An Open-Source Tree Bucking Optimizer Based on Dynamic Programming

Bucking optimization was shown to generate high gains in volume and value recovery in harvesting operations. Several bucking optimizers have been developed between the 1960s and early 2000s but none of those programs were available in an open-source and easily modifiable format by users. Therefore, this paper presents BuckR, an open access bucking optimizer at tree-level, programmed in R. The objective function is the maximization of values for each study tree, but it can be modified depending on the needs of users. BuckR is based on a well-known dynamic programming algorithm and requires tree data and product specifications with prices as the inputs. One of the output files produced is the log sequence, generating the highest value for each study tree. Through the open access code, the developed bucking optimizer will facilitate future research and applications in the field of value maximization.