Tree Growth Prediction in Relation to Simple Set of Site Quality Indicators for Six Native Tree Species in the Philippines

Table 1

Tree-site matching from three different methodological perspectives.

Perspective	Step 1	Step 2	Step 3
(1) Tree:
What are suitable sites for this tree species (given its provenance)?	Calculate performance relative to “reference”	Identify “growth retarding” factors: landscape position, soil type, soil physics, soil chemical factors	Map relative suitability based on combined model for each tree species
(2) Site:
What are the best tree species for this site?	Derive efficient site typology	Combine relative performance per tree species with expected value for the farmer	List the “best bet” tree species for each site
(3) Farmer:
Based on what information can I judge whether a given tree & site combination will be productive?	In Tree—Step 2: calculate stepwise adjusted R^2: what gain in precision can be obtained with more complete information	Compare costs of obtaining various site indicators to the expected gain in predictive power of performance	Evaluate cost-benefit of modified choice based on better information