Criteria for the selection of firewood species

Criteria to be used for the selection of firewood species in an agroforestry system are as follows:

  • Easy to propagate
  • Easy to plantation establishment, care and management
  • Adopt well in different ecological conditions and in problem soils such as nutrient deficit soils, toxic soils, sloping areas and dry areas
  • Have special desirable characteristics such as
    1. Nitrogen fixing ability (legume species and Uttis trees etc)
    2. Rapid growth with more branches
    3. Coppicing rapidly after firewood cutting
  • Deep rooted system with few lateral roots
  • Light shading effects to companion agriculture crops
  • Have good quality for imparting sustainability of fire wood production
  • High survival rate even in poor soils and in drought areas
  • Multi-purpose uses for high per unit production
  • Very good ability of producing wood of high calorific value that burns without sparks or toxic fumes/smoke. The calorific values of some firewood species are as follows:
    1. Albizia lebbek (Siris) 5163-5166 Kcal/kg
    2. Eucalyptus spp (Masala) 3172-5680 Kcal/kg
    3. Leucaena leucocephala (Ipil-Ipil) 4200-4600 Kcal/kg
    4. Dalbergia sissoo (Sissoo) 4908-5181 Kcal/kg
  • Species of high demand and market value
  • Resistant to insects, pests and diseases
  • Be capable of improving micro-sites
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