State Forest Service — Assistant Conservator of Forests (state PSC exams) · India · State Public Service Commissions (e.g. TNPSC, MPPSC, UPPSC, HPPSC, KPSC, MPSC)
Original practice questions written to the published syllabus · not past papersThe intermediate treatments between regeneration and harvest that shape a stand's growth, quality and health.
In the exams: ICAR AICE-JRF 59 Unit 2 (tending: weeding, cleaning, climber cutting, mechanical, ordinary, crown and selection thinning, improvement felling, pruning, girdling); IFoS Forestry Paper I Section A (establishment and tending)
State Forest Service, Range Forest Officer and Forester examinations
Short notes on weeding, cleaning, climber cutting, thinning grades A to D, pruning, girdling and plantation journals.
How our questions for State Forest Service spread across the units of Stand Tending, Thinning & Pruning. Difficulty: 7 easy, 12 medium, 5 hard.
| Weeding and cleaning | 3 | |
| Thinning: objectives and effects on growth | 3 | |
| Thinning methods: mechanical, ordinary (low), crown, selection | 3 | |
| Thinning grades and thinning schedules | 3 | |
| Improvement felling and salvage cutting | 3 | |
| Climber cutting | 2 | |
| Pruning: natural and artificial; timing and lift | 2 | |
| Girdling and other stand-improvement methods | 2 | |
| Fertilisation of established stands | 2 | |
| Release treatments and competition control | 1 |
Choose an answer, then open the working. Each explanation says why the right answer is right and why the others are not.
How is a woody climber usually cut during climber cutting?
C. Near the ground and again about a metre up, removing the cut section so the hanging part cannot root
Two cuts with the section removed prevent re-rooting; the upper part is left to die rather than being pulled down, which would damage the crown. Burning or tightening the climber would harm the tree.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Why is complete eradication of climbers not usually the aim in natural forest?
C. Lianas contribute to diversity, food supply and wildlife structure; cutting targets crop trees and harvest areas
Lianas are part of natural forest ecology; cutting is targeted at crop and future crop trees and around harvesting. They do affect tree growth, are not universally protected, and increase after logging.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
If thinning within the middle density range does not raise total volume production, why is it done?
D. It concentrates growth on fewer, larger, more valuable trees and uses trees that would otherwise die
Thinning redistributes growth to fewer, larger stems, which are worth more per cubic metre, and captures mortality as intermediate yield. It does not double production, remove felling costs or replace regeneration.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
An outrow in a thinning is:
A. A removed row that serves as an extraction rack, often combined with selective thinning between racks
Outrows open access for machines and are combined with selective thinning in the rows between. The other definitions are not outrows.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Which tree should usually be favoured when marking a thinning?
A. A healthy, well-formed dominant or codominant stem
Marking favours healthy, well-formed upper-canopy trees and removes damaged, diseased and badly formed ones.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Removing bark-beetle brood trees before the new generation emerges is an example of:
D. Sanitation cutting
Removing infested trees to prevent spread is sanitation. Liberation removes overtopping older trees; crown thinning and precommercial thinning are density treatments.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Improvement fellings are often combined with selection fellings in Indian tropical forests under the:
A. Selection-cum-improvement system
Selection-cum-improvement combines harvesting mature trees with removing defective and unwanted ones. The other systems are regeneration systems without this combination.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Where should a pruning cut be made?
A. Just outside the branch collar, without leaving a stub and without cutting flush into the stem
Cutting at the collar lets the wound close quickly. Flush cuts enlarge the wound and slow healing; long stubs delay occlusion and admit decay.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
In pruning, the lift is:
D. The height to which the stem is pruned in one operation
A lift is the height pruned in one operation; regimes use several lifts.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Which is the most reliable way to confirm that fertilising a stand will pay?
B. Field trials that measure growth response, supported by foliar analysis
Foliar analysis against critical levels and especially field trials show whether a nutrient is limiting and how much growth responds. Bark colour, price and age do not diagnose deficiency.
Further reading: Smith et al., The Practice of Silviculture (9th ed., 1997); Nyland et al., Silviculture (3rd ed., 2016); Khanna, Principles and Practice of Silviculture
Ten here, 24 in the app. The Laisha app has every practice question we have written to State Forest Service in this subject, marked as you go, with timed papers, a jump-to-unanswered list and a certificate when you pass at 70 per cent.
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