Enrichment Planting
Source: PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 10–11
What it is
Enrichment planting puts seedlings into an area that is already adequately stocked with crop-tree species and in good enough condition for the seedlings to survive. The aim is to add something the stand is missing, for example:
- improving wildlife habitat,
- conserving or restoring rare species,
- increasing species diversity.
For many of PEI’s original Acadian covertypes — red spruce, hemlock, beech, cedar, sugar maple, yellow birch, red oak, white pine, and never-ploughed forest — enrichment is normally the only planting treatment available (see Planting Standards).
Eligibility
- Density: normally 200 to 1,400 seedlings/ha.
- Site match: the site must suit each species’ shade tolerance and micro-habitat needs. Because enrichment seedlings grow under or next to existing trees, check the Shade Tolerance Chart. The manual’s text calls this chart Appendix 2; in the 2025 edition it is Appendix 3.
A related term, partial planting, describes establishing seedlings intermittently at 200–1,000/ha (see Definitions).
Standards and assessment
A post-planting assessment confirms the seedlings were planted to the planting specifications.
Based on the PEI Ecosystem-Based Forest Management Standards Manual (October 2025), pp. 10–11. Where this guide and the manual differ, the manual governs.