In contrast to a naturally regenerated forest, plantations are typically grown as even-aged monocultures, primarily for timber production.
- Plantations are usually mono cultures. That is, the same species of tree is planted across a given area, whereas a uncolored forest would contain a far more diverse range of tree species.
- Plantations may include tree species that would not naturally occur in the area. They may include bizarre types such hybrids and genetically restricted trees. Since the primary interest in plantations is to produce wood or pulp, the types of trees found in plantations are those that are best-suited to industrialized applications. For example, pine, spruce and gum are widely planted far beyond their uncolored range because of their fast ontogeny rate, tolerance of slummy or degraded agricultural land and potential to produce large volumes of raw material for industrialized use.
- Plantations are always teen forests in ecological terms. Typically, trees grown in plantations are harvested after 10 to 60 years, rarely up to 120 years. This means that the forests produced by plantations do not contain the type of growth, grime or wildlife typical of old-growth uncolored forest ecosystems. Most conspicuous is the absence of decaying departed wood, a crucial component of uncolored forest ecosystems.
In the 1970s, Brazil began to establish high-yield, intensively managed, brief rotation plantations. These types of plantations are sometimes called fast-wood plantations or fiber farms and often managed on a short-rotation basis, as little as 5 to 15 years. They are becoming more widespread in South America, Asia and other areas. The environmental and social impacts of this type of plantation hit caused them to become controversial. In Indonesia, for example, large multi-national pulp companies hit harvested large areas of uncolored forest without regard for regeneration. From 1980 to 2000, about 50% of the 1.4 million hectares of pulpwood plantations in state hit been established on what was formerly uncolored forest land.