PLANT WORLD FOR SEPTEMBER, 1919, WAS ISSUED MARCH 11, 1920 



NATIVE VEGETATION AS A CRITERION OF SITE 1 



CLARENCE F. KORSTIAN 



United States Forest Service, Ogden, Utah 



The literature 2 of the past two years contains a number of 

 discussions of methods of site determination, site classification 

 and arguments for standardization. The arguments advanced in 

 favor of the standardization of site classification are indeed very 

 timely, since there is no method of site determination or classi- 

 fication in common use in North America at the present time. 

 Some form of standard site classification is very desirable for 

 scientific work, in the preparation of accurate forest descriptions 

 and in forest regulation. However, as was evidenced by a dis- 

 cussion of this subject at a meeting of forest investigators held 

 in Washington, D. C, during the winter of 1917, there seems to 

 be a wide difference of opinion as to the basis for such a standard 

 classification. 



A satisfactory and convenient method of site quality deter- 

 mination is essential in the preparation of yield tables since the 

 data on the yield capacity of the various sites are brought to- 

 gether in yield tables of comparable form. In fact, all volume, 

 growth and yield data should be referred to site conditions. 



1 Delivered before the Society of American Foresters, at Pittsburgh, Pa., 

 January 1, 1918. Contribution to a symposium on site classification; other 

 subsequent papers being: 



Bates, Carlos G. Concerning site. Jour, of Forestry, 16: 383-388, 1918. 

 Frothingham, E. H. Height growth as a key to site. Jour, of Forestry, 

 16:754-760, 1918. 



Roth, Filibert. Another word on site. Jour, of Forestry, 16: 749-753, 1918. 



2 Roth, Filibert. Concerning site. Forestry Quarterly, 14: 3-13, 1916. 

 Recknagel, A. B. What about sites? Proc. Soc. Amer. Foresters, 11: 441- 



443, 1916. 



Spring, Samuel N. Site and site classes. Jour, of Forestry, 15: 102-103, 

 1917. 



Watson, Russell. Site determination, classification, and application. Jour, 

 of Forestry, 15: 552-563, 1917. 



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THE PLANT WORLD, VOL. 12, NO. 9 

 SEPTEMBER, 1919 



