The Department of Silviculture was founded in 1856 as a part of the Arable Farming School in the settlement of Dubliany , near Lviv.
Further development of the Department is connected with the Regional School of Forestry which was founded in 1874. In the 1980’s, the school received the status of Higher Forest School and the Department of Silviculture was established at this school. In different years, the Department was headed by professors J. Gebenstreit, V. Tenetsky, G. Strzelecki, J. Demyanovsky, S. Sokolovsky.
In 1919, the Arable Farming Academy (reorganized Arable Farming School) and the Higher Forestry School were attached to the Lviv Polytechnic and an Arable Farming-and-Forestry faculty was established on their basis. The Department of Silvuculture became one of the departments at this faculty.
The Department of Silvuculture was located at 1 Olga Kobylyanska street, occupied four rooms there, had a large library (more than 1,400 pulications), and 6 hectares of forest area was transferred into its ownership for practical training and research.
In 1920-1928, Head of the Department was professor O. Bervid, a graduate of the Vienna Forestry Academy. He focused on practical training of students.
In 1928, K. Sukhetsky was appointed the Head of the Department, he held the chair until 1939.
After the West Ukrainian lands entered the Ukrainian SSR, the Department of Silviculture functions as part of the Lviv Polytechnic from September 1939 to July 1941, and during the period of German occupation from 1942 to 1944.
After the restoration of the Soviet regime in Lviv and the Lviv Polytechnic Institute, the Department of Silviculture resumed its work. The Department was headed by Acad. P.Pogrebnyak (concurrently). In 1946, the LPTI Arable Farming-and-Forestry faculty was transformed into the Lviv Agricultural Institute (LAI), assoc. prof. (later professor) M. Gorshenin became the Head of the Department of Silviculture.
In 1946, the Forestry Institute was organized in Lviv – the Lviv Forestry Institute. In 1949, the Faculty of Forestry with two departments was founded within the Institute: the Department of Botany and Soil Science, and the Department of Silviculture, Inventory and Geodesy (since 1950 - the Department of Silviculture and Forest Protection) which was headed in different years by: assoc. prof. F.Volkov (1949-1950), assoc. prof. Halyna Tyshkevych (1950-1952), assoc. prof. O. Kvitsinsky (1952-1954).
In 1954, the Faculty of Forestry of the Lviv Agricultural Institute was transferred to the Lviv Forestry Institute; the Forestry faculties of the two educational institutions were combined into one, respectively, and two departments of silviculture were united. The head of the single department of silvuculture became prof. M. Gorshenin. From 1980 to 1983, the duties of the Head were performed by assoc. prof. L. Polovnikov, from 1983 to 1988, the Department was headed by assoc. prof. V. Kucheriavyy.
In 1988, the Department of Silviculture was merged with the Department of Inventory, Forest Management and Geodesy. It was headed by assoc. prof. M. Goroshko. In 1994, the Department of Silviculture was restored as a separate structural unit at the Faculty of Forestry.
Since 1994, the department was headed by prof. H.Krynytskyy, Doctor of Biological Sciences. In 2015-2016 the duties of the Head of the Department were performed by assoc. prof. V.Pavliuk, and in 2017 the chair was held by prof. PhD. V. Lavnyy. Since 2018, the Department has been headed by prof. H. Krynytskyy.
At the Department began their research activity and grew as scientists and educators: academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine M. Golubets, the doctors of science, professors S.Shevchenko, Ye.Hensiruk, G. Tyshkevych, Ya.Saban, V.Myakushko, M.Kalinin, K.Tatarynov, A.Shvydenko, Z.Gerushynsky, V.Bondarenko, R.Gut, the associate professors, PhD, V.Peshko, O. Buteyko, R.Zarubenko, V.Myronovych, L.Stasevych, I.Terelia, and others.