Especies forestales promisorias para la diversificación de forestaciones en la Patagonia Argentina Promissory forest species for the diversification of afforestations in Argentine Patagonia

. To avoid the tendency to thiskind of monocultures, with their unfavorable ecological and sanitary consequences, there is a need of evaluating the possibilityof cultivating other timber species, to allow for the diversification of the current afforestations. In this study, small stands andgroups of trees planted in the last 50 years were sampled, identifying the species present and measuring height, age and diameterof trees, as well as recording the environmental conditions where they grow. Those healthy species, that were found in two ormore sites, and whose growth parameters resulted higher than those found in their places of origin, were selected as promissoryspecies. Measured dominant heights were compared with those appearing in yield tables and site index curves for their naturaldistribution areas, so as to evaluate their growth potential. The species that showed higher heights than the same species grownin their native areas, were healthier, had high wood quality and a recognised value in the wood market were: