Colonial Forestry at its Limits: The Latter Day Career of Sir David Hutchins in New Zealand 1915-1920

Abstract

This paper explores imperial forestry networks by focusing on a single individual, Sir David Hutchins, who spent the final years of his life in New Zealand extolling the need for scientific forest management in the Dominion. Hutchins' career had taken him from India to Southern Africa, to British East Africa and Australia, then finally to New Zealand. In New Zealand he advocated a colonial forestry model derived from his Indian and African experience. Whereas in Africa Hutchins was regarded as a champion of exotic afforestation, in New Zealand he was closely identified with indigenous forest management, further reinforcing Sivaramakrishnan's ideas about how colonial location reshaped the appearance of scientific forestry. Hutchins focused much attention of the Kauri (Agathis australis) forests but encountered unexpected opposition and resistance from settler farmers, local politicians, and the local scientific community such as it was.

Forestry as imperial careering: New Zealand as the end and edge of empire in the 1920s–1940s

“…The visit of empire forester David Hutchins accelerated the view that forestry was centred on sustained yield management of natural forests and not just tree planting as most locals thought (Roche 2010b). Hutchins was born in Britain but, in the absence of any British institutions, trained at the famous French forestry school at Nancy in order to pursue a career in forestry.…”

“…Hutchins was born in Britain but, in the absence of any British institutions, trained at the famous French forestry school at Nancy in order to pursue a career in forestry. He began his career in India but spent the majority of it in southern Africa before visiting Australia in 1914 and New Zealand in 1916 where he wrote several controversial forestry reports (Roche 2010a). In 1916 C.E.…”