Germany's regional characteristics have influenced the formation of three forest philosophies
Updated by Kotaro Nagasawa on August 28, 2025, 8:59 AM JST
Kotaro NAGASAWA
（Platinum Initiative Network, Inc.
Born in Tokyo in 1958. （Engaged in research on infrastructure and social security at Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. During his first few years with the company, he was involved in projects related to flood control, and was trained by many experts on river systems at the time to think about the national land on a 100- to 1,000-year scale. He is currently an advisor to Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. He is also an auditor of Jumonji Gakuen Educational Corporation and a part-time lecturer at Tokyo City University. Coauthor of "Introduction to Infrastructure," "New Strategies from the Common Domain," and "Forty Years After Retirement. D. in Engineering.
*Click here for the first part.
The Challenges Faced by the "Hozoku" Philosophy of Forestry Born in 18th Century Germany, a Time of Rampant Deforestation Reading "Forestry: German Forests and Japanese Forestry" by Yukikazu Murao (Part 1)
From the beginning, there was opposition to "Taranto forestry," which originated in Saxony in central Germany and attempted to improve land productivity through large-area, simultaneous, simple forestry. The spearhead of this movement was Professor Karl Geier (1822-1907) of the University of Munich in southern Germany.
Geyer thoroughly criticized Tarrant forestry in his 1886 book "Mixed Forestry" and other works. The content of his criticism can be summarized as follows: (1) forestry is an industry completely different from agriculture, (2) forests are not simply a group of trees but an "eco-system," (3) forestry must be conducted in a natural and near-natural way, (4) this will allow the productive vitality of nature to be fully realized, and (5) "sustainability" can only be achieved through ecological methods that maintain the forest in a healthy state. (5) "Sustenance" is realized through ecological methods that maintain forests in a healthy state.
Based on this idea, Guyer says that forestry should be primarily natural regeneration, with plantation silviculture as a secondary activity. Timber harvesting would be continuous small-scale logging. The resulting mixed forests of irregular shape, multiple layers, different ages, and small acreage, created and maintained by local species, are the ideal. This is the exact opposite of the idea of large-scale, simultaneous, simple forests. A method called the "verification method" was also developed to realize continuous small-scale logging based on careful forest observation.
Geier's ideas were inherited and developed mainly at his base, the University of Munich. For example, Professor Victor Dieterich (1879-1971) of the University of Munich, like Geier, viewed forests as an ecosystem, and developed the "multifunctional forestry theory," which emphasized the importance of soil conservation, water retention and cooling, disaster prevention, recreation, and the creation of favorable climates and weather conditions, in addition to the production of materials.
The forestry philosophy of the University of Munich had an impact on geographically close Switzerland. Arnold Engler (1869-1923), a professor of forestry at ETH Zurich, was influenced by Geier's writings, and converted the forestry practice then practiced in Switzerland of creating large areas of simple coniferous forests and clear cutting them to mixed forests centered on natural regeneration. Mr. Murao describes this relationship as the "Munich-Zurich Alliance" because Geier's forestry philosophy flourished in Switzerland rather than in his native Germany. Munich is located in the southern German state of Bavaria, which is surprisingly close to Zurich.
In northern Germany, there was Prussia, which was known as one of the most powerful countries among the German possessions. The Eberswalde Forestry Academy, Prussia's highest forestry school, was established near Berlin, near the Polish border. Alfred Möller (1860-1922), a forestry scholar who studied at the academy and became a professor, independently of the Munich-Zurich alliance, arrived at similar ideas and presented them to the world in a book titled "The Idea of Everlasting Forests" (1922).
The main points of his philosophy are almost the same as those of Guyer's: to regard forests as living organisms, to respect natural cycles and avoid artificial intervention (such as clear cutting) as much as possible, and to actively leave not only coniferous trees but also broad-leaved trees to secure habitats for a variety of organisms.
Continuous cover forestry (Dauerwald, Germany; Continuous Cover Forestry, UK) is a forest that ensures ecosystem homeostasis. There is no concept of renewal, much less a fixed renewal period. The healthiest and most beautiful forests provide the greatest amount of timber of the best quality. To achieve this, he writes, the most important factor is the quality of forestry personnel who constantly observe the condition of the forest and identify trees that should be cut down.
We have run through the development of German forestry thought as described by Mr. Murao. There is an "ideology" in German forestry. I have the impression that it is very different from the Japanese forestry of the Edo period. The Edo Japanese aspect of practical search for disaster prevention and harvest maximization methodologies based on experience seems to be present in Germany as well, but there is a set of discussions on how humans should deal with forests. Rather, there is a sense that measures are created out of ideas.
And it seems that the forestry philosophy has regional characteristics. If we drop "Taranto (Saxony)," "Munich-Zurich (Bavaria)," and "Eberswalde (Prussia)," which Mr. Murao mentioned, on the map, it looks like another map. It is like a map of the Three Kingdoms.
Mr. Murao said, "The Japanese image of Germans as 'meticulous and rule-abiding' is similar to that of the Prussians. The Bavarians are cheerful and loose in all things." "This cultural geography of the German-speaking world is deeply engraved in forestry and forestry," said Murao, "Carl Geyer to Josef Koestler (1902-1982). From Carl Geyer to Josef Koestler (1902-1982), a professor of forestry at the University of Munich, who advocated "freestyle forestry" that refused to fit actual forestry into a pre-determined plan, it can be said that the indeterminate forestry was born from the Munich or southern German temperament.
The introduction of Taranto forestry by the Meiji government will be described in the next issue. (Kotaro Nagasawa, Director, Platinum Initiative Network)
■Related Sites
Forestry: German Forests and Japanese Forestry" (Chikuchi-Shokan)
