site.

This growth and yield analysis is graphically represented by a growth curve that tells foresters what their yield will be for a particular species on a given site over time. It is from this curve that the Site Index (SI) is determined. For an illustration, see Chart #1 to your left.

Not surprisingly, every Site Index translates into a different growth curve. Looking at Chart #1 on the left, for example, you'll see three curves predicting the yield of Douglas fir on three different sites. All other factors being equal, a Site Index of 40 would result in a substantially larger crop than a Site Index of 20.

For foresters, a larger Site Index means they'll be able to generate a larger crop in the same amount of time, or an equal crop in a shorter amount of time. Either way, the result is greater productivity, and greater profits.

And as you'll soon see, CellFor's technology helps your Site Index grow.