FONT SIZE
S
M
L
COLOR
Normal
1
2
3

FTBC Top

Home > About us

Update:March 27, 2018

Main content starts here.

About us

Hokkaido Regional Breeding Office

Objective

Based on selection criteria of growth, quality of wood, resistance to various factors, and other characteristics, the goal at each of the Forest Tree Breeding Center (Hokkaido Regional Breeding Office) is to develop new superior varieties with the characteristics above, and also to propagate and distribute selected varieties so that seedlings for superior forest trees can be maintained for breeding purposes.

Forest tree breeding program has been implemented as part of a government measure on a national level. The Hokkaido RBO was established in April 1957, as an organization under a special accounting scheme, as part of the national forest management program of Forestry Agency. Under this program, the Hokkaido RBO was established along with four other forest tree breeding offices. The Hokkaido RBO is responsible for the entire Hokkaido region. While the office is now part of the National Research and Development Agency, its activities have not changed.

Main activities 

The main activities of this center are as follows: (1) genetic improvement of forest trees, mainly of coniferous species, todomatsu (sakhalin fir, Abies sachalinensis), ezomatsu (yezo spruce, Picea jezoensis), aka-ezomatsu (sakhalin spruce, Picea glehnii), karamatsu (Japanese larch, Larix kaempferi) and guimatsu (kuril larch, Larix gmelinii); and (2) preservation of genetic resources as breeding materials for various species of forest trees, including broad-leaved species, such as mizunara (Quercus crispula).

The collected tree individuals from these activities have been widespread to overseas varieties that are partly used as material for cross-breading. Furthermore, the trees planted on the field of the office serve as a gene bank.