On the concept of site in forestry.

SYNOPSIS Site research in forest management has received insufficient attention in South Africa. Site may be considered from a use-orientated or ecological point of view, its boundaries accepted as natural and sharp, or it may be regarded as gradational and be fixed arbitrarily. An intermediate approach using land form characteristics is seen as a practical compromise. The utility of the site concept depends on the classification system employed. This may be designed according to taxonomic principles or make use of regionalisation. To achieve cost-effectiveness in site mapping, some preliminary basic research is essential, irrespective of the mapping strategy used.