Local knowledge (LK) related to the ecology and use of wild plants in rural communities is now in danger of disappearing due to changing lifestyles, population decline, and aging. This study documents the transformation of edible wild plant use and its underlying factors in the mountainous region in western Fukushima, Japan. First, using publications and past/present interviews, we compiled a chronology of changes in wild plant use and its background in the communities from the post-World War II period to the present (nearly 80 years). Next, we made a species list for wild vegetables (45 species/taxa) and fruits and nuts (26 species/taxa) used in the communities. We then interviewed 11 key informants (late 60s-80s) in the communities about changes in the use of these species and their factors. As a result, we found four groups of wild species/taxa whose use are: (A) found mainly during the food shortage period (the 1940s), (B) drastically decreased in the high economic growth period (the late 1950s-the 1970s), (C) continued at reduced rates, and (D) their use started recently introduced from outside. The main underlying factors of the changes for (A) to (C) are: (1) replacement by purchasable alternatives, (2) construction, agricultural development, and pesticide use, (3) loss of habitats due to the abandonment of coppice and grasslands, (4) change in the economic value, and (5) change in accessibility to gathering sites. Further study is necessary to elucidate the effective means of knowledge transmission through human interaction, including education.

This study is a fundamental research aimed at examining the issuies and possibilities of cultivating forestry and forestry personnel in specialized high schools. Also, it is a case study with the objective of revealing some aspects of the current status and challenges of forestry and forestry education conducted in one agricultural high school. The target of the investigation is Agricultural High School A, which offers a forestry and forestry course in the eastern part of Japan. The research was conducted through document research on School A, interviews with current and former teachers at School A, and a questionnaire survey of students enrolled in the forestry course.The results of the investigation revealed that in Specialization Group F at School A, while there was a decrease in the number of subjects related to forestry and forestry education, the training function for forestry and forestry personnel was maintained with the support of teachers who received specialized education in forestry science at universities. However, the current situation indicated that the function of cultivating forestry and forestry personnel for students outside Specialization Group F was not sufficient.On the other hand, it was found that there are challenges to enhancing the training function for forestry and forestry personnel in the E Department of School A. These issuies include 1) improving the content of forestry and forestry-related subjects, 2) educational collaboration with other institutions, 3) collaboration with forestry schools, and 4) addressing the quantitative and qualitative enhancement of teachers.

In the fumigation treatment of infested pine logs to eradicate Monochamus alternatus larvae, decreased MITC gas concentration resulting from insufficient application of the fumigant and/or other factors would reduce insect mortalities in the logs. Close contact of the wood surface with a masking object such as the ground can also negatively impact the insecticidal effect by preventing infiltration of the effective chemical into the logs. In this study, we prepared log-piles, and set a test log to investigate insect mortality at the middle of each pile. We also set two logs at the bottom and top of the pile to make them contact with the ground and the covering sheet, respectively. Then the log-piles were fumigated by one of the following three types of covering methods: complete wrapping, top covering, and top covering with spot-pouring of the fumigant. We detected living insects in the test logs taken from a log-pile with complete wrapping and three log-piles with top covering with spot-pouring, and the maximum MITC gas concentration in these coverings was ≤2.14 g/m³ for those piles. The living insects were likely to occur in the logs that were in contact with the ground or the covering sheet, and could grow into adults. To achieve a high level of insect mortality, we need to avoid factors causing the decrease in MITC gas concentrations, such as spot-pouring of the fumigant and close contact of the logs with the ground and covering sheet.

The Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan were connected to the Shimane Peninsula during the glacial period. The vertical distribution of forest vegetation is unclear and glacial relict tree species might exist. To clarify the characteristics of the tree species composition of the Oki Islands, we compared the tree species compositions of the Oki Islands with those of the Tsushima Islands, which were connected to Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula in the Middle Pleistocene, and Sado Island, which has been a remote island since the Middle Pleistocene. We identified 272 taxa on the Oki Islands, 329 on the Tsushima Islands, and 313 on Sado Island. The Oki Islands are characterized by the smallest area and the fewest tree taxa. The Tsushima Islands, located in the south, had more continental and southern taxa, while Sado Island, located in the north, had more northern taxa. The Oki Islands, located in between, had many taxa in common with both islands and the taller trees of deciduous oaks and evergreen Lauraceae.