">}. *. V' '<, nW'.'^ ^5N^^ Glass OJi- Aox o Book •Jb\3__ STATE OF NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION OF FORESTRY AND PARKS /v/c^ FORESTRY FOR PROFIT Bg WILLIS cTW. BAKER cylSSOCIATE STATE FORESTER TRENTON, NEV^ JERSEY JULY 1, 1922 SD315 NOV 5 1923 oncUMENTS DIVISION CONTENTS PAGE THE NEED FOR FORESTRY 3 NEW JERSEY'S TIMBER RESOURCES:— Forest area; Forest regions; Cutover and burned forest; Merchantable timber; Rank of species; Timber consumption; Timber growth and future production; Forest values 3 THE PUBLIC'S INTERESTS DEMAND STATE AID:— An adequate tim- ber supply is essential; State Foresters aid woodland owners; Expert advice ; Cost ; Necessity for action is recognized 6 WHAT IS FORESTRY? — Forestry is farming applied to woodlands; For- estry never appropriates agricultural soils; Forest planting is fre- quently advisable; F'orestry demands and creates good markets; Fire protection is absolutely essential 9 WOODLAND MANAGEMENT i4 PRINCIPLES OF FORESTRY:— Forestry pays good profits; A definite plan of work; What are productive woods 14 Leave a Full Stand: — Competition for light; Root competition; How to determine a full stand ; How to get a full stand 15 Favor Thrifty, Vigorous Trees: — Cut dead, dying and weakened trees; Cut crooked, misformed and injured trees; Cut mature and over-mature trees 16 Favor Best Species: — Consider the products desired ; Resistance to ene- mies ; Influence of site 17 Soils Adapted to Various Species: — Fertile, well-drained soils; Wet, swampy land ; Dry, rocky upland ; South Jersey sands 18 PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF FORESTRY:— Various types of woods require different treatment 19 Young, Even-aged Mixed Hardwoods: — Thinning; Examples of thin- nings ; Records of thinnings 19 Middle-aged Mixed Hardwoods: — Treatment needed ; Results of im- provement cutting; Reproduction cutting; Sprout and seedling repro- duction; Control of sprouting; Control of seeding 23 Mature Mixed Hardwoods: — Maturity of growth; Merchantable ma- turity; Treatment cf mature stands 26 Culled Hardwoods: — Improvement cutting in culled hardwoods 28 Fine Forests: — Pitch pine and shortieaf pine; Reproduction of pine; Pine sprouts; Pine a paying crop for South Jersey; Yields from pine.. 28 PAGE Pine and Hardwoods: — How to favor the best species; Pure pine or mixed pine and oak 31 White Cedar Forests: — Cedar is capable of intensive management; Cedar must be tiiinned carefully 32 MARKETING FOREST PRODUCTS:— Investigate markets; Products for home use; Local sale of products; Shipping products; Sale of stumpage ; Timber sale contracts; A home sawmill; Directory of dealers and in- dustries 34 WOODS WORK:— 39 Season to Cut: — Fall and Winter; Work in the woods at odd times 39 How to Cut — Logging: — Trees marked for cutting; Felling trees; Low stumps; Thorough utilization; Hauling; Seasoning and storing products 40 Slash Disposal: — Logging slash is a menace; Lopping tops; Burning slash ; New Jersey's Fire Law 43 FOREST PLANTING:— The need for plaming 45 WHERE TO PLANT:— Abandoned fields; Burned woodlands; Woods de- nuded by careless lumbering; Under-planting; Special timber crops; Farm timber 45 WHAT TO PLANT: — Species adapted to conditions; Species suited for the products desired; Hardwoods or evergreens; Pure or mixed planta- tions; Quick growing trees; Nut trees; Species not recommended; Table of species recommended for planting 47 HOW TO PLANT: — Season to plant; Young trees more satisfactory than sowing seed; Size of trees; A home nursery; Use of wild stock; Where to get trees; How to handle trees before planting; Heeling in; Prepar- ing the ground; Light requirements; Spacing; Trees per acre at various spacings ; Care of seedlings while planting; Planting; Important direc- tions to follow ; Planting crews ; Lining and spacing 51 SUBSEQUENT CARE:— Little attention needed; Replacements; Cutting back; Cleaning; Pruning limbs; Thinning 56 COST AND PROFITS OF PLANTING:— Cost of labor; Cost of trees; Cost of average plantations ; Profits from plantations ; Expected yields and profits 57 PAGE HELPFUL INFORMATION. 6i CHARACTERISTICS AND USES OF FOREST TREES:— Hardwoods and evergreens 61 Hardwoods or Deciduous Species: — Oak, Hickory, Ash, Chestnut, Tulip poplar, Basswood, Aspen, Cottonwood, Elm, Beech, Maple, Birch, Gum, Locust, Walnut, Butternut, Cherry, Sycamore, Apple, Sassafras, Dog- wood, Persimmon, Holly, Hornbeam, Blue beech, Witchhazel 61 Conifers or Evergreen Species: — Pine, Spruce, Fir, Cedar, Larch, Hem- lock 66 MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF WOOD:— Great variation in mechani- cal properties; Weight; Hardness, Stiffness; Strength; Resistance to shock ; Durability 69 Table of mechanical properties of woods 72 WOOD PRODUCTS AND USES:— Lumber ; Poles; Furnace poles; Piling; Ties; Fence posts; Mine timbers; Cordwood ; Baskets; Boxes; Cooper- age; Wood pulp and paper; Excelsior; Charcoal; Hardwood distilla- tion; Naval stores; Tanning; Dyewoods; Wood preservation; Mis- cellaneous products 70 TIMBER ESTIMATING:— Sample plots ; The strip method 77 Measuring Trees: — Diameter; Height; Recording measurements 78 Computing the Contents of Trees: — Volume tables; Sample volume tables of Red Oak in board feet of sawed lumber; Small, second growth hardwood cordwood in cubic feet; Shortleaf pine in board feet of lumber ; Pine cordwood in cubic feet 79 UNITS OF MEASURE— CONVERTING FACTORS:— Board measure; Log measure; Comparison of Doyle and Scribner Log rules; Scribner Log rule; Cord measure; Cubic measure; Table of converting factors; Table of quantity of material contained in trees of various sizes 82 TREE PESTS: — Forest insects and tree diseases; Where to get information. 85 FORESTRY FOR PROFIT bg WILLIS cTVl. BAKERj c^issociate State Forester THE NEED FOR FORESTRY The purpose of this publication is to advise woodland owners how to make their timber tracts productive and profitable by the practical application of common sense management — forestry. Much has been said and written of the necessity for checking the devastation of our rapidly diminishing forest resources, and of the need for providing a future timber supply. The average person, and the average woodland owner, agrees that "such waste should not be allowed and people really ought to do something about it." Meanwhile he continues to neglect his own woodlands, apparently not realizing that he can help solve the Nation's timber problem, and at the same time greatly in- crease the value and income of his property by giving his woods a part of the same attention he would give his work, his farm, or his business. The aver- age owner must realize that his woodlands are not a liability, but an asset; that it will pay him in dollars and cents to treat them right. This publica- tion will inform him how to get results. For those who do not realize the seriousness of the timber shortage that is already beginning to make itself felt, a few facts regarding New Jersey's forest resources and timber consumption will be enlightening. The following estimate is based on data collected in 1921. NEW JERSEY'S TIMBER RESOURCES Forest Area. — It is a well-known fact that our forests have been seriously depleted by wasteful lumbering, devastated by repeated forest fires, abused by the public and neglected by their owners. Practically all of the original or virgin forest has disappeared, but New Jersey still has two million acres of second-growth and cut-over woodland, which is 46 per cent of its total upland area. Probably one-quarter of this forest area consists of soils that could and some time may be used for agriculture. Yet for many j'ears forest land cleared for farming and industrial development has been closely balanced by abandoned fields reverting to woodland. At least 1,500,000 acres must grow trees or remain forever unproductive. Forest Regions. — New Jersey's forests are divided into two distinct regions. The hardwood region of 750,000 acres (three-eighths of the total forest area) lies north and west of a line from Seabright to Glassboro to Bridgeton, and includes North Jersey uplands as well as the heavier soils of the Raritan and Delaware valleys. The South Jersey pine region of 1,250,000 acres (five-eighths of the total forest area) lies south and east of this line, on the light, sandy soils of the coastal plain. (See map, page 5.) The hardwood region contains mainly deciduous species: oak, chestnut, maple, hickory, beech, tulip poplar, ash, birch, gum, elm, etc., with small quantities of the conifers (evergreens), white and pitch pine, red cedar and hemlock, and negligible quantities of black spruce, white cedar and tamarack. The South Jersey pine region contains principally pitch and short-leaf pine and white cedar, with considerable oak on cut-over land. Many persons believe that South Jersey consists largely of "scrub oak" and "pine barrens," and can never grow good forests. This belief is fortunately incorrect. The native species naturally make good timber, and are scrubby in form only where severely burned or abused. In this region pine occupies nearly half the area; brush land (recently cut-over or severely burned) one-quarter; oak and hardwoods about one-quarter; cedar swamp about 4 per cent, or one twenty- fifth. Cut-Over and Burned Forest. — Nearly 70 per cent (1,400,000 acres) of the total forest area has been recently cut-over or so severely burned that the present tree growth, while potentially valuable for future forests, is now too small or too scattering to be merchantable. Of this area, 400,000 acres, three-fourths of which is in the South Jersey pine region, does not contain trees large enough even for cordwood, while the remaining 1,000,000 acres would now yield approximately 7,000,000 cords of wood, both pine and hard- woods, suitable only for fuel. Merchantable Timber. — Approximately 30 per Cent of the forest area (600,000 acres) now contains merchantable timber estimated at 1,640,- 000,000 board feet of saw timber, poles, ties, piling, etc., and 5,000,000 cords of wood. Of this total stand, yellow pine (pitch and shortleaf) will yield 360,000,000 board feet, cedar 100,000,000 board feet, and all hardwoods (together with white pine and hemlock) about 1,180,000,000 board feet. Rank of Species. — The various hardwood species rank in abundance about as follows: oak, 65 per cent; maple, 10 per cent; hickory, 5 per cent; beech, 4 per cent; tulip poplar, 3 per cent; ash, 3 per cent; birch, 2 per cent; gum, 2 per cent; elm, 2 per cent; other species, 4 per cent. In the same way, the conifers rank as follows: pine, 79 per cent; cedar (red and white), 20 per cent; hemlock, 1 per cent. Of the four native species of pine, pitch pine ranks about 80 per cent; shortleaf pine, 18 per cent; white pine, 1 per cent; scrub pine, 1 per cent. Ranking conifers and hardwoods together on the scale of 100, we get the following comparison of the relative quantities of each: oak, 47 per cent; pine, 22 per cent; maple, 7 per cent; cedar, 6 per cent; hickory, 4 per cent; beech, 3 per cent; tulip poplar, 2 per cent; ash, 2 per cent; birch, 1.5 per cent; gum, 1.5 per cent; elm, 1.5 per cent; hemlock, 5 per cent; other species, 2 per cent. Chestnut is not included because of its destruction by the blight. Timber Consumption. — New Jersey Consumes the equivalent of 600,- 000,000 board feet of timber annually, half of which is sawed lumber used in industries and for construction, while the other half is used in rough form for poles, ties, piling, mine timbers, posts, cordwood, etc. The annual out- put of New Jersey sawmills is approximately 30,000,000 board feet, or one- tenth of the sawed lumber consumed, leaving nine-tenths to be imported. On the other hand, about two-thirds of the round and rough timber used in the State is produced locally. Very little New Jersey timber is exported. Page four , ' 1 -: FOMENT MAP OF HEW JERSEY Scale of m\\es 5 10 IS I II DEPARTMENT Or CoMStnvATioN & OevEuoPMesT Mill) of \itr Jcrsi'i/'s 2,000.000 acres of Wdixlldud. Practically all of this area will grow good forests, and most of it is fit for no other use Neglectful owners and forest fires are keeping inucii of it idle and non-productive New Jersey now lias to import more than two-thirds of the timber used in the State but there IS enough true forest land here to grow all the timber needed by her citizens and' industries Page five Therefore, of the total annual consumption of timber, the equivalent of 230,000,000 board feet (38 per cent) is produced within the State and 370,000,000 board feet (62 per cent) is imported. At present freight rates it costs the people of New Jersey not less than $5,000,000 annually for freight alone on imported timber. Ti mber Growth and Future Production — New Jersey is now cutting the equivalent of 230,000,000 board feet 'annually from her 2,000,000 acres of forest land or 115 board feet per acre per year. An annual production of 300 board feet per acre per year, which is easily possible once the forests are protected from fire and are put to work under forestry management, will yield an amount equal to all the timber now used. However, it must be remembered that not over 30 per cent of the wood- land area (600,000 acres) now contains merchantable timber, and it is this area that is supplying the present annual cut. At this rate, the merchantable timber will last less than ten years. When this is gone, there will be a period of several years during which sizable timber will be very scarce, and probably nine-tenths of all kinds used will be imported. Yet if the areas of young growth recuperating from cutting and fires are given proper protection and care, they will come back, and, under methods of regulated cutting, will pro- duce constantly increasing annual yields. New Jersey can eventually grow practically all of the timber needed for home consumption. Before this situation is reached a period of acute local shortage can be expected. Forest Values. — New Jersey's present merchantable timber resources have a stumpage value of about $25,000,000 — not including the value of the land, — although the present assessed valuation probably does not exceed one- quarter of this amount. In fixing this valuation, 70 per cent of the total area is regarded as having no actual stumpage value at present, although of course the young growth is the foundation of our future forests, and as such, has a decided value. The stumpage value of the cut now amounts to about $2,000,000 annually, and the market value of the sawed lumber, poles, ties, etc., about $10,000',000. In 10 years the value of the cut will probably amount to not more than one-fourth of this amount. Ultimately, when the forests are made fully pro- ductive, they should have a capitalized value of more than $200,000,000 ; the stumpage value of the cut 'should exceed $10,000,000 annually and the total market value of the raw products should exceed $50,000,000. These expectation values are conservative, since they are based on present prices. THE PUBLIC'S INTERESTS DEMAND STATE AID An adequate timber supply is essential to the welfare of any community or State ; the public's interests demand that steps be taken to assure it. The advantages resulting from a home grown supply of lumber and wood products will benefit everyone — Mr. Average Citizen and Mr. Ultimate Consumer as well as forest owners and timber operators. The return to productivity of our great area of idle, semi-waste lands will add immeasurably to the Page six public wealth. Nor should the recreational value of woodlands be overlooked. Desolate slashings, monotonous brush land and unsightly burned areas do not serve or attract people bent on pleasure, but once the mountain and lake regions of North Jersey and the pine tracts of the south are forested as they should be, our inland summer and winter playgrounds will rival in popularity our justly famous coast resorts. To bring the State's woodlands to the condition from which these benefits may be derived is the function and purpose of the Division of Forestry of the State Department of Conservation and Development. Th e State Foresters aid woodland owners , because most New Jersey forest holdings are too small to justify the employment of a forester, and because the practice of forestry on private lands must be encouraged for the benefit of the public. The Department offers the services of its foresters, so far as their time will permit, to all who ask for assistance. Expert Advice. -Advice is given by mail upon the basis of a very intimate knowledge of conditions in the State. Whenever the conditions and the owner's intent justify it, a forester will study the situation on the ground and make recommendations. The advice offered covers cutting, logging, marketing, planting, protection and general management problems. There is no obligation to follow the advice given, although when it is acted upon the Department assumes the right to inspect the property from time to time, and to publish the results of the work for the benefit of the public. The cos t to anyone receiving this help is the forester's actual field ex- penses. His salary is paid by the State. Public institutions and organizations are aided without charge. Advice by mail is always free. The Necessity for Action is Recognized. — To thosC who know the im- portance of our timber problem, it is gratifying to note that a constantly in- creasing number of progressive individuals and organizations not only see the need for "doing something," but are doing it. They realize that with the depletion of eastern stumpage, and with the increasing cost of transporting lumber from the South and West, wood product prices are mounting. This situation is just beginning to make itself felt. Wood-using industries are coming to recognize the importance and value of a permanent local timber supply for the future, and the benefits of having this supply near the largest markets, with the most accessible transportation facilities. No other State is so ideally located in this respect as New Jersey. Sportsmen understand that there can be no wild life — no fish or game — unless an adequate forest cover is maintained for its protection. Forest fires are the worst enemies of wild birds and animals. A large mining concern in North Jersey employs a forester to manage its tract of several thousand acres of forest land, from which, under regulated cutting, it is able to obtain a permanent supply of timber needed for its operations, with a surplus for profitable sale. Owners of so-called "waste land" see the folly of allowing the land to remain idle and unproductive when it might be growing timber profitably. An estate of 100,000 acres of South Jersey woodland, consisting largely of recently cut-over and severely burned forest, has employed a forester to protect the property from fire, and • Page seven Cedar swamps like this are worth money Who says South Jersey can't grow good pine/ A crop of 20,000 hoard feet of rood hardwood satvtogs per acre. New Jersey was once forested like this, and can be again. Our people now pay annually over $5,000,000 for freight alone on imported lumber. Properly developed, our forests can produce 150,000,000 worth of wood products a year — all we need. Page eight to encourage the growth of profitable timber crops by carefully controlled cutting. Municipal water departments controlling watersheds of many thousand acres in North Jersey are conserving the available water supply and making a profit as well by protecting the natural forests on their water- sheds, and by planting unprotected slopes with forest trees. Six of the thir- teen forest fire lookout towers now operated by the State have been furnished in part by woodland owners who offer this cooperation because they know the necessity of protecting forests from fire. Farmers realize the benefits of producing their own supply of lumber, poles, posts and fuel, as well as profitable woods work for idle help and teams during the slack season. In addition to the 17,000 acres of State Forests maintained by the State, several hundred owners of nearly 200,000 acres of New Jersey woodland have started the practice of forestry on their properties. They are locking the barn doors to prevent their horses being stolen. They will ride while others w^alk, when the timber shortage really hits us. WHAT IS FORESTRY? Forestry is Farming Applied to Woodlands. — Every forest should be re- garded as a growing crop, to be protected, encouraged, cultivated and finally harvested according to the best and most profitable methods. Under proper management an area of woodland will produce a continuous crop, maturing at intervals and yielding the maximum quantity and quality of products. It needs much the same treatment as a field of vegetables, which, after being thinned, weeded and otherwise encouraged to grow thriftily, are picked as they ripen. When trees are too crowded, the stunted individuals should be removed and the best left. Weed trees of inferior species interfere with the growth of the better trees, and should be cut out. The result of this thin- ning and weeding process, which in itself yields profitable returns, is a full stand of healthy, valuable trees. As certain individuals reach the size at which they can be most profitably utilized they should be cut and marketed, and the immature trees left to grow. Forestry management is especially adapted to farm woodlands and can be practised with profit by any capable farmer. It employs labor and teams in w^inter when other work is often slack ; it requires few special tools and little extra equipment ; it provides necessary farm lumber, posts and fuel at a minimum cost; it brings in ready cash from the sale of surplus products; it utilizes land unfit for any other purpose; it stabilizes the whole manage- ment of a farm. Forestry never appropriates agricultural soils, but makes profitable USC of poor land. It is economically unwise to use lands of high value for growl- ing timber when we have approximately one and a half million acres — steep hillsides, rocky slopes, non-fertile soils and swamps — that cannot be used profitably for any other purpose. However, present woodland should be maintained as such until it is needed for other uses. With at least 400,000 acres of neglected or abandoned farm lands within the State, it is obvious that the present need is for more farmers and better marketing conditions rather than more farms. Possibly 500,000 acres of New Jersey woodland consist of soils suitable for agriculture if cleared. Page nine > '> 4^''M '■^ % ..•» Loijijvd Off cediir sirtniiiis irill route back in cedar unless burned. ^m^Hk Fire will keep pine timber scrubby. Careless lodging is wasteful, dan'jerous and unsiyldly. Nearly 70 per cent of New Jersey's woodlands look like this — run-down and non-productive from Are, neglect and abuse. To allow them to continue in this condition is not good business. Page ten Forest planting is frequently advisable, although the common idea that forestry begins and ends with planting trees is wrong. It is usually easier, cheaper, and for the present, better, to make good forests out of neglected and abused natural woodlands. The result will rarely be as good, silvi- culturally. as from a planted forest, but the crop will come quicker and it will cost less. In our woodlands natural reproduction is usually adequate and satisfactory, and costs nothing to establish. Forest planting is advised where land unfit for agriculture has been unwisely cleared, where the native forest has been completely burned, or where natural reproduction is lacking. The State groivs no young trees for distribution to the public, because there are a number of private nurserymen who furnish good stock at fair prices. The State Forester will send any interested person a list of available nurseries where planting stock or supplies can be obtained. Forestry Demands and Creates Good Markets . — Forestry is practical only when, and to the extent that, forest products are marketable at a profit. Forestry methods encourage the growth of the largest and most valuable crop ; when it matures it must be thoroughly utilized and profitably marketed if the operation is to be successful. The old law of supply and demand is the factor governing the practi- cability of forestry. In the past when good timber was abundant and cheap, a forest owner could not afford to use the same intensive methods that are practical now. It was cheaper to Avaste timber than to waste money to save it. As a result, we have our slaughtered, neglected forests. Today the increasing value of wood products is directly proportional to the diminishing supply of timber and it seems certain that prices will con- tinue to increase. The demand for wood is constant ; neither concrete nor steel can replace it for many uses. New Jersey has an abundance of cheap land for timber production ; a consuming population of more than ten million within a radius of 60 miles of the Capitol ; excellent markets within the State and at its borders; unexcelled steam, electric, water and improved highway transportation facilities. Considering these facts, and that at present more than two-thirds of the timber used in New Jersey is imported, and in 10 years probably nine-tenths or more must come from outside the State, the possi- bilities for forestry seem unlimited. Fire Protection is Absolutely Essential. — Onlv where forests are reason- ably safe from fire damage is the growth of timber possible and the practice of forestry advisable. Fortunately, the danger of fire in more or less isolated woodlots, especially in the hardwood region, is not so great but that owners can be reasonably assured of protection once they realize the damage even a light burning may cause by destroying soil humus and fertility, by killing young reproduction and damaging large trees. However, extensive areas of New Jersey forests still continue to suffer from frequent and destructive fires, especially in South Jersey, where par- ticularly hazardous fire conditions exist. There are still too many fires, too destructive fires, too great an annual fire loss. Forest fires must be stopped — confronted with a timber shortage, nobody longer questions that fact. The State Forest Fire Service must be strengthened along the lines proposed in the Page eleven Fire is the chief C(n(se of poor forests. Prompt detection from towers, and efficient fire fightiny are necessary for fire control. Railroad fire lines and clean roadsides reduce the chance of fires starting, and help in stopping fires set by careless smokers, campers and brush-bvrners. Forest fires burn over 70,000 acres of forest annually in New Jersey. The State Forest Fire Service can reduce this damage to a small amount if it gets proper support. How much longer will the public and woodland owners stand for this criminal waste and neglect? Page twelve State Firewarden's report for 1921. The increased cost of this addition will be negligible compared with the value of the timber and other property that will then be saved from destruction. With a public that realizes the danger and damage of forest fires, so that their number can be checked, and an organization that promptly detects and controls the fires that do start, forestry becomes practicable and its progress assured. Page thirteen WOODLAND MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES OF FORESTRY Forestry Pays Good Profits— Few woodland owners can afford to play with forestry as a hobby. When considering the management of woodlands, the first question asked by most persons is, "What will it cost me, and what can I get out of it?" The answer is this : Forestry is by no means a get-rich-quick proposition, but the returns are sure and steady. Neither does forestry involve waiting a life time for results, as so many persons believe. Thrifty woods properly managed pay good profits and utilize land that would otherwise be unpro- ductive ; regulated cutting produces income at frequent intervals of a few years apart. Little capital and only small initial investments are required. Today the average New Jersey woodland tract is so run-down that it cannot be expected to yield the most profitable timber crops until its con- dition is improved. One or more improvement cuttings are usually necessary to prepare for full productivity. Ordinarily the cost of such improvement work is more than paid for by the sale of the wood removed. How large these first profits are depends upon the condition of the woods, and how the work is undertaken. An improve- ment cutting in a typical 90 acre Morris County woodlot yielded a net profit of $45 per acre, and only dead, dying, crowding and inferior trees were cut. As a result, those remaining are now growing vigorously and are rapidly in- creasing in value. Still more profitable cuttings will be possible from time to time at intervals of a few years, as these trees mature. A similar improvement cutting of a 20 acre tract in Burlington County yielded a net profit of $300 and left a far more valuable woodland because of the treatment. A Middlesex County farmer, following the advice of the State Forester, writes as follows: "It is a pleasure to tell you that I have nearly finished cut- ting and marketing the timber on my thirty acre tract. . . . It is con- servative to say that I will net about $35 per acre above all expenses on the chestnut alone (dead, dying and inferior trees), and I will have a good tract of young oak and other hardwoods left, worth at the present time $15 per acre stumpage. The best offer I could get from lumbermen was $25 per acre for all the timber, and this would have meant leaving stump land to detract from the value of my farm." Other similar examples might be given. In every case the full benefit of the work will not be apparent until the final crops of timber are harvested. Any woodland owner who gives his woods the right sort of attention will find good profits for his efforts. It is assumed that an owner recognizes this fact, and is prepared to follow the plan of management that will bring about this improvement. If he is governed by any other special considerations he must choose the next best course to follow. A definite plan of work should be based upon the desires or needs of the owner. He should determine in advance exactly what he wants to do, and Page fourteen should know to what extent his desires can be fulfilled. Ordinarily he is governed chiefly by one of the following considerations: (a) The desire to improve the productiveness of his woods so that the largest and most valuable crops of timber can be grown in the shortest time. (b) The need for certain products for immediate sale or use. (c) The necessity for cutting everything of value to realize the greatest immediate profit. Success in obtaining either of these last two results, without sacrificing too much the welfare and future productivity of the stand, depends upon the initial condition of the woods and the skill with which the work is under- taken. The owner's final plan of action must in many cases be a compromise of what he would like to do and what seems most advisable. What Are Productive Woodlands? — What is the condition toward which a forest owner should work? Woodlands are 100 per cent productive when all the land is constantly supporting a full stand of the most thrifty, well-formed, fastest growing trees of the most valuable species adapted to conditions of soil and climate. Select the Trees to Leave . — Ordinarily the best way to go about an im- provement cutting is first to decide upon the best trees to be saved for further growth and then mark the rest for cutting. This procedure should be fol- lowed wherever the owner's chief intent is to improve his woods. If some specific products are required it is of course necessary to cut the trees that will provide them, leaving the best of the remaining trees. No one should attempt to carry out the following instructions unless he is thoroughly familiar with the characteristics of the trees in his woods. Helpful information of this kind is given on pages 61 to 77. Be guided by the following considerations in selecting trees to cut and to leave : LEAVE A FULL STAND Leave a full stand of trees SO that the land will be fully occupied, and will be growing the largest crop possible. What comprises a "full stand" of trees depends upon the species and their light requirements, their age and size, and soil conditions. Competition for Light. — The leaves of trees require sunlight to perform their life functions, one of the most important of which is to make plant food available for the tree's growth. Even in rich soil a tree which is getting insufficient light will be stunted or even killed. Certain species which tolerate considerable shade, such as white cedar, hemlock, spruce, beech and maple, can stand more crowding without injury than can such intolerant species as pine, tulip poplar and white oak. Also any species growing under favorable conditions is more tolerant of shade than when growing among imsuitable surroundings. Most species are more tolerant of shade in youth than later on in life. A tree's crown (limbs and foliage) develops according to the light it re- ceives. Overhead shade is what kills of¥ and prunes the lower limbs of a Page fifteen tree. A tree grown in the open develops a short, stocky trunk and a spreading crown with an abundance of large limbs and is of little value for lumber. On the other hand, a tree in crowded woods is forced, by competition with its companions, to grow tall as rapidly as possible in an effort to get from above the light needed for its development. Such a tree grows tall, straight and free from lower branches, — the kind most desirable for lumber or other products. Therefore, young trees should grow closely until they have developed good height and form. During this struggle some individuals will be stunted and suppressed. To increase the rapidity of diameter growth of the best trees, when they have reached the desired height and form, crowding should be relieved by removing the weaklings and less desirable trees. In other words, a full stand means crowded young trees, but a more open stand as the trees mature. Root competition for food and moisture also influences the growth of crowded trees, but for all practical purposes it is safe to follow the general rule that when a tree is getting all the light it needs, there will be no com- petitor close enough to afford serious root competition. How to Determine a Full Stand. — To determine whether or not a tract of timber is too crowded, too open, or of just the right density, consider the species, the age of the trees and the condition of the crowns. Remember that tolerant species can stand the most crowding and that young trees should always be more or less crowded until they have reached their desired form. In an over-crowded woods the crowns interlace making a dense, over- head shade; the crowns are small and the trees themselves are rather spindly, with many of them suppressed and even dead. If the stand is too open there will be considerable sunlight on the ground, and the trees will have large spreading crowns with the live limbs extending well down the trunks. The trees themselves will usually be short and stocky. How to Get a Full Stand . — When a tract of timber has reached the size and age where it is too crowded for good development, the best young trees should be retained for further growth and the crowding trees cut. What these best trees are is explained in the following paragraphs. If the stand is too open, before or after cutting, it is necessary to provide for more trees in the openings, by natural seeding when possible, by sprout reproduction from stumps of trees cut, or by planting. FAVOR THRIFTY, VIGOROUS TREES Leave Thrifty, Vigorous Trees. — When selecting trees for further growth, leave only those that are thrifty and full of vigor. The idea of forestry is to get a succession of the largest and best crops in the quickest time; to accomplish this the trees must be healthy, of good form, fast-grow- ing and free from disease or injury. Cut dead, dying or weakened trees , and Utilize them if they are mer- chantable, for if left in the woods they constitute a fire menace, a breeding Par/e sixteen place for destructive insects and fungus diseases, and soon become worthless. Healthy woods usually do not suffer from attacks of pests. Cut crooked, misformed and injured trees, tO make room for better trees that can grow into more valuable products. In productive woods there is no room for inferior individuals. Badly suppressed trees, which have been overtopped, crowded and weakened by larger and more vigorous neighbors usually grow very slowly and readily succumb to disease or insect attacks, although some species may recover and make satisfactory growth if the crowd- ing is relieved in time. Cut Mature and Over-mature Trees. — They have no place in productive woods, because when a tree has reached the age of maturit}-^ it no longer produces wood vigorously. Unless market conditions make it appear likely that the future value of such trees will be considerably greater within a few years, they should be cut at once. Over-mature trees deteriorate rapidly the longer they are allowed to stand. Moreover, these larger trees, particularly those with spreading crowns, use too much space, and crowd out younger trees that might otherwise be making good growth. One hundred dollars at 10 per cent interest yields more income than two hundred dollars at 3 per cent ; the same comparison applies to the growth of trees. BEST SPECIES Favor the Most Valuable Species. — The trees left Standing to form pro- ductive woods should not only be thrifty and properly spaced, but they should also consist of the best species. Ordinarily the best species are those which yield the most valuable products. Oak, hickory, ash and tulip poplar are more valuable than birch, beech and maple, which in turn are more valuable than sassafras, ironwood and aspen, for most purposes. However, a thrifty, well-formed beech or birch is better to favor than a weakened, injured oak or hickory. Consider the products desired in order to determine the relative value of the various species. For instance, if a farmer wants only cordwood, birch, beech and hard maple are as good as oak or hickory and better than tulip poplar or elm. For veneer basket logs, red gum and tulip poplar are better than oak, hickory or ash, and so on. Fortunately most kinds of wood will soon be in such demand that the owner who needs no particular products, but desires to grow those that can be most readily sold at a profit, need only consider what species are best suited to his soils. Whatever kinds he can grow best will certainly be marketable. Resistance to Enemies. — The best species to favor are those that can best resist enemies, or other unfavorable conditions likely to be encountered. Thus chestnut is a valuable species, yet it has been necessary to eliminate it entirely from consideration because of the blight which destroys it. There are few more valuable trees than white pine, but it is commonly injured by the weevil, and there is also constant danger of the blister rust disease. Therefore red pine, not as susceptible to injury from these or other pests, is recommended for Page seventeen planting as a substitute for white pine. Elms are well adapted to wet sites and produce valuable wood for many purposes, but shallow-rooted trees like elm are likely to be wind-thrown if the stand is opened too much. No species resists light burnings as well as pitch pine, so that it is well fitted to survive in regions where fires are frequent. For detailed information regarding the characteristics, habits and uses of trees, see pages 61 to 68. The influence of site also determines what are the best species to favor. The best trees must not only be those most valuable for the purpose or pro- ducts desired, but they must also be well adapted to conditions of soil, mois- ture, exposure and climate. For example, tulip poplar is a better tree for many purposes than rock oak or pitch pine. It grows faster^ makes better formed and larger trees, and its wood has a higher market value. But tulip poplar demands a fairly fertile, moist but well-drained soil. On a dry, rocky slope, or on sands of low fertility, pitch pine is the better tree to favor, for it will make fair growth where tulip poplar would be barely able to survive. For the same reason rock oak should be favored on dry, rocky slopes, and pin oak on excessively moist sites. Loblolly pine seems to be an excellent species well adapted to the South Jersey sands (when planted) but it is not at all suited to the climate of North Jersey. Red gum is found naturally only in Central and South Jersey, and hard maple only in North Jersey; neither species should be favored except within its natural range. SOILS ADAPTED TO VARIOUS SPECIES Fertile, Well Drained Soils . — Almost every tree species prefers a deep, fertile, moist but well drained soil for its fastest growth and best develop- ment, although hardwoods usually demand better soils than conifers. Certain species require good soils, and grow poorly or not at all on inferior sites. Black walnut is probably the most exacting of our native trees, followed by tulip poplar, white ash, shagbark hickory, basswood, sugar maple and white oak, all valuable species. Fortunately much of our hardwood region con- tains good soils, either too steep, too rocky or too wet for agriculture, where these species can be favored. Wet, Swampy Land. — Southern white cedar, found in the fresh water swamps of the South Jersey Pine region, is a good example of a tree thriving on soils constantly wet and often overflowed for most of the year. In the swamps of the hardwood region are found elm, black ash, black gum and red maple with the comparatively rare conifers, tamarack and black spruce. Hemlock, swamp white oak, white ash, basswood, pin oak, beech, birch and sugar maple also endure considerable moisture if it is not stagnant. Red gum is common on wet lands in the southern half of the hardwood region. Cottonwood and balsam fir are adapted to planting on wet soils. Dry, Rocky Uplands. — Few species make good growth on the more or less dry, rocky uplands and ridges of North Jersey, although those best adapted to such situations are chestnut oak, pitch pine, red cedar and gray birch. Scotch pine is a suitable species for planting on such situations. South Jersey Sands. — The species best adapted to the poorest South Jersey Page eighteen sands is pitch pine, while shortleaf pine makes good growth on the better situations. The various oaks, especially chestnut oak, red oak, black oak and white oak do fairly well on the best soils, although the sands are not naturally hardwood soils. Any of our pines seem adapted to planting in this region, although the best species to use are probably shortleaf, loblolly and Scotch pine. PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF FORESTRY Various Types of Woods Require Different Treatment. — As WOodlands vary according to species, age and condition, so they require different methods of management to make and keep them productive. The following advice for various tjpes of New Jersey woodland will help an owner to understand the treatment needed by his woods. YOUNG, EVEN-AGED MIXED HARDWOODS Young hardwood forests, under 40 years of age, comprise one of the most common classes of woodland in the State. Such stands of young "second growth" are found where all the original timber was cut clear in one oper- ation, where land cleared for agriculture and then abandoned has reverted to forest growth, or where a severe fire entirely killed the former forest. Nature has restocked these areas from seed already on the ground or dis- tributed from nearby seed trees, or by sprouts from the stumps of the original trees. Usually the woods are a mixture of sprouts and seedlings of many species, some valuable and some of inferior quality. Such stands are commonly very dense and crowded, a desirable condition until the trees have been forced to good height and form. When about 20 years old, and usually before the age of 30 is reached, crowding begins to do more harm than good by seriously checking diameter growth (of the trunks) of even the leaders or do?ninant trees. If nothing is done to relieve this situation, the larger trees will gradually \vm out over the others, and w^ill ultimately produce a fair stand of timber. But this process of Nature is very slow, for wood growth is seriously retarded in the struggle for supremacy; also it is very wasteful, for many trees are suppressed and die. Thinning. — It is usually advisable to thiii young stands, when badly crowded, at about 20 to 25 years of age. Less crowded woods can be allowed to remain unthinned longer — possibly until 40 years old. The trees to be removed are the crowded and suppressed trees of the less valuable species, leaving the dominant trees of the better species for further growth. The products of this cutting will be chiefly cordwood, fence posts, small poles, mine timbers, ties, boat fenders, etc. Ordinarily the profits of such a thin- ning will not be great, but will usually more than pay for the cost of the work. The real benefit, proven by experience, is that the trees relieved by thinning produce w^ood from five to ten times as fast as crowded trees unthinned. Examples of thinning will demonstrate the value of this work: (a) A 20 year old stand of various species of oak on the sandy soils of Page nineteen AN AVERAGE, CROWDED 25 YEAR OLD STAND OF MlXEiD MARDWOODS ORIGINAL CONDITION THINNING INDICATED The average 25 year old crowded stand contains about 750 trees per acre, 30 to 40 feet tall, 2 to 8 incites in diameter, averaging 4 inches in diameter, with a total volume of about 15 cords of wood THE SAME CROWDED 25 YEAR, OLD STAND UNTHINNED 750 trees per acre, 30 to 44) feet tall-, maximum diameter, 6"; average 4", Volume , 15 cords per acre. I fill f THINNED 450 trees per acre, 30 to 40 feet tall, maximum diameter, 6",- average 5" Volume left, 10 io 12 cords per acre . THE SAME: W00D5 AT 50 YEARS OF AGE IF NEGLECTED 150 frees killed bij crowding, 600 treei per acre living, 40 to 60 feet tall; the maximum diameter, 14"; average 5" Volume 18 to 20 cords per acre % IF IMPROVED 450 trees per acre, 50 to 60 feet fall, maximum diameter, IB", average, 10" Volume 35 to 45 cords per acre. THE 2no IMPROVEMENT CUTTING indicated here would leave 200 '" 300 frees per acre with a volume of 30 to 35 cords THE. FVNAL STAND READY FOR CUTTING AT 75 YEARS OF AGE rKtJ IF NEGLECTED 500 trees per acre' living , SO to 75 feet tall , maximum diameter, 13", average , 8". Volume 25 ^ 3S cords- per acre, or lo thousand board feet of saw- logs and 15 cords of wood. IF IMPROVED 250 trees per acre, 60 to 75 feet tall, maximum diameter, 24" average, IS" Volume 60 *o 75 cords or 30 thousand board feet of saw-logs and 8 cord! of wood. Also reproduction for another stand Diagrams showing the results of thinnings and improvement cuttings in hardwoods. Page twenty liurlington County, containing 731 trees per acre from 2 to 5 inches in diameter, was thinned. A similar tract of crowded timber adjoining was left in its natural condition as a check. From the first acre 268 suppressed trees were removed, leaving 463 trees. In seven years the trees left on the thinned acre increased in volume from 5.5 cords to 12.3 cords, or practically 1 cord per acre per year. The unthinned acre increased in the same time from 9.5 cords to 10.6 cords, or a growth of only 1.1 cords in 7 years. In other words, the thinning resulted in increased growth nearly 10 times as great as that on the unthinned plot. The practical application of this example is as follows: In many parts of the State, particularly in South Jersey, it is a common practise to cut off entire stands of young hardwoods about every 15 or 20 years for cordwood. This practise is unwise and wasteful, because such short rotations do not give the trees time enough to make good growth. A tree thoroughly estab- lished, which has passed the spindly youthful stage but is not yet mature, with its thrifty crown of foliage, its healthy well formed trunk, its well estab- lished, spreading root system, will add to its volume each jear many times as much wood as several young trees occupying the same space and struggling to establish themselves. For example, take an average stand of South Jersey oaks. After cutting, reproduction by sprouts will follow. In 15 years there will be from 4 to 5 cords of wood per acre, in 20 years from 6 to 10 cords. Two clear cuttings, the first at 20 years and the second at 40 years, would yield a total of 16 cords of wood in 40 years. In 45 years three clear cuttings 15 years apart would yield altogether about 15 cords. Under proper forestry methods the stand would be thinned instead of clear-cut, at 20 years. The thinning would remove about 2 or 3 cords per acre, and would leave from 5 to 8 cords standing for further growth. At 40 years of age this stand would contain from 25 to 30 cords of wood, or double the amount which would have been obtained from the two or three clear cuttings. Moreover many of the trees would be of a size and quality suitable for products more valuable than cordwood. A longer period of growth would make a contrast of yield and profits even more striking. At any time the improved woods would have a sale value much greater than that of the slashings, resulting from clear cutting of immature growth. (b) In the western part of Essex County an acre of 25-year old hard- woods — oak, maple, hickory, beech and ash, contained 870 trees from 2 to 8 inches in diameter, with a volume of 17.8 cords. Investigations showed that growth had been fairly rapid for the first 20 years, but had been badly retarded by excessive crowding in the last five years. Adjoining was an acre of crowded trees 50 years old, grown under conditions similar in every re- spect. Here there were 620 trees per acre from 2 to 10 inches in diameter with a total volume of 20.4 cords. Study of growth rings on the stumps showed that these trees had been badly crowded and had made little growth during the last 30 years. Many of the suppressed trees had been killed by crowding, which accounts for the fact that the 50 year old woods contained 240 live trees per acre less than the 25 year old tract. The important point to note is that under similar conditions one acre produced 17.8 cords of Page twenty-one H U < h w o h- ( o C/3 a CO ^ Q l-H o h O ID ^ u Q Cii h < w O S Q o Iz; I— I h o Q O u o c £ 4) OJ c C3 o Q 0) a !( 0) H <- «w o s-( a; • Oj aj c o rt 5 ^ o aj < ai 0) D be ^ 1 GH 1 c: «f-l 04 o ^ j^' lO O -+ O ly-i 1 Mh <" lO O ON !< OJ 3 o :3 -a c OJ 3 aj jj C = CNJ vy-^ !>. t^ (Nj c ^ '-H* fo i>! ro o « ^ ^ TS W ■kJ a; si 3 2 !>. to ^ t~^ t-^ O :3 o ji .S MD ON r-.* o o6 "g ^ ^ CNI CM Q, ."tj c/5 ^ >. o V~t d rvj -t- ON -+ lo J CO ^ ro lO ^D 3 a "^ o TS ■t-J ti CO CO CO On t^ C U C\j Cvi ro cvj CO C3 1^ o bJb £ 5 CO !>. MD Ol ^^ c 1 O (a -3 C^i CO ro *+' 1^1 O f/l M-l aj • O O <^1 OJ *- lO CO 1— ( r^ ^^ kJ Cvj Cvl OJ C^J CnJ O o o *: ^ -rt- 1>» oo 1— 1 *-• O fN CM CNI (NJ (N ^ bX) 3 o il.S lO OO '-^ ^ T-H ^ ^cCMCNCNlCNCNJ ^ +J CO Cvl ro VO CNI •J- vO ON t^ T-H lo aj J '^ -*- ro CO (M .-M 5 cr ^- OO O CnI -h O rt 3 ^ CO t^ O VO ^ U CM fo CO ro CN "^ b_E S.S ,— I OJ m o <^-'i?V. *>^ A butchered woodlot. A'ofe the wastefuilp high stumps and tack of brush disposal. Su thrift;/ young trees left to form a new stand. With the rapid increase in vahie of forest products it is no longer profitable to slash througrh the woods like this. But some persons still do it, either from ignorance or force of habit. Page forty-one good rule to follow is to cut within six inches of the ground where possible, or within six inches above any such physical obstruction. This rule is easier to follow in small timber than in large. When sprout reproduction is desired, stumps should be cut low and with a saw if possible, for low stumps mean better sprouts. Smooth topped stumps resist decay longer, for there are no hollows to hold moisture. Thorough Utilization. — After trees are felled they should be worked into the best possible products. What these best products are depends upon their value as well as the demand of the market. It can be easily determined what products will bring the greatest net profit. For example, it is unwise to cut into cordwood trees that are fit for ties, poles, piling or sawlogs, if these products can be readily sold or used. Limbs, tops and inferior trees should go for cordwood. Get everything possible out of every tree. It is a well-known fact that under the old thoughtless manner cf logging as much timber has been wasted as has been used. All the trees left in the woods should be growing, not rotting. If 20 feet of a tree's length is fit for sawlogs, cut it into two 10-foot logs, or a 12-foot and an 8-foot log. Don't blunder ahead and cut a 16- foot log and then discover that 4 feet has been wasted because the next log is too short to be used. If there is a crook in the trunk, cut the logs so as to eliminate it if possible, rather than to have it occur in the middle of the log, for it is obvious that crooked logs mean considerable sawmill waste in slabs. If it is possible to cut a log of clear length (without limbs), do so, and throw all the limbs into the second log, for clear lumber free from knots is most valuable. What has been said for logs pertains also to other products. Use your head as well as your axe or saw, — know what products are best, and make them. Every branch of forestry, whether it be called silviculture, scientific management, or "cutting wood," involves the application of good old com- mon sense. Hauling . — /\fter cutting, products must be hauled to the place of disposal or use. Where they cannot be loaded on wagons or trucks where they fall, they must be dragged or "skidded out" to the nearest opening or road. Horses are ordinarily used for this work. If roads are good and the haul is long, motor trucks are frequently preferable to horses and wagons. The operator must figure out the merits of each for himself, as it all depends upon local conditions. Remember that the more often products are handled and the longer the haul, the greater the expense and the smaller the profits. Keep these cost items down to a minimum. Operators, disposing of large quantities of cord- wood, ties, props and other small sized products, will do well to consider the use of an economical motor-truck with trailers. A truck with several trailers seems to be a good combination ; for instance, one loaded truck and trailer on the road, one trailer in the woods being loaded and one trailer at the destination being unloaded. The truck is more constantly on the move and this lowers a big item of expense. In regions where snow is abundant hauling with sleds is most economical. Page forty -two Seasoning and Storing Products. — When products are not sold or used immediately they should be carefully piled to prevent loss from decay or in- sects. For most purposes wood should be seasoned before beinj^ used. Green posts decay more rapidly than seasoned posts; wet cordwood doesn't burn as well as that thoroughly dried ; green lumber shrinks and warps. Dry, sea- soned wood is considerably lighter in weight than fresh cut, green timber, and therefore cheaper to haul or ship and easier to handle. Wood commonly loses one-third to one-half of its green weight when thoroughly air dried and even more when kiln dried. Products should be stored under cover where practical as they will dry better and be less liable to decay and damage. But remember to keep down the cost of hauling and handling. If piled in the woods, consider the pos- sibility of loss from forest fires, or better still, take every precaution to guard against this menace. Wood decays most readily in warm and damp situations, especially in contact with the ground. To season wood, always pile it on "skids" (poles) at least a few inches of-f the ground, and in loose piles with small sticks be- tween layers to induce free circulation of air. This latter precaution is not necessary in the case of loose piles of wood like cordwood. Wood boring insects sometimes damage stored products, but attacks are least likely to occur if the bark is peeled. Removing the bark also hastens seasoning. Posts, poles, ties — in fact all products which will come into con- tact with the ground — should be peeled. Bark peels most easily on trees freshly cut in the spring or early summer, when the sap is rising, but for other reasons it is rarely advisable to cut at this time. (See page 39.) Wood usually splits most easily when green, and split cordwood and fence posts season faster than when left in the round. Drying at a slow, uniform rate tends to prevent checking of timber (splitting at the ends). Wood decays least and is not subject to insect attack in cold weather. Wood sea- sons faster in hot weather. SLASH DISPOSAL Logging slash is a menace to woodlands and should not be tolerated. It not only invites forest fires, but provides the fuel for a hot, destructive fire when one does occur. Dead wood is a common breeding place for fungus diseases and insects. Slash interferes with woods work and is unsightly, a reason for its disposal if the aesthetic value of the woods is important. When a tract of timber is properly cut and thoroughly utilized, there will not be much slash left on the ground, especially if cordwood is one of the products, for cordwood commonly until izes everything down to 2 inches or less in diameter. A crowded stand of small crowned trees will leave less slash than those with large crowns. Lopping Tops. — If slash is lopped into small limbs which will lie Hat. close to the ground, it will be pressed down by snow and will soon decay. Slash treated in this manner is seldom a menace more than two or three years. Brush allowed to remain off the ground will season and resist decay for a long time. If brush cannot be lopped and scattered conveniently without interfering Pctge forty-three with young growth or constituting a dangerous fire menace, it may be lopped and gathered in small compact piles in convenient openings. Burning Slash. — In especially dangerous areas where forest fires are likely to occur, as along roads, railroads, near sawmills or buildings, slash should be piled in openings and burned. Care should be taken to burn where the least damage will be inflicted to standing trees, and at a time when there is the least danger of the fire escaping. Slash should never be burned in a dangerous season for forest fires. The best time is just after a light snow- fall, not wet or heavy enough to prevent the brush burning, but enough to guarantee safety. Burning slash and brush is slow work, costly and dangerous and should not be undertaken except where absolutely necessary. New Jersey's Forest Fire Law requires that a written permit must be secured from the local Firewarden for setting any fire in woodland, or within 200 feet of any woodland or any growth which may carry fire to woodland, in any town, township or borough in which Firewardens have been appointed. The State Firewarden also has the authority to compel owners to clean up slash where it is a dangerous forest fire menace. Copies of the law and lists of Firewardens may be secured upon appli- cation to the State Firewarden or State Forester, Trenton. Page forty-four FOREST PLANTING The need for planting is not SO great in New Jersey as in many other sections of the country where natural forests are lacking or where forest growth has heen almost entirely destroyed. Forests should be encouraged to reproduce themselves naturally wherever possible, because it is ordinarily easier and less costly than artificial reforestation — planting. The greater part of New Jersey's two million acres of woodUmd will grow good forests if prcp- erly protected from hrc and cared for intelligently. Forest planting is ad- visable on non-agricultural land desired for timber production where natural growth is inferior, undesirable, insufficient or lacking altogether. WHERE TO PLANT Abandoned Fields . — Scattered throughout the State there are thcmsands of acres of idle fields, formerly cleared for agriculture and abandoned by their owners because they have proven unprofitable for farming. In many in- stances the soil is not fertile enough to raise good agricultural crops ; in other cases the soil is fertile, but so steep that it erodes badly ; or it may be too rocky or too wet for farming. Lying idle, these fields are a liability to their owners. They can be made productive, and a profitable asset, by planting trees. Occasionally abandoned fields revert to forest growth naturally from seed scattered by surrounding trees, which makes planting unnecessary if the natural reproduction is sufficient in quantity and of satisfactory species. If not, the natural growth should be supplemented with planted trees. Burned woodlands, where the timber has been killed by forest fires, or so badly damaged that natural reproduction cannot produce a satisfactory new stand of timber, is another situation where forest planting is advisable. It may be that natural seeding or sprouting is not possible, or at best very slow and unsatisfactory, or that the better species have been killed off, and only inferior species are left to reproduce naturally. Weed trees, like weed plants, are hardest to kill off and grow under conditions that discourage better species. Scrub oak, fire cherry, red map'e, gray birch and similar inferior species of little commercial value, are the ones which commonly come in naturally after a bad burn. South Jersey pine usually sprouts after a fire, but the sprouts do not make good trees. Under such conditions, where natural reproduction is either lacking, insufficient, or of inferior quality, forest planting is recommended, provided there is reasonable assurance that the fire will not be repeated after the plantation becomes established. Woodland denuded by careless lumberin?; is frequently unable to repro- duce itself satisfactorily, either as regards the abundance or quality of the species. As in the case of burned woods, planting is sometimes the best and quickest means of assuring another profitable timber crop. Where compe- tition with inferior natural growth is likely to be harmful to the planted trees a cutting at the right time will give the planted trees at least an equal opportunity to establish themselves. Under-planting must frequently be resorted to. to fill in gaps in estab- Page forty-five Young pines planted on good land not suited to agricultural crops because of its tendency to wash. Forest plantations on worn-out, abandoned fields not fit for farming. There are thousands of acres of abandoned fields in New Jersey that never sliould have been cleared. They can be put to profitable work growing forest trees. Until this is dona they will remain idle and unproductive. Page forty-six lished forests where there are large openings or where there are not enough trees present to fully occupy the ground. No forest is fully productive unless the land is completely occupied by the best trees. In old groves natural re- production is often prevented by shade, or by a grass sod covering the ground. Where grazing has been permitted in woodlots, the animals have usually destroyed seedlings by eating or trampling and planting is often necessary to fill gaps or to start a new crop. Special timber crops must be grown from planted trees if they cannot be obtained from natural forests. With the scarcity and increasing cost of many kinds of timber, wood-using industries and users of certain products are finding it advisable to assure a future supply of special woods to fill their needs. Users of railroad ties, poles, posts, and similar durable woods, the natural local supply of which is becoming exhausted, will often find it good business to grow them for the future. The same is true of users of basket logs, cooperage stock, boxboards and other similar products. Many persons are finding Christmas trees a profitable crop that can be grown from planted trees in a short time. Farm Timber. — A woodlot is an important part of a farm. It supplies wood for many purposes — cordwood, fence posts, building timbers, lumber, etc. There are frequently wet, rocky or steep fields that are not suitable for cultivation, and are less valuable for pasture than for timber growing. Owners will find it advisable to plant forest trees on such land, not only to supply their own needs, but to grow timber for profitable sale. WHAT TO PLANT Species adapted to conditions of soil, moisture, exposure and climate must be chosen for planting, if success is to be had. For instance, tulip poplar and white ash must have a fairly fertile, moist soil ; loblolly pine will not succeed in the North Jersey climate ; chestnut cannot be expected to live as long as the blight is present. It is always safe to plant species that grow well nearby under similar conditions. Species suited for the products desired should be planted if the planter has any special needs, or wants to raise any particular crops. The table on page 50 shows the best species for certain products, adapted to the kinds of soils common in New Jersey. Further information regarding the uses of trees is found on pages 61 to 77. Hardwoods or Evergreens. — There are situations where it is desirable to plant hardwood species but in general it can be said that evergreens (coni- fers) such as pine and spruce will yield more timber and more profit per acre in a given time than hardwoods. Evergreens are better adapted to poor soils and make better growth there than hardwoods; ordinarily poor soils are those which will be planted. Pure or Mixed Plantations. — Many foresters advocate mixed planta- tions (two or more species) upon the ground that it is Nature's way, that one species helps another, that insects and disease do less harm, if an attack occurs, than in pure (one species) forests. These arguments have weight. Page forti/seven '.,. ^i^ .1 .-At. -i. •-./.' .. Black Locusts, IS years old, large enoiajh for fence posts. yoru'di/ Spruce, 11 years old, ,s' years after planting. These trees were big enough for Christmas trees u years ago. A planter doesn't liave to wait a lifetime for profits as so many persons believe. Most species make fast g:rowth on Jersey soils. Poor farm land may be good forest land. Page forty-eight yet it is usually easier and often better to plant comparatively small g;roups of from one to several acres of a single species, each group representing the fittest tree when climate, soil, markets and all other factors are considered. A mixture of species is sometimes advisable, as for instance, where it is de- sired to grow a short time crop, such as Christmas trees or fence posts, to be removed at an early period as a thinning, leaving the remainder to grow to sawlog size. Planting black locust in mixture with other species lessens the danger of an attack b\^ the locust borer. Quick Growing Trees. — Other things being equal, by all means use the species that will give quickest returns, but bear in mind that rapid growth is usually a response to stimulation through fertile soil, abundant moisture and favorable climate. Most species grow well under suitable conditions ; even the best will grow slowly under unfavorable circumstances. Many rapid growing species lack in quality of wood what they gain in quantity, yet for certain products such as pulpvv^ood, cordwood, boxboards, etc., quick growth of a large quantity of comparatively low quality wood is usually most profitable. Nut Trees. — Fair crops of nuts may be, and often are, produced by forest trees. However, nut culture is not forestry, but a branch of horticulture, like fruit growing. A tree developed for nuts has too much crown to pro- duce good lumber ; one grown tall and straight for lumber has too little crown to yield much fruit. Dismiss, therefore, all thought of combining the two crops. Let fruit (including nuts) be grown where that is likely to be profitable and where the trees can be given the care they need. Trees for lumber are satisfied with poorer soil and much less care. Species Not Recommended. — A few species unfit for economic planting in New Jersey have been so persistantly boomed that their real qualities should be known. Catalpa grows very rapidly on rich, moist soil and in a mild climate. In North Jersey its late growth is apt to be frozen ; in South Jersey only the best agricultural soils are fit. Its wood is valuable chiefly for posts and poles, being very durable, but weak. Walnut wood is valuable only when cut from the heart of large, old trees. A tree 40 years old might be 12 inches in diameter, }^et contain only a 4-inch cylinder of dark heart wood. The sapwood of young black walnut is very wide, light in color and practically unmarketable. Moreover, walnut demands for good growth soils so fertile that farm crops would undoubtedly bring in bigger profits from the same land. The proper place for planting walnut is around the farm buildings or along roads and lanes, where shade is wanted. Several highly advertised hybrid \arieties of black walnut are believed to be unsuited to our climate. Other species, such as hard maple, beech, hemlock, etc., are slow in growth and not particularly valuable for lumber, so are not recommended for general forest planting, although they are sometimes desired for their aesthetic value. Page forty-nhxc o l-H h < p^ en W a o 8 U o W Ph C/3 > lU 9* « u 3 o 3 3 s a -a v< b h u o o. a a . s I-? 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S - ©"b o ill: 3 c 2 B aiZ^nsi HQoi (BMOiO ZoaQ ] ZG:i'x u 4; Is o 3 1 & ■-5 ^-o.-^"! § e^«ai ga-S^ ate ate a ^ ii S >. = s g -^ S ': 'o £ 2 "9 £ "s ^' jpJ-rjHaSO ■£ cs a cc c 0) a; CS-- 5g°-S ^1 S o ZQ >."> a » SOILS , nioisi ained. y or s r/3 aSSS H 'X Q s; . - a oj o o P — .- — ac £ p:a^3i c c S £ Z C Pi 'X, >i 01 rs 01 £ ^ O O) > cS-H ll C ^ 2.2 cs 5S 03 jj .>!>. ■% ^ 3 M 4) 03 a*^ r^^^ .C 4-1 "? = o 33 pCtf a ft to I- tU 01 "G K a-- aj3 , _ Oi'S .2 ^ .a -5 " ah P"- s: o 0) CO o O a a a. Oi =v; •^ Ma 3*j •? M) , >.a m a -a g 0. a ^ 4; ,'~ O) r/1 B 4> a .2 I" 3 6E t- a a 3 o 2 o 01 Q o ^ Fag& fifty HOW TO PLANT Season to Plant. — In New Jersey, early spring as soon as the frost is out of the ground and before the buds open, is best. The planting period usually lasts two or three weeks during April or early May, depending upon the season. Deciduous trees should never be taken from the ground while their leaves are on. Evergreens can be, and often are, planted successfully in late summer and early fall, but there is always danger that winter winds, often very drying, will put too great a strain upon the weakened root system of any tree moved in the fall. There is also more danger of "heaving," as the ground freezes and thaws, if trees are planted in the fall. Cloudy or wet weather is always better than bright sunshine for planting. Young Trees More Satisfactory Than Sowing Seed. — The lowest initial cost is found when seeds are sown on the ground, yet neither this method nor planting the seeds in prepared spots ordinarily give good results. In Nature probably less than one seed in a thousand ever makes a tree. Birds, mice, dry weather and many other adverse influences make it advisable to plant sturdy young trees. Size of Trees. — Small seedlings are most economical and are usually satisfactory. They are less expensive to grow or buy than larger trees and cost less to handle in planting. Hardwood (deciduous) seedlings are easiest handled when one year old; the size and root development of older trees makes their use rarely advisable. Two year old seedlings of conifers (evergreens) with stems from 4 to 6 inches high, are best and cheapest to use in planting old fields or cleared areas where conditions are favorable. If competition with a thick growth of sod, weeds or other trees is excessive, larger trees — three or four years old, transplanted from the seed bed — are better, since they have better de- veloped root systems, and establish themselves more quickly among unfavor- able surroundings. Since they are more expensive to grow or buy and cost more to handle than two year seedlings, their use should be avoided if possible. A home nursery is not advised unless a very large area isi to be planted. The growing of evergreens, in particular, requires much skill, and except in rare instances it will be found less costly and more satisfactory to buy plant- ing stock from the nurseries specializing in large quantities of small sized seedlings especially for forest planting. If conditions make it necessary to use large transplants, it is sometimes adv^isable to buy one or two year old seedlings and transplant them for a year or two in the home garden. Anybody contemplating a home nursery should get complete information and expert advice before starting, as it is by no means a simple undertaking. Use of Wild Stock. — The transplanting of wild, forest grown seedlings to the forest plantation commonly costs more than buying better seedlings from a nursery, and is not so satisfactory. Unless very young wild seedlings are secured (one or two years old) their roots will have developed to such an extent that they will be damaged by moving unless the work is very care- fully done. Damaged roots mean a setback and resultant slow growth after transplanting. Page fiftij-one An experimental plantation of Loblolly pine oh a South Jersey State Forest, with many of the 15 year old trees 9 inches in diameter, fit for boxboards 12 years after planting. A mixed pine mid x/jnici iiiduhil.u,, ,,, W'lurcn Cuunty that yielded 19,000 board feet of sdwiof/s per acre at 3k years of arje. Short rotations of fast gi-owing trees are often most profitable. Small logs for boxboards. and similar products can be grown in from 20 to 40 years. It requires 60 years or more tcv grow large trees fit for high grade lumber. Fa(je fifty-tiKo Where to Get Trees. — The State of New Jersey grows no planting stock for public distribution. Young trees can be obtained from many nur- serymen, although as a rule those who handle ornamental stock do not have the large quantities that are wanted for forest planting, or are not prepared to make the price low enough. If prices are the. same, buyers are recommended to satisfy their needs from reliable nurseries nearest the planting site, or from those which will de- liver the stock so that it shall be the shortest time out of the ground. In all cases it is advisable to stipulate that stock shall be taken from the ground of the vendor — not assembled from other nurseries, and that it shall have been subject to State inspection, and guaranteed to be free from dangerous insects and disease. Prices should be based upon size, not upon age alone. Orders for planting stock should be placed during the fall or winter if possible, and at least several weeks before the planting season, to ensure getting the species and size desired. Specify delivery a few days or a week earlier than the probable earliest date of planting. The State Forester will furnish upon request a list of nurseries where young trees can be obtained, and will assist in placing orders. How to Handle Trees Before Planting. — When a tree is OUt of the ground its roots must never become dry. It is especially important to guard ever- greens since the foliage is active at all times and the draught upon the root moisture is therefore constant. Deciduous trees without leaves are less sen- sitive ; in foliage they should never be moved. Nurserymen ordinarily ship young trees by parcel post or express with the roots well packed and moist. As soon as the package is received open it, and thoroughly wet the contents. If planting is to be delayed more than 48 hours, heel in the plants until wanted. Heeling in means putting the trees in the ground temporarily so that the roots shall not become dry before they can be regularly planted. Dig a trench in well-shaded, moist soil, a little deeper than the length of the tree roots, with one side of the trench at about a 45° slope. Spread the trees or small bundles of trees in the trench along this slope with the tops up, and cover the roots and lower stems with moist earth firmly tamped down. Keep the roots straight and spread out. Successive layers of trees may be put in the trench, with two or three inches of earth between. Be careful not to cover any of the foliage of evergreens with earth. If dry weather comes, wet the earth, but not often enough to cause heating. Trees of any kind can be kept in this way for several days without injury. Preparing the Ground. — As every cost item in growing a forest must be carried as an investment at compound interest until the timber is mature, it is important to save every possible expense. Though trees undoubtedly grow better when planted in prepared and fertilized soil, it is usually ad- visable to omit everything of the kind on account of the cost. Forest trees will succeed on land too poor for other crops. If the ground is very weedy or covered with low brush, it may be mowed or burned over before planting. When trees are to be planted among thick, high brush, it is sometimes nec- essary to clear out a space around each planting spot, to give the tree a better • Page fiftij-three opportunity to start. On fields with a verj' heavy sod, trees may be planted in a shallow furrow plowed along each row. Light Requirements . — In forest planting, as in every branch of silvicul- ture, the innate qualities of each tree species with respect to sunlight must be considered. Some kinds, such as pine, ash, tulip and Cottonwood will endure little shade from other trees and therefore must not be crowded. They are called light requiring or intolerant. Others such as spruce and fir are less particular and are called shade enduring or tolerant. Tolerant trees, when well grown, always have more branches than intolerant trees, but more of them can thrive on a given area. An intolerant species must never be planted where it will lack sufficient light. This fact must be con- sidered in underplanting in woods already established, in plantations of mixed species, or on cutover lands where the planted seedlings must compete with natural growth of seedlings and sprouts from stumps. Spacing . — The proper interval between planted trees depends chiefly upon the habits of the species and the expected life of the plantation. Grown for timber the trees should be close enough to crowd each other at an early age, so that they will grow straight, tall, and free from lower branches. When this crowding becomes excessive, thinnings can be made as in the case of crowded natural woods. (See pages 19 to 34.) The common practice is to plant trees six feet apart each way. Cottonwood should have a little more room, Norway spruce a little less. Species intolerant of shade must not be crowded too much, but care must also be taken less the trees are too far apart, and become bushy and limby. Another common practice is to plant alternate trees of two species rather close together, one species to be removed at an early age for some small sized products that can be profitably disposed of. For example, spruce and pine can be alternated four feet apart, the spruce to be removed within 10 years for Christmas trees, the pine left to grow to timber size. TREES PER ACRE AT VARIOUS SPACINGS. 3 feet X 3 feet 4840 trees per acre 4 " X 4 " 2722 5 " X 5 " 1742 6 " X 6 " 1210 8 " X 8 " 680 10 " X 10 " 435 Care of Seedlings While Planting. — When ready to plant, mix a "pud- dle" or thin paste of mud (clay) and water, in which the roots of the seed- lings are immersed to keep them from drying out. Several hundred seedlings can be carried to the planting site in a pail containing a few inches of this "puddle", or after the roots have been coated with the paste the seedlings can be carried in a basket lined with wet moss or burlap. Don't let the roots dry out. Planting. — Ordinarily the best tool for planting is a mattock or grubbing hoe. A small hole is made with the least possible effort — just large enough Page fifty-four TMF- CORRlCT way TO PLANT "RcE SEEDLINGS id- % ®' T/ie iiiosf iiiiportdtit po'nitx io remember are: make the liole Uinje ciioki/Ii lo take the rooln without cramping; press the earth jirmtii around the roots. Don't let them dry o\(t. to contain the roots without cramping or crowding. Sometimes spades or other tools are preferable to mattocks — it all depends upon soil conditions, the ground cover, and the worker. If the turf is close or weeds very dense, "scalp" a square foot or so of ground where each tree is to stand. A shallow plowed furrow along the line of each row of trees sometimes makes planting easier where there is a heavy sod. Important Directions to Follow. — 1. Keep the cost down. Prepare the ground and holes for planting with the least possible effort and expense. Do only what is necessary to assure success. 2. Don't let the roots dry out. 3. Plant in cloudy or rainy weather if possible, but don't delay too long, as this is not essential. 4. Be sure the tree roots are spread out straight in the hole, and are not cramped, crooked, or bunched. 5. Be sure that the loose earth is tamped back firmly around the roots. 6. Don't bury any of the seedling's foliage in the earth. Set each tree very little if any lower in the ground than it was in the nursery. Planting crews of two or three men are probably most efficient. Let one man dig the holes, followed by a man who places a seedling in proper position in each hole and firms the earth back around the roots. Sometimes it is helpful to have the seedlings distributed by a man or boy, so that the planter has nothing to carry to interfere with his work. When this is done, the Page fifty-five seedlings should not be left lying on the ground long enough for the roots to dry out. If one man is working alone he can first prepare a number of holes and then come back and put in the trees. Lining and Spacing. — Where it is desirable to have the rows as straight and the trees as evenly spaced as possible, it is an easy matter to set guide stakes along the boundarys of the plantation to keep the planters in line. It is always well to keep the spacing approximately even as then each tree has equal growing room and when thinning is necessary later on, it is more easily done. Usually it is not advisable to spend much time providing absolutely straight rows. On areas covered with patches of brush, or already partly occupied by trees, advantage must be taken of openings where the young seedlings will be hampered as little as possible by surrounding and competing growth. Under such conditions it is of course impracticable to keep the rows straight and the spacing even. Never plant a seedling under brush or other trees if it can be planted in an opening between. SUBSEQUENT CARE Little Attention Needed. — A forest plantation ordinarily needs no cul- tivation and little special care. Fires must be kept out, of course, and live stock must not be permitted to graze for they injure and kill seedlings by trampling even when they do not eat them. No expense for cultivation is warranted unless more than the economic production of lumber is involved. Harmful insects and tree diseases sometimes attack plantations, but ordinarily can be readily checked. (See page 85.) Replacement. — [f as many as 30 per cent of the trees die, the gaps should be filled within two years. If the loss is less, and fairly well distributed, this is generally not necessary. Cutting Back. — When the growth of hardzvoods is slow, or when they have been injured in any way after planting, growth can be stimulated by cutting off each young tree just above the ground early in the growing season (spring or early surmer.) The succeeding shoot is stronger and ultimately taller than the original would have been. Conifers (evergreens) should never be cut back, for removing or injuring the leader destroys the form of the tree. Cleaning. — When a plantation is 5 or 10 years old, sometimes earlier, it may be necessary to cut out competing weed trees, high brush and other un- desirables. This should be done only when such growth interferes with the upward development (height growth) of the planted tree. Keep the crowns of the young trees free to the sunlight ; let low growing brush and weeds alone, for they stimulate height growth, shade the ground and conserve moisture. Pruning limbs is ordinarily not necessary, since this is done by Nature in a properly planted forest. Limbs make knots and knots make low grade lumber; therefore tall, straight trunks free from limbs are wanted. That is why the trees are planted so close together. In the average plantation of pine, spaced 6 feet by 6 feet, the crowns of the trees will touch each other Page fifty -six within lU years after planting. This overhead canopy of shade kills off the lower limbs, and within 3 or 4 years the dead limbs drop off. This is natural pruning. Where lower limbs do not prune well naturally, they may be cut or knocked off as high up as a man can reach with an axe. The expense of this work should be avoided if possible by providing conditions suitable for natural pruning. Many persons become concerned over the death of these lower branches, and fear that their plantation is too thick, especially when crowded trees die here and there. There is no cause for alarm. To force height growth and clean trunks the plantation miist be dense, and the crowding process will nec- essarily kill many trees. But remember that where 1200 trees are planted on an acre, not over half this number should be left standing at 25 years of age, and at 50 years only about one-third or one-quarter of the trees should be left. Thinning. — Ordinarily plantations made as herein described will need no thinning until 20 years or more of age. When improvement cuttings are necessary, proceed as in the case of any similar crowded, natural forest. ( See pages 19 to 34.) COSTS AND PROFITS OF PLANTING Cost of Labor. — Under average conditions of planting on old fields, two men can plant from 1000 to 1500 trees per eight hour day — more or less depending upon soil conditions, ground cover, size of seedlings, and the ex- perience and ability of the planters. Six foot spacing gives 1210 trees per acre ; therefore two men will ordinarily plant a little more than an acre a day. At prevailing wages (1922) this means an average cost of from $4 to $6 per acre for labor. This cost will be higher or lower according to the spacing and number of trees planted per acre. Cost of Trees. — The cost of nursery stock has been abnormally high dur- ing the period of the World War and the years immediately following, but with the passing of unsettled conditions, prices are again becoming normal. Two year old seedlings of many of the most desirable coniferous species now (1922) cost from $4 to $10 per thousand and within a year or two prices may be even lower, (^ne year seedlings of many hardwood species can be bought for less than $10 per thousand, some as low as $2.50 per thousand. Three and four year old coniferous transplants are more expensive and can rarely be purchased for less than $10 or $15 per thousand, and they fre- quently cost more. This high cost ordinarily prevents their use in forest planting. Cost of Average Plantations. — The cost of planting an acre of trees varies, as has been explained above, according to conditions. The seedlings and the labor for a plantation of trees spaced 6 feet apart, will ordinarily cost from $8 to $15 per acre, and will average about $10 to $12. The average plantation with trees spaced 8 feet apart will cost about $6 per acre: with 5 foot spacing, $15; with 4 foot spacing, about $25. When the planter desires to keep strict account of all costs, as is done in business, he must figure the value of his land, the cost of planting, taxes, l'(i(ie fifty-seven care and protection, at compound interest for the period of years required to mature the crop. For example, with land worth $5 per* acre and an initial planting cost of $10 per acre, the cost (including taxes) of carrying the plan- tation at 4 per cent compound interest for 30 years would be about $60; for 40 years, about $90; for 50 years, about $135. In other words, this is what the amount of his original investment would increase to in the bank at compound interest. For simplicity only the initial costs and taxes are con- sidered, although there would probably be some small intermediate costs, as well as some income from thinnings. The latter, however, should more than balance the former. Where abandoned fields are planted, it is ques- tionable whether the land value is fairly considered as an item of cost. The owner has this idle land on his hands, it is valueless for farming, and is usually unsalable. Profits from Plantations. — Forestry, including forest planting, Is by no means a get-rich-quick proposition, but it pays fair profits and utilizes other- wise waste land. Moderate returns are better than nothing at all. It re- quires little capital and only a small initial investment ; the returns are sure and steady and will ordinarily net a profit on the original investment of at least 6 per cent to 10 per cent or more, as timber values increase. Neither does forestry involve waiting a life time for profits, as so many persons believe. Properly undertaken, a plantation should begin to yield an income in from 6 to 20 years, and at intervals of from 5 to 10 years apart thereafter. The mature crop can usually be harvested in from 30 to 60 years. Moreover, as timber becomes scarcer, a young, thrifty, immature forest will have a sale value, just as a fruit orchard not yet in bearing, has. The value of an immature forest may be determined by discounting the ulti- mate value at maturity back to the present time. Ordinarily in estimating the probable profits of forestry, the value of the ultimate yield is based upon the present stumpage value of the expected crop, — that is, what the trees would be worth if standing in the forest at the present time, at present prices. This estimate of value is ultra-conservative, for timber values are steadily increasing. Moreover, since an owner can readily cut and market his crop, if he desires, it is only fair to consider him entitled to the profit of this work, which will usually be at least equal to the stumpage value of the crop. A fruit-grower figures his profits on a crop of apples picked and packed, rather than growing in the drchard. A farmer values his crops the same way. So should the timber grower. Expected Yields and Profits. — A plantation of pine on fairly good forest soils, which may be unfit for profitable farming, will ordinarily yield 20 thousand board feet of sawlogs per acre in 40 years, worth $200 standing in the forest at present stumpage prices, or about 6 per cent profit on the original investment. But 40 years from now timber stumpage may easily be worth twice as much as at present, or even more ; — values are sure to in- crease considerably as timber becomes scarcer. Furthermore, this timber now worth $200 per acre standing in the forest, is worth at least $400 cut into logs and delivered at a sawmill or manufacturing plant. 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Ji j= j= re rererererererere o oooooooo "MM M SmSSSSmSSS mm :::: — — js — j=j:,c^^^j=^ >~, >^ >^ >> •^^^^-^^■^^ rer*'>>'re rererererereren T3 -O -0-3-3-3"3-C-r-3 O O OOOOOOOO 4) or;? <*. re re u , s b o j= -£ 2 = — o -c = s '•tI -C -^ (11 ^ U D 0) .„ ._ J: re re •- •- •- •- - - - — (J U tx, U. E hJ h-l Cu CU Pn Ou, Oh Oh Cl, cfl "2-? re bC 1- > y; 3 - uT re " «i o c c Pof/e seventy-three has the heating value of a ton of coal. A cord of lighter wood, such as chestnut, pine or red maple, equals two-thirds of a ton of coal in heating value. To be as cheap as wood at $6 per cord, coal must isell for from $6 to $9 per ton, delivered. Wood is frequently more convenient to use than coal, especially for cooking fires dur- ing the summer months. Moreover, the ashes of a cord of j wood contain a con- siderable quantity of valuable potash fertilizer. A cord of wood occupies 128 cubic feet of space, equal to a pile of 4-foot wood 4 feet high and 8 feet long. Baskets. — The basket industry is important in New Jersey. A number of basket factories in Central and South Jersey use large quantities of tulip poplar, red gum, basswood, maple, birch and elm logs in the manufacture of veneered baskets; fruit, berry and vegetable containers. The logs are cut into bolts of the desired length, subjected to a hot water or steam bath for a time to soften the wood, and then cut into thin sheets of veneer, from which basket slates are cut, by revolving the bolt against the cutting edge of the veneer lathe. Baskets made of split slats or staves from white oak or hickory bolts are com- monly used for oyster baskets, market baskets, and laundry baskets. Most of the baskets of this sort are made by hand, in small sized operations. Boxes. — The manufacture of box-boards is important from the standpoint of forestry, since relatively low grade lumber sawed from rapidly grown young trees can be profitably used for this product. Wood suitable for boxes should be light in weight and strong enough to stand up under use. The grade and quality of the lumber desired of course depends upon the intended use of the boxes. White pine, spruce and Southern yellow pine are imported into New Jersey for the best box boards. In South Jersey large quantities of pitch pine, shortleaf pine and white cedar are used for cranberry crates, fruit and vegetable boxes. Other native species suitable for boxes for certain purposes are red gum, hemlock, tulip poplar, bass- wood, chestnut, maple, sycamore and birch. Cooperage is the art of making vessels or containers of wood bound together by hoops. Tight Cooperage is distinguished from Slack Cooperage in its ability to contain liquids. Cooperage uses three forms of wood : — staves, heading, and hoops. Slack Cooperage products consist of barrels for shipping cement, flour, sugar, fruit, vegetables, and similar products; also tubs, buckets, kegs, firkins, etc. Almost any wood can be used for heading and staves, although those that are abundant and fairly cheap, light yet strong, and which retain their form when bent, are desired. Large quantities of oak were formerly used, but the high value of oak for other purposes has caused a change to less expensive woods. Red gum, elm, maple, beech and chestnut are our most common stave woods. Elm and hickory are com- monly used for hoops, although metal hoops are gradually replacing those of wood because of their cheapness. Tight Cooperage requires a more carefully manufactured article, because it must hold liquids. A wood which is hard and strong, of impermeable wood structure, which will not discolor or taint the contents of the barrel or container, is usually desired. White oak is considered the best wood for tight cooperage. Red oak is more susceptible to leakage owing to its open pores, but is also used, along with red gum, ash, beech, birch and maple. Wood Pulp and Paper. — The pulp and paper industry is not important in New Jersey because there are very limited supplies of the best pulp woods. A good pulp wood should have a long, strong fibre and should be soft, light colored and free from such constituents as resin, gum, tannin, etc. It must also be available in sufficient quantities and fairly economical in price. Some woods are admirably adapted to the manufacture of paper, yet are eliminated because they are not suffi- ciently available or are in greater demand for other purposes. Spruce is the best and most commonly used pulpwood, followed by fir, hemlock and aspen. None of these species are abundant in New Jersey, nor are they ever likely to be. In late years the consumption of paper has increased so greatly that a shortage of the accessible pulpwood supply has caused manufacturers to develop new pro- cesses whereby almost any species of wood can be used, especially for lower grades Page sevenfij-fovr of paper. Pine, maple, beech and chestnut, as well as other species, are now being used in considerable quantities and their use will undoubtedly increase. Small quantities of pitch pine from South Jersey are being used for paper. In the future sawmill and logging waste may form a considerable portion of the pulpwood supply. Excelsior consists of thin, curled strands or shreds of wood made by rapidly moving knives or fine steel teeth against ^ wood bolt. It is used extensively for upholstery, mattresses, and for packing miscellaneous articles which are susceptible to breakage. A wood suitable for excelsior should be soft but with a rather tough fiber, light colored and straight grained. It should preferably be free from gum or resin that are likely to discolor or taint any material with which it comes in contact. Basswood makes the best excelsior, but it is not extensively used because of the limited supply and the demand for it for other purposes. Cottonwood and aspen are most commonly used. Lower grades of excelsior are made from pine, tulip poplar, red gum, soft maple, spruce, chestnut, hemlock, and white cedar. Charcoal is charred wood as a result of partial or incomplete combustion. Years ago this industry was important in New Jersey and large quantities of hard- woods and pine were made into charcoal by the open-pit method, which consisted of slowly burning a compact conical pile of wood, covered over with grass, leaves, moss and earth, allowing just enough draft through prepared flues to cause oiily partial combustion. This crude method was very wasteful, because the volatile products which pass off in the process of combustion were inot recovered. Most charcoal is now made as a by-product in the distillation of wood in closed retorts, which process also obtains wood alcohol, acetic acid and wood tar from hard- woods, and turpentine, wood oils and tar from resinous woods such as pine. Charcoal was formerly used extensively in the manufacture of iron, but with improved methods and the greater use of coke, the demand for charcoal has fallen oflr. It is also used in the manufacture of gunpowder and explosives, as a filtrant, for medicinal purposes, as a reducing agent in metallurgical operations, and for fuel. Heavy dense woods, such as hickory, oak, maple, beech and birch are regarded as best for high grade charcoal, although other woods are also used. Hardwood Distillation.— An industry most important in the northern States is the distillation of hardwoods in closed retorts, where by the application of great heat, gases and oils are driven from the wood and converted into wood alcohol, acetic acid and wood tar, — leaving the wood itself in the form of charcoal. This industry lias almost entirely replaced the old open-pit method of burning charcoal. The best "chemical woods", as they are called, are birch, beech and maple, although oak, hickory and ash are also used to a less extent. Soft woods, or those containing excessive gum, resin or tannin cannot be used. The chemical industry has not been important in New Jersey, but may become so as the supply of accessible woods in the north becomes exhausted. Naval Stores. — Resinous woods, when Mistilled in closed retorts in much the same way as "chemical" hardwoods, yield the so-called naval stores, turpentine, wood oils and tar, as well as charcoal. Longleaf pine of the Southern States is the best wood for this kind of distillation, and practically the only one used at present. Our native pines — pitch pine and shortleaf pine — are less adapted to distillation, but may be used in the future as it becomes impossible for the Southern pines, the supply of which is rapidly becoming exhausted, to fill the demand for naval stores. Another form of distillation of resinous woods by the use of steam yields the naval stores, but leaves the wood in a condition suitable for paper pulp. The distillation of resinous woods is not the most important source of naval stores, since most of the turpentine, resin and tar is now obtained from the pitch of longleaf pine, collected from cuts made at the base of living trees. Tanning. — Many plants of the vegetable kingdom contain an astringent sub- stance known as tannin, which is used in tanning animal hides and skins. Prac- tically all of the commercial tannin is derived from a variety of barks, woods, leaves, or fruits of .a comparatively few species. Page seventy-five For a long time hemlock bark was the principal source of tannin in this country, but the bulk of the eastern supply has now been exhausted, and other species are being used extensively. Since the discovery of a method whereby the tannin con- tent of chestnut wood could be successfully extracted, more than two-thirds of all the tannic acid products made in the United States are now derived from this source. The extract of tannin from chestnut is largely confined to Virginia and North Carolina, since Southern chestnut contains more tannin than the same species grown in the North. The bark of chestnut oak and California tanbark oak is also rich in tannin, and is being used more extensively. Other materials less used are the barks of other oaks, especially black oak, and leaves of a Southern sumach. Imported materials also form an important source of tannin, the most important of which are Quebracko wood from South iAmerica, Mangrove bark from the tropics of Africa and Central' America, Myrobalan nuts from India, and sumach from the Mediterranean region. Dye Woods. — At the present time aniline dyes compose a large percentage of all the dyeing materials used, although for certain purposes a few dye woods are held in high esteem in the textile and leather trades. Most of the natural dyes are now produced from imported woods from Central and South America and the West Indies. Of the native species used, Osage orange is the most important. This species is most abundant in the lower Mississippi Valley but is occasionally planted as hedges in New Jersey. Other native materials used to a very limited extent are black walnut and butternut, sumach, alder, red gum, and dogwood. New Jersey probably will never be an important source of dye woods, but occasionally some of our forest by-products may be used in this industry. Wood Preservation. — Decay of wood is caused by various forms of bacteria and fungus growth which thrive only in the presence of moisture, air and warmth. Wood inside buildings does not rot because it is kept dry; wood under water resists decay, because of the absence of air and warmth; neither does wood decay rapidly in cold climates nor in winter. Wood exposed to the weather is ordinarily preserved by painting, which excludes moisture. Wood in contact with the ground, such as poles, ties and posts, decays most rapidly, because it is usually moist, especially where it touches the earth. Some woods are naturally more durable than others, due to their structure, or to some chemical substance within the wood. (See table, pages 72-73.) With the decreasing supply and increasing cost of timber, electric companies, railroads and other users of poles and ties find it a great saving to treat these products with a preservative, which doubles or trebles their life and saves the cost of several replacements. Creosote is one of the best preservatives known, because it effectively prevents and kills the growth of fungi, penetrates most woods readily, remains in the wood well to insure adequate protection, is safe to handle (although it burns readily and has a rather objectionable odor), and is reasonable in cost. Most effective penetration is obtained in commercial treating plants where hot creosote is forced into the wood under pressure. Other preservatives less exten- sively used are zinc chloride, tar and crude oil. With the death of chestnut, the growing scarcity of white and red cedar, and the high value of white oak for other products, farmers and other users of fence posts are finding it economical and desirable to use cheaper, more abundant, and less durable woods. At a cost of a few cents per post for creosoting, red oak, pine, similar woods can be made to last many years. Some dense woods, such as white oak and chestnut oak, resist the penetration of creosote. An excellent home treating plant can be constructed at the cost of a few dollars, with which a farmer can preserve his own posts and other timbers easily, as well as those of his neighbors. An iron tank, about 3 feet in diameter and 4 feet high, is erected over a brick or stone fireplace, and enough creosote is poured in to im- merse the butts of the posts to a point 6 inches above the ground line when set. The posts should be thoroughly air dried with the bark removed, before treatment. The creosote is then heated to a temperature of about 200 degrees (Fahrenheit) for Page seventy-six an hour or more, until the hot liquid has penetrated half an inch or so, enough to expel much of the air and moisture within the wood. The time required varies depending upon the kind of wood used. The posts are then removed and immersed in a similar tank of cool creosote, where the contraction draws the oil further into the wood. If just a few posts are to be treated, only one tank may be used by withdrawing the fire and allowing the wood and creosote to cool together. The metal drums of 40 or 50 gallons capacity, in which creosote is sometimes sold, make good treating tanks. A more simple method is to paint the post butts with several coats of hot creo- sote, although this method is not so satisfactory as the hot bath treatment, because sufficient penetration is not obtained. It may be used for preserving barn flooring, sills, and heavy timber that cannot be handled readily in tanks. Miscellaneous Products. — There are many other uses for our native woods which (;tfer jircfiabie markets for forest products in certain localities. The rustic furniture industry uses considerable quantities of small red and white cedar poles. The same species are desired for bean poles, grape stakes, oyster stakes and dye sticks. Boat fenders, made of green hardwood poles usually 5 to 8 feet long and from 5 to 9 inches in diameter, are used quite extensively. There is also some demand for naturally crooked oak pieces as ship knees for the prowes of small boats. Dunnage wood, cut in 2-foot lengths, used for packing ships cargoes, is occasionally a profitable way to dispose of pine suitable only for cordwood. Hickory, oak and ash plank or billets find a ready sale to manufacturers of tool handles and vehicle parts. Apple wood is used by the manufacturers of saw handles. Turning mills offer good markets for special woods. Very hard woods, such as dogwood and persimmon, are made into wooden bearings, shu'tles and similar products. These are but a few of the special uses which frequently enable a woodland owner to dispose of his timber with the greatest profit. Specifications an! prices can be obtained from manufacturers and buyers. TIMBER ESTIMATING An owner intending to cut or sell his timber should first estimate how much and what kinds he has to dispose of or use. This is especially important if he con- templates selling standing timber or stumpage. To estimate a tract of timber is to determine, as accurately as may be desirable, the contents of the trees standing within the given area, in terms of the products desired. For instance, a tract may be estimated to contain sawlogs yielding so many thousand board feet of lumber, or so many poles, ties, fence posts, cords of wood, etc. Many experienced woodsmen can determine fairly well the amount of timber within a tract simply by looking it over more or less carefully. When timber was abundant and cheap this method was good enough, but today it will hardly suffice. As timber increases in value, more careful estimates are desired. It is usually ad- visable to measure the diameter and height of the trees, and determine their contents from prepared volume tables, as explained later on pages 79 to 81. If the tract is small, or the timber valuable enough to justify the most accurate estimate possible, all the trees should be measured. If this is not considered necessary or if the tract is so large that a complete estimate is not practicable, the trees on certain sample portions of the tract may be measured, and from them the volume of the entire area may be computed. There are two methods commonly used, the "sample plot" and the "strip" method. Sample plots are selected in portions of the tract where conditions are average, and all the trees within these plots are measured, so that their volume may be cal- culated. Knowing the number of sample pints and the area of each, as well as the area of the entire tract, it is a simple matter to figure the stand per acre and the volume of the entire stand. Usually a one-quarter acre sample plot is preferred, Page seventy-seven which may be a circle with a 59 foot radius, or a square 104 feet on a side. If necessary, the boundaries of these plots may be marked with crayon on the trees, with light bark blazes or with stakes. It is most important that the sample plots represent average timber conditions, if an accurate estimate is to be had. On small tracts where the size, density and condition of the timber is uniform, accurate work is easier than where there is con- siderable variation within the tract. Each sample plot should represent average conditions for a definite and known area of similar timber. At least one quarter- acre plot for each 5 acres of timber should be measured. The strip method of timber estimating is commonly used on large tracts, especially when it is desirable to make a survey and map of the tract at the same time. It consists of measuring trees on narrow strips, usually one chain wide (4 rods or 66 feet) distributed systematically over the forest and covering, in the aggregate, a specified portion of the total area. Ten square chains, or a strip 10 chains long and one chain wide, equals an acre. A strip estimate requires a crew of two or three men, one to run the line of the strip with a compass, and to tally the trees measured by the others. The strips should be so planned that they rep- resent the average timber conditions of the tract. For instance, if a square 40 acre tract of timber (20 chains on a side) contained some scattered and scrubby timber running north and south through the center of the tract, the estimate strips should be run east and west, so that each strip would contain the average amount of good and poor timber. On a tract of this size and shape, 4 strips 1 chain wide running across the tract at intervals, would include 80 square chains, 8 acres, or 20 per cent of the entire area. From this the contents of the entire stand may be readily calculated Ordinarily the sample plot method will be found most satisfactory in small woodlots for inexperienced estimators. MEASURING TREES After deciding whether the estimate is to be based on a measurement of all the trees within the tract, or of those within sample plots, it is necessary to count and measure the size of the trees within the selected areas. The diameter, height and species of every tree should be recorded. Diameter. — Many lumbermen use the diameter at the top of the stump as the diameter of the tree, but this is unsatisfactory because stump heights vary, and be- cause there is usually a considerable swell at the base which varies greatly in trees of the same general size. Diameter breast-high (called D. B. H.) 4^ feet above the ground,, is convenient for measurement, avoids these objections, and is always used by foresters where diameter measurements of trees are required. An ordinary ruler or yard stick held against the tree parallel to the line of its diameter will enable a person to estimate the diameter fairly well. For more accurate work tree calipers are most convenient. They consist of a stick usually 36 inches long graduated into inches and fractions of inches. At one end is a rigid arm set at right angles to the stick, while a similar arm is so fixed that it will slide back and forth at will. A pair of calipers can be easily made, although its accuracy depends upon the movable arm always remaining at right angles to the graduated base, and parallel to the rigid arm. If a tree is not exactly round both its largest and smallest diameters should be measured and the average between these diameters accepted as the true diameter. A diameter tape is sometimes used, where great accuracy is desired. The tape is passed around the tree at the proper point and the diameter read from the tape, since it varies directly with the circumference. Height. — In order to compute the contents of a tree, it is necessary to measure its height as well as diameter. When the entire contents of the tree are desired, including the cordwood in the limbs, the total height is usually measured. When the volume of the tree in terms of sawlogs, poles, ties, etc., is desired, the merchant- able height, or length of the usable portion of the trunk, is measured. If logs can be sawed down to 4 inches at the small end, then the merchantable height of the tree Page seventy-eight would be the distance from the stump up to the point where the tree measures just 4 inches in diameter. Where the trees average about the same height throughout the stand, it is often sufficient to use the height of a few typical trees as average for all. Where trees of all sizes are found, they can often be grouped into three or four height classes, accurate enough for practical purposes. For instance, trees from 4 to 6 inches in diameter, 40 feet tall; 7-10 inches, 50 feet; 11-14 inches, 60 feet; 15-18 inches, 70 feet ; etc The simplest way of getting the height of a stand is to cut down a few average trees and measure them with a tape. Where this is not advisable, fallen trees can often be found on the ground. Another method fairly accurate on level ground is to measure the length of a tree's shadow and compare it with the shadow of an object of known length. For instance, if an upright stick 6 feet long casts a shadow 8 feet long, and the tree's shadow is 90 feet long, then, by direct proportion 6 is to 8 as X is to 90 8 X = 540 X z= dlYi feet, height of the tree. Another method, fairly accurate for persons who can judge distance well, is to place a 10 foot pole beside the tree, stand back where the entire tree can be seen readily, and estimate how many 10 poles, one over the other, would be required to reach the top of the tree, or the point to which the height is desired. Any instrument that reads angles, a measuring tape and the application of trigonometry also gives the desired results. Hypsometers of several types, con- structed to give direct readings of height, are also to be had. Recording Measurements. — For the sake of accuracy and convenience, an estimate should record measurements of trees by species. The following tally is most convenient: NUMBER OF TREES PER ACRE Height 40' Diameter D. B. H. ( 4" ( 5" White Oak 14 17 Red Oak 9 16 Hickory 2 5 Maple Mi.scellaneous 19 4 26 6 50' \ 6" 25 31 9 14 3 / 7" 18 26 6 7 1 f 8" 11 14 4 60' \ 9" 7 11 1 [10" 3 8 2 Total 95 115 29 66 14 COMPUTING THE CONTENTS OF TREES Having recorded the number of trees of various sizes on the area, the volume of each is found in a volume table, and the total contents determined by multiplying by the number of trees of each size and summing up the total. Volume tables give the contents of normal trees of various sizes, and are made from careful measurements of average trees. When the diameter and height (either total height or used length) of a tree are known, volume tables give the contents of average trees of like dimensions. The volume may be expressed in board feet, cubic feet, cords, — or in the number of posts, ties, etc., for each tree. Volume tables are ordinarily made for one species only, because the form, taper, shape and crown contents of different species vary, and with these variations, the contents of the tree. Where exact results are neither expected nor desired, a volume table for one species will give approximately correct results for other species of similar form of growth. The following volume tables represent several types which may be useful to woodland owners desiring to estimate their timber. Page seventy -nine VOLUME TABLES RED OAK (a) Diameter Breast-High (inches) Length of Tree Used (Feet) 10' 20' 30' 40' 50' 5" 6" 7" Volume in board feet of sawed lumber (b) 6 9 14 15 22 29 34 8" 9" 10" 18 25 31 30 40 50 39 49 60 43 58 73 99 11" 12" 13" 37 44 54 63 78 93 74 89 107 90 110 132 118 143 174 14" 15" 16" 65 109 124 143 126 149 173 160 190 225 208 243 288 17" 18" 19" 163 181 202 201 232 265 262 330 308 378 356 428 20" 405 478 (a) Table from U. S. Forest Service Bulletin 36, "The Woodman's Handbook". (b) Actual mill-cut in untrimmed inch boards. This table will give fairly accurate results for other hardwoods such as white oak, hickory, ash, etc. SMALL, SECOND-GROWTH HARDWOODS (a ) Diameter Breast-High | Total Height of Tree (Feet). (inches) 20' 30' 40' 50' 60' Volume of cordwood in cubic feet (b) 2" 0.2 0.5 3" 1 0.5 0.8 1.1 4" I 0.9 1.4 1.8 5" 2.3 2.7 3.2 6" 3.4 4.0 4.8 5.7 7" 4.8 5.7 6.6 7.9 8" 7.7 9.0 10.6 9" 11.8 13.6 10" 15.3 17.3 11" 19.6 22.6 12" 24.6 28.0 13" 32.2 (a) Table from U. S. Forest Service Bulletin 36, "The Woodsman's Handbook". (b) This table, based upon the measurement of white oak, may be used for other second growth hardwoods to be cut into cordwood, down to sticks (limbs) 1 inch in diameter. A cord made up of mixed diameters of second growth wood is considered to contain 80 cubic feet of solid wood, and this table can be reduced to cords by dividing by 80. Experience has shown that where very small trees are cut, ranging from 2 to 6 inches in diameter, the contents of a piled cord of wood may be as low as 65 cubic feet. Page eighty SHORTLEAF PINE (a) Diameter Breast-High Total Height of Tree. (Feet) . (inches) 50' 60' 70' 80' Volume in board feet by the Scribner Log Rule. 9" 10" 11" 40 45 50 50 60 70 60 80 95 95 115 12" 13" 14" 65 90 105 130 110 135 160 135 160 190 15" 16" 17" 160 190 225 260 220 260 300 18" 19" 20" 300 345 345 395 450 21" 22" 505 570 (a) Table from U. S. Forest Service Bulletin 36, "The Woodsman's Handbook". This table is based on measurements of shortleaf pine, but will give fairly ac- curate results for other South Jersey pines such as pitch pine and scrub pine, where the trees are of good form and height. This table will not give accurate results for low, scrubby timber. In that case probably the best way to compute the contents of a tree is to estimate the number and size of the logs which could be cut, and get their volume by the use of a log rule, such as that described on page 83. For instance, a tree 35 feet tall with a D. B. H. of 14 inches will probably cut a butt log 12 feet long with a top diameter of 10 inches and a top log 12 feet long, 6 inches at the small end. Scribner's log rule gives the con- tents of such logs as 40 board feet and 12 board feet respectively, or a total of 52 board feet for the tree. PINE CORDWOOD (a) Diameter Breast-High (inches) 20' Total Height of Tree (Feet) 30' 40' 50' 60' 70' 2" 3" 4" Volume of entire tree in cubic feet (b) | 0.3 0.6 09 1.5 1.2 2.0 2.4 5" 6" 7" 2.2 2.9 4.2 5.7 3.6 5.2 7.2 6.3 8.7 10.2 8" 9" 10" 7.5 9.4 11.6 14.1 11 3 13.9 16.6 13.1 16.2 19.2 11" 12" 16.8 19.6 22.6 22.5 25.7 (a) Table from U. S. Forest Service Bulletin 36, "The Woodsman's Handbook", based on measurements of scrub pine. (b) This table will give fairly accurate measurements for native Jersey pines cut into cordwood, pulpwood or charcoal wood. To reduce cubic feet to cords of peeled. pulpwood, divide by 110. To reduce to cords of unpeeled charcoal wood or cordwood (down to 2") divide by 100, or bv 80 if small trees onlv (less than 6 inches B. B. H.) are used. Page eighty-one UNITS OF MEASURE— CONVERTING FACTORS There are many units of measure used in expressing the volume or contents of a tree, log, or stick of timber, varying according to products and local practise. It is important to know just what these various units of measure are, and their relation to each other, or the "converting factors". Board Measure. — Board measure is designed primarily for the measurement of sawed lumber. The unit is the board foot, which is a board 1 inch thick and 1 foot square, or its equivalent. For example, an inch board 12 inches wide and 16 feet long contains 16 board feet; an inch board 9 inches wide and 16 feet long contains 12 board feet; a 2-inch plank 9"xl6' contains 24 board feet. Although not strictly accurate, the lumber trade usually figures boards under 1 inch in thickness as inch lumber. Lumber is sold in large quantities by the thousand board foot measure — M. B. M. Log Measure.— The volume of sawlogs is usually measured and expressed in the number of board feet of lumber they will actually cut, allowing for waste in slabs, sawdust, etc. Log rules give the board foot contents of logs, based upon their length and the diameter of the small end inside the bark. The amount of lumber which can be cut from logs of a given size is not uniform, because the factors which determine the amount of waste vary under different circumstances, such as the thickness of the saw, the thickness of the boards, the size of the smallest board which may be utilized, the skill of the sawyer, the efficiency of the machinery, the defects in the log, etc. This lack of uniformity has led to wide differences of opinion as to how log rules should be constructed. There are many log rules in use, some more accurate than others, and unfortunately some of the most inaccurate are most popular with lumbermen. For example, the Doyle rule is commonly used in New Jersey, and is in favor with many lumbermen who buy timber because it gives a very low estimate for small logs, although fairly accurate for large sized timber. The Scribner log rule will ordinarily give a more accurate measure for logs below 28 inches in diameter and should be more generally used_ COMPARISON OF DOYLE AND SCRIBNER LOG RULES Contents of 16-foot logs in board feet for different diameters. Diameter of log in inches at small end. 6" 8" 10" 12" 16" 20" 24" 28" 32" 36" Scribner 18 Doyle 4 The diameter of logs is always measured at the small end inside the bark, since this limits the width of the boards. The scaler must make allowance for defects such as decay, crooks, etc. Log rules may be used in a rough estimate of standing timber by estimating the number and size of the logs in a tree, the contents of which may be determined from the log rule. 32 54 79 159 280 404 582 736 923 16 36 64 144 256 400 576 784 1024 Page eighty-two SCRIBNER LOG RULE Contents of Average Logs in Board Feet. Diameter of log at small end Length of Log (Feet) (inches) 8' 10' 12' 1 14' 16' 18' 20' 6" 8 10 12 14 18 22 24 7" 12 15 18 24 28 32 34 8" 16 20 24 28 32 40 44 9" 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 10" 27 34 40 45 50 55 65 11" 33 42 50 55 65 70 80 12" 39 49 59 69 79 88 98 13" 48 61 73 85 97 109 122 14" 57 72 86 100 114 129 143 15" 71 89 107 125 142 160 178 16" 79 98 119 139 159 178 198 17" 92 116 139 162 185 208 232 18" 106 134 160 187 213 240 267 19" 120 150 180 210 240 270 300 20" 140 175 210 245 280 315 350 21" 152 190 228 266 304 342 380 22" 167 209 251 292 334 376 418 23" 188 236 283 330 377 424 470 24" 202 252 303 353 404 454 505 25" 229 287 344 401 459 516 573 26" 250 312 375 439 500 562 625 27" 271 342 411 479 548 616 684 28" 291 363 436 509 582 654 728 30" 493 575 657 739 821 32" 552 644 736 828 920 34" 600 700 800 900 1000 36" 692 807' 923 1038 1152 Cord Measure. — Fuel wood, piilpwood, and material cut into short sticks for various uses is usually measured by the cord. A standard cord is 128 cubic feet of stacked wood, usually a pile of 4-foot wood stacked 4 feet high and 8 feet long. As a matter of fact a piled cord of wood 4'x4'x8' does not actually contain 128 cubic feet of solid wood because of the air space between the sticks. Other things being equal, the larger and more symmetrical the sticks, the greater the quantity of solid wood. A cord of straight, round 6"-10" bolts of pulp wood piled closely may contain 90 to 110 cubic feet of wood, whereas a cord of fuel wood, consisting of split wood and small limbs, loosely piled, may contain as little as 65 or 70 cubic feet. Under average conditions a cord of wood is assumed to contain 80 cubic feet of wood, or 500 board feet, if expressed in the equivalent of sawed lumber. A pile of stove wood cut into 16-inch lengths, 4 feet high and 8 feet long, is often sold as a cord, although actually it contains only one-third of a cord. Cubic Measure— A cubic foot of wood is a block 12"xl2"xl2", or its equiva- lent. A cubic foot of wood could be split into 12 board feet, but if sawed into inch boards with a saw 14" thick (kerf), would actually yield 9.6 board feet. Some volume tables express the contents of a tree in cubic feet, which may be converted into the number of board feet, cords, or products desired. As a unit for expressing the contents of a tree, the cubic foot is more accurate than the cord, because air space, which varies greatly, must always be considered in cord measure. Page eight ii-three CONVERTING FACTORS The following list of wood equivalents or converting factors are those com- monly accepted in this region, and will help anyone determine the approximate con- tents of piles or pieces of timber. Products. Cord (Shingle Bolts) Cord (fuel) Pole (electric) Pole (electric) Tie (standard) . . . . Tie (standard) . . . . Tie (second) Tie (narrow gage) Pole (fence) Post (fence) Equivalent in Assumed Board Feet. Dimensions 600 4' X 4' x8' 500 4' X 4' x8' 60 7"x30' 100 9"x30' 42 7"x9"x8i^' 33 6"x8"x8' 28 6"x7"x8' 21 6"x7"x6' 10 4"x20' 7 6"x 7' The following table indicates approximately the number of average trees of any diameter required to yield one thousand board feet of lumber or one cord of wood. NUMBER OF AVERAGE TREES OF EACH SIZE TO YIELD— Diameter of TreeD.B. H. ONE CORD 1000 BOARD FEET OF LUMBER (Inches) Hardwoods Pine Hardwoods (a) Pine 4" 5" 6" 50 30 20 70 45 30 65 50 7" 8" 9" 15 10 7 20 13 ' 10 50 35 25 35 25 20 10" 11" 12" 5 4 3.5 8 7 6 20 16 12 16 • 13 10 13" 14" 15" 3.0 2.7 2.5 4.5 3.7 3.0 10 9 8 7 6 5 16" 17" 18" 2.0 1.7 1.5 2.5 2.1 1.9 7 6 5 4 3.1 2.6 19" 20" 21" 1.3 1.2 1.0 1.6 1.5 1.4 4 3.5 3.1 2.4 2.1 1.8 22" 23" 24" .9 .8 .7 1.2 1.1 1.0 2.7 23 2.0 1.7 1.6 1.5 Part of table taken from U. S. F. S. (Farmer's Bulletin 1210). (a) For every 1000 feet of lumber, about 2/3 of a cord of wood can also be cut from the tops. Page eighty-four TREE PESTS Ordinarily trees or woods in thrifty condition are little harmed by attacks of insects or fungus diseases. Dead, dying and weakened trees breed injurious pests. Therefore, the best protection is to keep the trees growing vigorously, and remove the dead or weakened individuals. Of course there are exceptions. Occasionally a new insect or disease is in- troduced which does great damage even in healthy timber before control measures can be adopted, or before the trees develop some degree of immunity. The chestnut blight is an example of a new fungus disease which did, and is continuing to do, untold damage to the chestnut trees of this country. The very nature of this fungus growth, which develops beneath the bark of the tree and spreads by means of minute spores carried by the wind, insects, birds and squirrels, makes it impossible for man to control or prevent its spreading. In time the chestnut may develop some im- munity from this fungus, at least enough to survive its attack, but as yet there is no direct evidence that such will be the case. An insect or fungus disease is commonly most injurious to a single tree species. For instance, the chestnut blight affects only chestnuts, the white pine weevil and the blister rust disease attack only the white (5-needle) pines. Defoliating worms like the larvae of the Gipsy moth, recently discovered in Somerset County, sometimes attack all kinds of trees. A new pest recently introduced is most serious for a time until nature has had a chance to reestablish a balance. This she does by developing natural enemies to keep the tree pests in check. Importing plants from foreign lands has been respon- sible for most serious attacks within late years. In the case of shade or ornamental trees most insects and many diseases can be controlled or prevented by spraying or other special care, but in the case of forest trees such intensive measures are usually too expensive to be practical. Remember that thrifty, vigorous trees suffer least from insects or diseases. In- formation regarding the habits, damage and control of injurious insects may be had upon request to the State Entomologist, New Brunswick, N. J. The State Plant Pathologist at New Brunswick will furnish similar information regarding fungus diseases of trees. Specimens of the pests and samples of their work should accom- pany requests for information. FOREST FIRES must be controlled. They are the forests' worst enemy, and unless they are ma- terially reduced in numbers and size the threatened timber shortage will soon be- come a reality. Remember that the first step in Forestry is protection from fire. Do your part and encourage your neighbor to do his. Let's get together and help — "MAKE NEW JERSEY SAFE FOR FORESTRY" Page eighty-five BEERS PRESS, INC., TRENTON, N. J. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS .Uii'iii'iiiiiHtii) 0602 818 621 6 V"^