MOTTI is a stand-level forest growth and yield simulator developed by the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke, formerly Metla) that models the development of even-aged and uneven-aged boreal forest stands under a wide range of silvicultural regimes and site conditions. The model integrates empirical growth functions calibrated against Finland's extensive national forest inventory and permanent sample plot datasets, and simulates key stand processes including diameter and height growth, self-thinning mortality, natural regeneration, and the response of stands to management interventions such as thinning, fertilisation, and clear-cutting. MOTTI is structured around individual-tree or size-class approaches depending on model configuration, allowing it to capture within-stand variation in tree size and competitive dynamics while remaining computationally efficient enough for operational planning applications. A key strength of MOTTI is its integration of economic analysis tools that translate biophysical growth projections into financial metrics including timber revenues, harvesting costs, and net present value, enabling managers to compare the economic performance of alternative silvicultural strategies over full rotation periods. Although developed primarily for Finnish boreal species including Norway spruce (Picea abies), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), and silver birch (Betula pendula), the modelling architecture and parameterisation methodology of MOTTI are directly relevant to plantation growth modelling in Australian contexts, particularly for softwood estates where empirical data-rich, stand-level simulators are needed for operational harvest planning and long-term wood supply forecasting. MOTTI has been made available through the Luke research infrastructure and has been applied in comparative studies of forest management strategies across Scandinavian and Baltic countries, serving as an important reference tool in international forest growth modelling research and silvicultural decision support.
| Field |
Value |
| Company |
OptFORESTS Project |
| Country |
Europe |
| Type |
Company |
| FWPA RD&E |
8.5 |