The aim of this paper is to make clear the process of the diffusion of the Yoshino forestry system during the Meiji Era in Japan.
The Yoshino Forestry System was based on extremely intensive silviculture: growing seeds in a seed bed, a density of tree planting at more than 10, 000per ha, and pruning and thinning the trees about 20 times during the growing cycle.
This system was established only in the upper area of the Yoshino River, southeast of Osaka, during the 19th century. This intensive system was formed only relating to the timber markets of Osaka and its surrounding area where the largest markets in the Edo Period were located.
After the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji government enforced a new tax system which was based on money instead of the former tax system based on payment in kind, and the rural economy could not be developed due to poor economic policies and the wars.
As a result, each farmer especially in the mountain areas needed cash income. Afforestation was chosen as a method for the development of the rural economy, when the prices for timber rose as a result of the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95), and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05).
However, many farmers, outside the Yoshino area, did not know the methods of afforestation. Therefore many local leaders, farmers and some local officers visited the Yoshino area to learn afforestation methods. We can trace many local documents written by such leaders at that time.
By this process, the forestry practices in the Yoshino area were accepted as the new concept of the Yoshino Forestry System. On the other hand, Shozaburo Dokura, a leader of villages in the Yoshino area, also published guide books on the process of afforestation in the Yoshino area to explain the Yoshino Forestry System techniques of silviculture. He also taught the adovantages of forestry management by silviculture in his lectures, and demonstrated methods of planting trees based on the Yoshino Forestry System in some mountain villages.
By these activities, the image of the Yoshino Forestry System was solidified, and was supported by many local leaders inside and outside of the Yoshino area. Thus, more than 100, 000 persons visited the Yoshino area in the latter half of the Meiji Era.
As a result, the Yoshino Forestry System was introduced into public forest sectors managed by each prefecture, county and municipality, and also into private forest holdings managed by individual farmers.
However, some problems arosed in adopting the Yoshino Forestry System in each moungain area. One large problem was the intensive planting, because this method was supported by much experience in the Yoshino area, where the close connection with the large timber market of Osaka, ensured that various-sized timber produced by thinning could find a ready marcet.
In this respect, most of the afforestated areas where the Yoshino Forestry System was introduced found their location advantages to be weak compared with the Yoshino area. As a result, many farmers in those areas changed the density of tree planting to the extensive level of 1, 500∼3, 000per ha.
On the other hand, the Yoshino Forestry System was evaluated highly in its seed growing process. This process furthered the development of forestry in many mountain areas. The seed growing methods of the Yoshino Forestry System were identical to those of rice growing, and allowed choice of good seeds under good conditions. This method also allowed mass production of seedlings and multiplied the area of afforestation. Therefore, this seeding method based on the Yoshino Forestry System encouraged the development of afforestation, in Japan, before World War II.
However, at the end of the Meiji Eera, the boom of the Yoshino Forestry System ended for general reasons: first, the checking mentioned above, second
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