Secondary Use of Forests in Time of War and Crisis
Tannin Bark Use
 | Oak bark as a substitute for tannin Oak bark has been produced in oak coppices until 1880. Cheap tannin import from South America lea to a change of forest use. The breakdown of international trade in 1914 revealed this development. |
| Pre-war period In the midth-19th century tanning industry was very important in Germany. Small scale family-owned businesses dominated the local markets. Only several manufactures delivered to regional centers. From 1880 on new tanning techiques simplified and accellerated the tanning process but demanded a change the use of tannin extracts. These extracts could be imported from South America easily and rendered the german oak coppices economically unviable. The technical devices were expensive and did not pay off for family-owned businesses. These were sqeezed out of the market. | |
| Reactions of the forest owners These developments on the side of the industrial consumers had large effects. Clients for German tannin bark were lost. Under certain circumstances alternative uses could be found. P.ex. if the owner was engaded in agriculture, too. The firewood production was an alternative use, too. But none of the alternative uses could really compensate the bark completely. State-owned forests did not have such alternative uses. Here, the focus had changed to timber production in high forest stands. Thus the state foresters converted the forests to timber forests whenever the financial resources allowed so. In 1913, there was hardly any coppice in state-owned forests anymore. Whereas small farmers and cooperatives still owned large parts of their previous coppice pssessions. They lacked the money for a change to timber production. | |
| Did a change of land use happen? Factors that hindered a change of land use thus were a farmer dominated ownership structure, the possibility of multifunctional coppice use and a local remoteness. In serveral regions multiply used oak coppices in the hand of farmers remained. They can be verified in official forestry records. | |
| The Great War of 1914 In the first month of the Great war in 1914, Germany had been cut off of international trade with South America. Transport problems caused by requisitions and a lack of workers within Germany aggraved the problem in 1916. This lead to a reclaim of economic cycles that had been under great pressure in the years before. The still existing tannin oak coppices were over exploited heavily. Young converted forests stands as well - despite the great losses. The coppice owners earned a lot of money in the forst two years of the war. Then the ever-rising lack of carts and workers avoided further bark production. It cannot be determined exactly, if a bark use was still possible after the years of overexploitation. Technical developments lead to a convertion to tannin wood. This wood could be cut together with the normal timber in the winter. Thus a sumptous exemption of military service of workers could be avoided. |
 | The bark was dryed on special stands Old bark that could not be used fpr tanning anymore protected the young bark of rain and sunshine. The picture ihas been made in Arnsberg during the Second World War. |
Nutrition out of the forest
 | Nutrition out of the forest In times of crisis forest fruits and berries and mushrooms. School children were send to the forests to collect the food substitutes. Beech nuts were to fight the fat shortage. The call dates from 1917. |
 | "Wildwachsendes Kriegsgemüse" - "Wild-growing War Vegies" Thus, weeds should be pitched to the starving population. The call dates from 1917.. |
 | A call to collect animal feed Children were called to contribute to the feed collection. Acorn and chestnuts were fed to pigs. The call dates from 1917. |
 | A call to collect foliage hay Foliage hay has been in use to substitute the scarce hay. The call dates from 1917. |
 | Cotton has been scarce, too Cotton had been imported from the U.S.. This trade broke down with the beginning of the war. Children were send to the forests to collect stinning nettles which contained plant fibres, too. A rather uncomfortable work. The call dates from 1917. |
Does the forest use become more multi-functional during times of war and crisis? |
 | The increase of secondary use related income In Brunsvig statistics were drawn even during the war. Here, a significant increase in secondary forest use revenue could be witnessed. |