Productivity Assessment and Modeling of Reproduction Cork in the Hafir Forest, Northwest Algeria

This study aims to characterize and model the production of reproduction cork from Quercus suber L. in the Hafir forest, located in the Tellian Atlas of north-western Algeria (Province of Tlemcen, Algeria). The forest covers approximately 10 155 ha, with cork oak occupying 4792 ha. This forest plays an essential role in maintaining the physical, biological, and socio-economic balance of the study region. It is the main source of cork production in the entire Tlemcen region. However, this forest is currently facing serious problems, including degradation, relatively low cork productivity, and an almost complete absence of natural regeneration. A total of 126 trees in full production were sampled to measure cork thickness, tree circumferences, and debarking heights. The average total cork thickness was estimated at 29.4 ± 4.13 mm, with an annual increment of 2.53 ± 0.35 mm/year, placing the majority of the cork within the commercial quality class. The mean volume of standing cork per tree was 0.10 ± 0.02 m3, corresponding to an average mass of 25.15 ± 6.79 kg and a productivity of 7.01 ± 0.97 kg/m2. A regression model was developed using basal area and debarking height as predictive variables, achieving a coefficient of determination R2 = 0.89, indicating strong predictive performance for standing cork volume estimation. Dendrometric analysis revealed that trees with circumferences between 61 and 105 cm made up 48.8% of the population, while only 6.4% exceeded 166 cm. The mean cork removal height was 1.98 m, and the average debarking surface was 2.15 m2. The majority of trees (over 80%) had a debarking coefficient between 1.0 and 2.5, aligning with sustainable exploitation practices. The debarking intensity ranged from 15 to 37, with mean values suggesting rational debarking intensities. The results offer a robust foundation for sustainable cork oak forest management and suggest practical tools for predicting cork yields based on simple field measurements.

Cite this article as: Dahmani, S. K., Bouhraoua, R. T., D., Suay, M. F., & Beltran, R. S. (2026). Productivity assessment and modeling of reproduction cork in the Hafir forest, northwest Algeria. Forestist, 76, 0050, doi: 10.5152/forestist.2026.25050.