The Forest Reproductive Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002

Regulation 2(2)

SCHEDULE 1 LIST OF TREE SPECIES AND ARTIFICIAL HYBRIDS

Abies alba Mill.	Pinus canariensis C.Smith
Abies cephalonica Loud.	Pinus cembra L.
Abies grandis Lindl.	Pinus contorta Loud.
Abies pinsapo Boiss.	Pinus halepensis Mill.
Acer platanoides L.	Pinus leucodermis Antoine
Acer pseudoplatanus L.	Pinus nigra Arnold
Alnus glutinosa Gaertn.	Pinus pinaster Ait.
Alnus incana Moench.	Pinus pinea L.
Betula pendula Roth	Pinus radiata D. Don
Betula pubescens Ehrh.	Pinus sylvestris L.
Carpinus betulus L.	Prunus avium L.
Castanea sativa Mill.	Populus spp.
Cedrus atlantica Carr.	Pseudotsuga menziesii Franco
Cedrus libani A.Richard	Quercus cerris L.
Fagus sylvatica L.	Quercus ilex L.
Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl.	Quercus petraea Liebl.
Fraxinus excelsior L.	Quercus pubescens Willd.
Larix decidua Mill.	Quercus robur L.
Larix x eurolepis Henry	Quercus rubra L.
Larix kaempferi Carr.	Quercus suber L.
Larix sibirica Ledeb.	Robinia pseudoacacia L.
Picea abies Karst.	Tilia cordata Mill.
Picea sitchensis Carr.	Tilia platyphyllos Scop.
Pinus brutia Ten.

Regulation 4(1)(a)

SCHEDULE 2 MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE APPROVAL OF BASIC MATERIAL INTENDED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL TO BE CERTIFIED AS “SOURCE-IDENTIFIED”

1.  The basic material shall be a seed source or stand located within a single Region of Provenance.

2.—(a) The applicant shall inform the Department of the Region of Provenance and the location and the altitude or altitudinal range of the place(s) where the reproductive material is to be collected or otherwise harvested.

(b) The applicant shall inform the Department or its authorised officer whether the basic material is:

(i) autochthonous;

(ii) indigenous;

(iii) neither (in which case the origin must be stated if known); or

(iv) the origin is unknown.

Regulation 4(1)(b)

SCHEDULE 3 MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE APPROVAL OF BASIC MATERIAL INTENDED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL TO BE CERTIFIED AS “SELECTED”

General

The Department will assess a stand with respect to the purpose specified in the application made under regulation 7(7) to which the reproductive material produced from it is intended to be put (“the specified purpose”). It shall give due weight to such of the criteria for selection set out in paragraphs 1 to 10 below as are appropriate to the specified purpose.

Origin

1.  The Department shall determine either by historical evidence or other appropriate means whether the stand is autochthonous, indigenous or neither (in which case the origin must be established if known), or that the origin is not known.

Isolation

2.  The Department shall be satisfied that stands are situated at a reasonable distance from poor stands of the same species, or from stands of a related species or variety which can form hybrids with the species in respect of which application is made, so as to reduce the chances of the stand’s quality and characteristics being detrimentally affected by such poor stands. The Department shall pay particular attention to this requirement when the stands surrounding autochthonous or indigenous stands are not autochthonous or indigenous or if they are of unknown origin.

Effective Size of the Population

3.  The Department shall be satisfied that stands consist of one or more groups of trees well distributed and sufficiently numerous to ensure adequate inter-pollination. Selected stands shall consist of a sufficient number and density of individuals on a given area so as to avoid the unfavourable effects of inbreeding.

Age and Development

4.  Stands must consist of trees of such an age or stage of development that the Department may clearly assess them against the criteria given for the selection.

Uniformity

5.  The Department shall be satisfied that stands show a normal degree of individual variation in morphological characters and, when in the Department’s judgment it is necessary, inferior trees shall be removed.

Adaptation

6.  Adaptation to the ecological conditions prevailing in the Region of Provenance must be evident to the Department.

Health and Resistance

7.  Trees in stands must in general be free from attacks by damaging organisms and show resistance to any adverse climatic and site conditions in the place where they are growing, except that resistance to damage by pollution need not be demonstrated.

Volume production

8.  For the approval of stands, the Department shall be satisfied that volume production of wood is superior to the accepted mean under similar ecological and management conditions.

Wood Quality

9.  The Department shall take into account the quality of the wood and, if it thinks fit in any particular case, may regard this as an essential criterion.

Form or Growth Habit

10.  The Department shall be satisfied that trees in stands show particularly good morphological features, especially straightness and circularity of stem, favourable branching habit, small size of branches and good natural pruning. In addition, it shall be satisfied that the proportion of forked trees and those showing spiral grain is low.

Regulation 4(1)(c)

SCHEDULE 4 MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE APPROVAL OF BASIC MATERIAL INTENDED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL TO BE CERTIFIED AS “QUALIFIED”

Seed Orchards

1.—(a) The Department shall approve the type, objective, crossing design and field layout, components, isolation and location of the seed orchard.

(b) The component clones or families shall be selected for their outstanding characters and the Department shall assess them in accordance with the requirements of paragraphs 1 to 10 of Schedule 3, giving particular weight to those requirements set out in paragraphs 4 and 6 to 10.

(c) The component clones or families shall be planted according to a plan approved by the Department and shall be established in such a way that each component can be identified.

(d) In the case of a seed orchard intended for the production of an artificial hybrid, the percentage of hybrids in the reproductive material must be determined by a verification test the methodology of which shall be approved in writing by the Department.

Parents of Family

2.—(a) The Department shall be satisfied that the parents shall be selected either for their combining ability, or for their outstanding characters as assessed by it in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 10 of Schedule 3, giving particular weight to the requirements of paragraphs 4 and 6 to 10 of that Schedule.

(b) The Department shall approve the objective, crossing design and pollination system, components, isolation and location of the parents.

(c) The identity, number and proportion of the parents in a combination must be notified to the Department when the application is made under regulation 7(7) and the Department’s approval of these features shall be obtained before the parents may be approved.

(d) In the case of parents intended for the production of an artificial hybrid, the percentage of hybrids in the reproductive material must be determined by a verification test the methodology of which shall be approved in writing by the Department.

Clones

3.—(a) Clones shall be identifiable by distinctive characters which must be notified to the Department in the application referred to in regulation 7(7) and must be approved by the Department if the basic material is itself to be approved.

(b) The superiority of individual clones shall be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Department by the established use in forestry practice of the clones, or from the results of experimentation which is in the Department’s view of sufficient duration to be a reliable indication of the individual clone’s characters.

(c) The Department shall be satisfied that ortets used for the production of clones shall be selected for their outstanding characters as judged by the Department in accordance with such of the requirements of paragraphs 1 to 10 of Schedule 3 as apply to ortets, with particular weight being given to the requirements of paragraphs 4 and 6 to 10 of that Schedule.

Clonal Mixtures

4.—(a) Clonal mixtures shall meet the requirements of points 3(a), 3(b) and 3(c) above.

(b) The identity, number and proportion of the component clones in a clonal mixture, and information as to the selection method and foundation stock must be notified to the Department when the application is made under regulation 7(7) and the Department shall be satisfied as to the suitability of these features.

(c) The Department shall be satisfied that any clonal mixture for which approval is given is genetically diverse.

Regulation 4(1)(d)

SCHEDULE 5 MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE APPROVAL OF BASIC MATERIAL INTENDED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL TO BE CERTIFIED AS “TESTED”

Requirements for all tests

1.—(a) General

• The basic material must satisfy the requirements of Schedules 3 or 4 which are relevant to the type of basic material. Tests set up for the approval of basic material are to be prepared, laid out, conducted and their results interpreted in accordance with internationally recognised procedures, which the provisions of paragraph (e) require shall be approved by the Department in writing. For comparative tests, the reproductive material under test must be compared with one or preferably several standards approved by the Department or the standards set out in paragraph 3(b) below.

(b) Characters to be examined

(i) The Department shall be satisfied that tests relied on by an applicant seeking approval under regulation 7(7) are designed in such a way as to assess specific characters, which must be indicated for each test.

(ii) Weight shall be given in the testing process to adaptation, growth, biotic and abiotic factors of importance. In addition, the Department shall be satisfied that other characters which are important in light of the specified purpose, have been evaluated in relation to the ecological conditions of the region in which the test is carried out.

(c) Documentation

• The age of the material and results at the time of the evaluation must be notified to the Department.

(d) Setting up the tests

(i) Each sample of reproductive material shall be raised, planted and managed in an identical way as far as the types of plant material permit.

(ii) Each experiment must be established in a valid statistical design with a sufficient number of trees in order that the individual characteristics of each component under examination can be evaluated. The statistical design shall be approved by the Department in writing.

(e) Analysis and validity of results

(i) The data from experiments must be analysed using statistical methods, which the Department is satisfied are internationally recognised, and which it shall approve in writing; and results shall be presented to the Department for each character examined.

(ii) The methodology used for the test and the detailed results obtained shall be made freely available by the applicant to the public on request and payment of reasonable copying and postage charges.

(iii) An applicant seeking approval under regulation 7(7) shall inform the Department of the likely region of adaptation within the country in which the test was carried out and information as to any characteristics which might limit the usefulness of the material must also be provided to the Department.

(iv) If during tests it is proved that the reproductive material produced from the basic material the subject of the application under regulation 7(7) does not possess the characteristics of the basic material, or similar resistance of the basic material to plant pests within the meaning of the Plant Health Act (Northern Ireland) 1967(1) and any other harmful organisms which may have an undesirable economic impact, then such reproductive material shall be eliminated from further comparative testing.

Requirements for genetic evaluation of components of basic material

2.—(a) Only the components of the following basic material may be genetically evaluated: seed orchards, parents of family, clones and clonal mixtures.

(b) Documentation

• The following additional documentation is required for approval of the basic material:

  (i)

  evidence or a statement of the identity, origin and pedigree of the evaluated components; and

  (ii)

  evidence or a statement or plan of the crossing design used to produce the reproductive material used in the evaluation tests.

(c) Test procedures

• The following requirements must be met:

  (i)

  the genetic value of each component must be estimated in two or more evaluation test-sites, at least one of which must be in an environment relevant to the proposed specified use of the reproductive material;

  (ii)

  the estimated superiority of the reproductive material to be marketed shall be calculated on the basis of these genetic values and the specific crossing design; and

  (iii)

  evaluation tests and genetic calculations must be approved in writing by the Department.

(d) Interpretation

(i) The estimated superiority of the reproductive material shall be calculated against a reference population for a character or set of characters.

(ii) The applicant seeking approval under regulation 7(7) shall advise the Department whether the estimated genetic value of the reproductive material is inferior to the reference population for any important character.

Requirements for comparative testing of reproductive material

3.—(a) Sampling of the reproductive material

(i) The sample of the reproductive material for comparative testing must be truly representative of the reproductive material derived from the basic material to be approved.

(ii) Sexually produced reproductive material for comparative testing shall be:

• harvested by methods that ensure that the samples obtained are representative;

• harvested in years of good flowering and good fruit or seed production, and

• in any event may be produced by artificial pollination.

(b) Standards

(i) The performance of standards used for comparative purposes in comparative tests should if possible have been known in the region in which the test is to be carried out over a sufficiently long period to enable their use as a standard, namely, they shall represent, in principle, material that has been shown useful for forestry at the time that the test starts, and in ecological conditions for which it is proposed to certify the material. They should come as far as possible from stands selected according to the criteria in Schedule 3 or from basic material approved by the Department or another official body for production of tested material.

(ii) For comparative testing of artificial hybrids, both parent species shall, if it is practically possible, be included among the standards.

(iii) Whenever possible several standards are to be used. When necessary and justified, standards may be replaced by the most suitable of the material under test or the mean of the components of the test.

(iv) The same standards will be used in all tests over as wide a range of site conditions as possible.

(c) Interpretation

(i) A statistically significant superiority as compared with the standards must be demonstrated for at least one important character.

(ii) The applicant under regulation 7(7) shall clearly report in his application for approval if there are any characters of economic or environmental importance which show significantly inferior results to the standards; and the Department must be satisfied before approving the basic material that the effect of these inferior qualities is compensated for by other favourable characters.

Conditional approval

4.  The requirements of this Schedule are subject to the discretion of the Department to grant conditional approval under regulation 7(2).

Early tests

5.  Nursery, greenhouse and laboratory tests may be accepted by the Department for approval or for conditional approval if it is satisfied that there is a close correlation between the measured trait and the characters which would normally be assessed in forest stage tests. Other characters to be tested must meet the requirements set out in paragraph 3.

Regulation 13(8)

SCHEDULE 6

MODEL MASTER CERTIFICATE OF IDENTITY FOR REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL DERIVED FROM SEED SOURCES AND STANDS(Certificate must contain all the information outlined below, and in the exact format)

ISSUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH DIRECTIVE 1999/105/EC

Regulation 13(8)

SCHEDULE 7

MODEL MASTER CERTIFICATE OF IDENTITY FOR REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL DERIVED FROM SEED ORCHARDS OR PARENTS OF FAMILY(Certificate must contain all the information outlined below, and in the exact format)

ISSUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH DIRECTIVE 1999/105/EC

Regulation 13(8)

SCHEDULE 8

MODEL MASTER CERTIFICATE OF IDENTITY FOR REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL DERIVED FROM CLONES AND CLONAL MIXTURES(Certificate must contain all the information outlined below, and in the exact format)

ISSUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH DIRECTIVE 1999/105/EC

Regulation 17(10)

SCHEDULE 9 REQUIREMENTS FOR EXTERNAL QUALITY STANDARDS FOR POPULUS SPP. PROPAGATED BY STEM CUTTINGS OR SETS

Stem cuttings

1.—(a) Stem cuttings shall not be considered to be of fair marketable quality if any of the following defects exist:

(i) their wood is more than two years old;

(ii) they have less than two well formed buds;

(iii) they are affected by necroses or show damage by harmful organisms;

(iv) they show signs of desiccation, overheating, mould or decay.

(b) Minimum dimensions for stem cuttings–

• minimum length: 20 cm,

• minimum top diameter:

  • Class EC 1: 8 mm

  • Class EC 2: 10 mm.

Sets

2.—(a) Sets shall not be considered to be of fair marketable quality if any of the following defects exist:

(i) their wood is more than three years old;

(ii) they have less than five well formed buds;

(iii) they are affected by necroses or show damage by harmful organisms;

(iv) they show signs of desiccation, overheating, mould or decay;

(v) they have injuries other than pruning cuts;

(vi) they have multiple stems;

(vii) they have excessive stem curvature.

(b) Size classes for sets

Class	Minimum diameter (mm) at mid-length	Minimum height (m)
Non-Mediterranean regions
N1	6	1.5
N2	15	3.00
Mediterranean regions
S1	25	3.00
S2	30	4.00

Regulation 17(12)

SCHEDULE 10 REQUIREMENTS WHICH MUST BE MET BY PLANTING STOCK WHICH IS TO BE MARKETED TO THE END-USER IN THE MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATIC REGION

Planting stock shall not be marketed unless 95% of each lot is of fair marketable quality and the requirements and specifications of paragraphs 1 to 3 of this Schedule are met.

1.  Planting stock shall not be considered to be of fair marketable quality if any of the following defects exist:

(a) injuries other than pruning cuts or injuries due to damage when lifting;

(b) lack of buds with the potential to form a leading shoot;

(c) multiple stems;

(d) deformed root system;

(e) signs of desiccation, overheating, mould, decay or other harmful organisms;

(f) the plants are not well balanced.

2.  Size of the plants:

Species	Maximum age (years)	Minimum height (cm)	Maximum height (cm)	Minimum root collar diameter (mm)
Pinus halepensis	1	8	25	2
	2	12	40	3
Pinus leucodermis	1	8	25	2
	2	10	35	3
Pinus nigra	1	8	15	2
	2	10	20	3
Pinus pinaster	1	7	30	2
	2	15	45	3
Pinus pinea	1	10	30	3
	2	15	40	4
Quercus ilex	1	8	30	2
	2	15	50	3
Quercus suber	1	13	60	3

3.  Size of the container, where used

Species	Minimum volume of the container (cm3)
Pinus pinaster	120
Other species	200

Regulation 19(4)

SCHEDULE 11 SMALL QUANTITIES OF SEEDS WHICH MAY BE MARKETED WITHOUT FULFILLING THE REQUIREMENTS OF REGULATION 19(2)(b) AND (d)

(Listed by species)

CONIFERS		small quantity
Abies alba	Mill.	1,200 g
Abies cephalonica	Loud.	1,800 g
Abies grandis	Lindl.	500 g
Abies pinsapo	Boiss.	1,600 g
Cedrus atlantica	Carr.	2,000 g
Cedrus libani	A.Richard	2,000 g
Larix decidua	Mill.	170 g
Larix x eurolepis	Henry	160 g
Larix kaempferi	Carr.	100 g
Larix sibirica	Ledeb.	100 g
Picea abies	Karst.	200 g
Picea sitchensis	Carr.	60 g
Pinus brutia	Ten.	500 g
Pinus canariensis	C.Smith	300 g
Pinus cembra	Linne	7,000 g
Pinus contorta	Loud.	90 g
Pinus halepensis	Mill.	500 g
Pinus leudodermis	Antoine	600 g
Pinus nigra	Arnold	500 g
Pinus pinaster	Ait.	1,200 g
Pinus pinea	L.	10,000 g
Pinus radiata	D.Don	800 g
Pinus sylvestris	L.	200 g
Pseudotsuga menziesii	Franco	300 g
BROAD-LEAVED SPECIES
Acer platanoides	L.	3,500 g
Acer pseudoplatanus	L.	3,000 g
Alnus glutinosa	Gaertn.	40 g
Alnus incana	Moench.	20 g
Betula pendula	Roth	50 g
Betula pubescens	Ehrh.	50 g
Carpinus betulus	L.	2,500 g
Castanea sativa	Mill.	45,000 g
Fagus sylvatica	L.	6,000 g
Fraxinus angustifolia	Vahl.	2,000 g
Fraxinus excelsior	L.	2,000 g
Populus spp.		20 g
Prunus avium	L.	4,500 g
Quercus spp.	L.	40,000 g
Robinia pseudoacacia	L.	500 g
Tilia cordata	Mill.	900 g
Tilia platyphyllos	Scop.	2,500 g

Regulation 28(2)

SCHEDULE 12

FORM OF CERTIFICATE TO BE GIVEN BY AUTHORISED OFFICER UPON TAKING SAMPLES PURSUANT TO REGULATION 28(2)

THE FOREST REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL REGULATIONS (NORTHERN IRELAND) 2002

(1)

1967 c. 28 (N.I.)