Coppice belongs to the oldest forestry models in Europe and is still cultivated in some regions. Despite the smaller productivity compared to high forests, coppice forests are important for protection of natural values, cultural heritage, production of small−sized timber, mitigation of climate changes, provision of non−wood products as well as providing a protective and recreational function. The most important forms of coppice management are simple coppice and coppice with standards. The varieties of the previous include short rotation coppice and selection coppice. In addition, there are two other management systems, that use vegetative regrowth of individual trees – pollarding and shredding. In 2000, the area of European forests and plantations regenerated in a vegetative way by stump shoots, stool shoots and suckers, amounted to about 23 million hectares (16% of the area of production forests). These forests consist of primarily native European trees species, but in some regions there are plantations of alien species, generally grown in short production cycles: eucalyptus, black locust and American poplar varieties. The paper analyzed the area of coppice forests in selected European countries. Our continent can be divided into three zones in terms of the use of coppice management system: Central Europe, Great Britain and Ireland (I), Mediterranean countries (II) and the Baltic countries, located north of Poland (III). The area of coppice forests in the majority of countries in zone I is small due to the process of their conversion to high forests, that has been progressing since the second half of the twentieth century. Coppice forests are of particular importance in the Mediterranean countries, where they are still a reservoir of biodiversity and an important source of wood and non−wood products. In zone III, due to the superiority of coniferous species in forests, there is no tradition of coppice management. On the other hand, there is growing interest in short rotation coppice for the production of biomass. Such attitude, currently observed in many European countries, is not only because of climate protection, but also of cultural tradition and biodiversity. That is why in some countries, the return to this traditional form of forest management is supported by the state. Coppice forests can be, especially for small private owners, a rational model of forest management.
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