In South Africa, a low input ‘‘brashing’’ regime was
trialed in E. grandis (Schonau, 1984; Maree, 1979;
Poynton, 1980). Brashing is a low intervention method
whereby dead branches were removed by ‘‘brushing’’
the stem. In stands 3–4 years old (stocking rates 1111–
1667 stems ha1) branches to a height of 7 m are
typically dead and could be easily brushed from the
stem (Poynton, 1980). However, brashing achieves
little direct control over knotty core, which will be
determined by the rate of branch mortality. It
should also be stressed that brashing has not been
widely tested and its practicality for removing branch
stubs and subsequent effect on wood quality are