Status of management and silviculture research on sandalwood in Western Australia and Indonesia

Abstract

Abstract: The current status of the conservation and management of Santalum spicatum in Western Australia and S. album in East Indonesia is outlined. Natural and artificial regeneration techniques for both species in selected areas are discussed. The present Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research program on S. album in Nasa Tenggara Timur is described in relation to the management needs of the species in that province. In S. spicatum, research on silviculture is essentially complete, and interest is now focused on the marketability of the kernels for human consumption. This paper is intended to be an overview, albeit incomplete, of current research on silviculture and the management status of the various sandalwood species of Western Australia and Indonesia. It is incomplete because it deals only with those areas with which I have direct experience and is not in any way an exhaustive survey of the whole region. Trees given the appellation of sandalwood (or various versions such as sandal, santal) occur discontinuously over a huge area extending from India, through Indonesia, New Guinea, Australia, and many Pacific Islands as far east as Juan Fernandez Island. They are primarily tropical species, with the exception of four species occurring in Australia that extend into the warm temperate deserts. All are species of the genus Santalum and most (those known as sandalwood) are distinguished by the presence in the mature wood of distinctive oils which have been sought after for centuries for a variety of medicinal, ceremonial, and perfumery purposes. The taxonomy of the genus is still somewhat untidy, but the following species distribution is a fair approximation of the present occurrence of sandalwood in the Australia-Indonesia-South Pacific region: Indonesia—S. album Australia—S. spicatum, S. acuminatum, S. lanceolatum, and