Faculty of Forestry > Sections>Forestry and nature protection>Chairs>The chair of Silviculture
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The chair of Silviculture

Head of the Chair of Silviculture:  Dr.Violeta Babić, full professor

Deputy Head of Chair: Dr. Branko Kanjevac, аssistant professor

Chair Secretary:

Brief history of chair development

The Chair of Silviculture, has a long tradition as one of the basic organizational units of the Faculty of Forestry of the University of Belgrade, as well as a basic teaching and research unit of professional courses and disciplines of forestry. Since the establishment of the Forestry department of the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry (1920) the Institute for establishment, silviculture and protection of forests with hunting was also established. With subsequent development of the Faculty, its transformation and the establishment of the independent Faculty of Forestry in 1949, the number and names of subjects of the Chair also change.

With the 1930 University Act one of 18 institutes of the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry (with mainly common subjects) was the Institute for establishment, silviculture and protection of forests with hunting. Vocational subjects listed within the Institute are: Botany – general and special; Agrogeology with mineralogy and petrography; Meteorology with climatology; Soil science; Dendrology and Anatomy of Wood; Forest Establishment and Silviculture; Forest Protection; Hunting.

With the 1939 Decree the first chairs were formed at the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry were formed. With the 1942 General University Act the Faculty of Forestry had three chairs: Forest establishment and silviculture, Forest Management, Forest Expoitation, with a total of 15 vocational subjects.

Other subjects were within the relevant chairs of the Faculty of Agriculture. In the first years after World War II for the generation of newly enrolled students, starting from the academic year 1945/46 the teaching (with the aim to guidance “deepen the ‘Biological and technical-technological component forestry) took place in the following two streams: Forest Silvicultural stream and the Forest-Industrial stream.

Within the Forest-Silvicultural stream the following subjects of the Chair of Forest Establishment and Silviculture were taught: Botany; Petrography with Geology; Dendrology; Soil Science; Meteorology with Climatology; Anatomy of Wood; Plant Nutrition; Forest Plantations; Silviculture; Forest Ameliorations; Forest Protection. Since the school year 1952/53 a new subject – Phytocoenology was introduced to the Chair.

With the provisions of the first 1956 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry  two departments were formed: General Forestry Department and Wood Industry Department. The Forestry Department Chair of Silviculture included the following subjects: Silviculture; Dendrology with Phytocenology; Anatomy of wood; Soil Science; Botany; Meteorology with Climatology. The teaching for scientific development also took place at the Faculty, i.e. the preparation of doctoral theses in the scientific discipline: Rehabilitation and silviculture.

A total of five departments were formed at the Faculty of Forestry with the 1960 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry. The Chair of Silviculture of the Forestry Department included the following subjects: Silviculture; Dendrology with Phytocenology; Plant Nutrition with Microbiology; Forest Soil Science; Petrography with Geology; Meteorology with Climatology; Fundamentals of Silviculture and Forest Management (at the Department of residential greening, and the Department of erosion and torrent control). With the amendments to the Statute of the Faculty of Forestry in 1961, for the purpose of separation of other activities of forestry in practice from the classical scope of forest activities, the Forestry department was divided into two: the Chair of Silviculture; and the Chair of Forest Exploitation.

With the 1974 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry, in accordance with the associated labor law self-management institutes were formed at the Faculty of Forestry, and in 1977 and 1978, in accordance with the law, the above institutes of the Faculty of Forestry became basic organizations of associated labor. Among them was the Institute of Forestry, which included the Chair of Silviculture with the above subjects, and introduced a new subject: Study and Improvement of the Environment. Postgraduate studies for obtaining the academic degrees of Master and Specialists could also be obtained in the field of silviculture, as well as doctoral studies.

The provisions of the 1983 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry introduced optional, i.e. elective subjects. The Chair of silviculture consisted of the following subjects: Petrography with Geology; Meteorology with Climatology; Soil science; Silviculture; Dendrology with Phytocenology; Forestry in landscape architecture (at the Institute of Landscape Architecture). The newly introduced optional subjects within the Chair include: Forest Typology and Forest Reclamation. Postgraduate studies and doctoral studies were also organized in the field of silviculture. Silviculture is a compulsory subject in postgraduate studies in the field of forest management. With the 1988 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry the small work units are abolished and the Faculty of Forestry was once again organized as a unique educational and scientific institution, which carries out teaching and research activities within the departments: Department of Forestry; Department of wood processing; Department of Horticulture; Department of Erosion Control. This form of organization has been maintained to date, with certain changes in the names of departments, i.e. educational streams.

With the 1998 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry the Chair of silviculture was divided and two chairs were formed: the Chair of Silviculture and the Chair of Forest Ecology, which is composed of most of the subjects that have belonged to the Chair of Silviculture since the establishment of the independent Faculty of Forestry. After that, the Chair of Silviculture was composed of the following subjects: Silviculture; and Forest ameliorations. These subjects were also taught at the Department of Erosion Control. Master of Science studies, specialist and doctoral studies were organized in the field of silviculture.

With the 2002 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry, on the basis of the new University Law, Departments were once again formed at the Faculty of Forestry. At that time, the Chair of Silviculture consisted of the following subjects: Silviculture 1 (also taught at the Department of erosion control); Forest ecoclimatology; Silviculture 2 (Forest ameliorations).

With the 2006 Statute of the Faculty of Forestry, which was in accordance with the new Law on Higher Education, the Bologna system of education (Bologna 1) was introduced. It includes undergraduate studies (Bachelor), which last for 4 years, master’s degree studies (Master), which last for 1 year, and doctoral studies, with a duration of 3 years, in the appropriate study programs of the departments. The Chair of Silviculture included the following subjects: Forest ecoclimatology; Ecology of Silviculture and Silviculture I; Ecology of silviculture (at the Department of Ecological Engineering for soil and water resources protection); Silviculture II; Silviculture of special-purpose forests (master); Modeling and GIS in silviculture (master). Within the master’s degree studies there is a special module: Silviculture, plant production, protection and ecology.

In accordance with the new law on higher education, in the accreditation of study programs (Bologna 2) new elective courses were introduced in 2008. In addition to the above, the new subject Silviculture of Special Purpose Forests was introduced to the Chair of Silviculture. Narrow scientific fields are formed and the NSF of silviculture is composed of the same subjects.

The first final thesis at the Faculty of Forestry in the Bologna education system was written and defended in the NSF of Silviculture – Vladimir Vasić (the paper defended  in 2010  – mentor prof. Dr. Milun Krstić). The first master paper at the Faculty of Forestry was written and defended in the NSF of Silviculture – Srđan Keren (the paper defended  in 2010 – mentor prof. Dr. Milun Krstić). 

In the new 2013 (Bologna 3) accreditation of the study programs, amendments were made to the study program of Forestry, so that in the specific scientific field of Silviculture teaching takes place within a large number of teaching disciplines in undergraduate, master’s degree and doctoral studies.