'vc>g >Xc/S05oav>:o.\>^.:,\:,',<^xyiv ■^.■*>^:>vt>:>!i<^iiil^tiM^V;iWMS;i>it^>>B;i;yMvtroai^^ 



•^ l^Jorthern Hardwoods in Florida -^ 



ifix" 



The popular impression seems to be that Florida is a laud of 

 swamps, jungles and winter resorts; but there is a great fund of 

 forest wealth within the borders of the state, and hardwoods play 

 a much more important part than is generally considered even in 

 lumber and forestry circles. It has been conservatively estimated 

 that 47 per cent of all the tree species found in the United States 

 occur in Florida and that practically all of this per cent is repre- 

 sented by hardwoods. In fact, the only conifers found there are 

 lotgleaf, shortleaf, scrub and Cuban pines, the southern white and 

 the red cedars, and the cypress. Haedwood Eecoed published an 

 article last fall on the tropical hardwoods of 

 southern Florida. Above this region and 

 including the central part of the peninsula, 

 the Cuban and longleaf pines are almost the 

 only trees found. 



But in northern Florida we tind a great 

 variety of common northern hardwoods find- 

 ing their southern limit here. The Forest 

 Service in Bulletin 83 (Forest Eesources of 

 the World) estimates that out of a total 

 land area of 3.5,000,000 acres, only 20,000,000 

 acres of 57 per cent is forested. Recent in- 

 vestigations, however, have shown that a 

 considerably larger per cent, probably 75 

 per cent, is now classed as being covered by 

 some kind of forest growth. 



The principal lumber product of the state 

 is, of course, yellow pine (including long- 

 leaf, Cuban and shortleaf pines) and cypress. 

 These are being cut over so rapidly that in 

 recent years considerable attention has been 

 paid to the available hardwood supply. 

 This situation is largely induced by the fact 

 that this region is somewhat removed from 

 the large sources of the hardwood supply, 

 such as the southern .Appalachians, Ohio val- 

 le}' and the lower Mississippi 

 valley, and every advantage is 

 being taken of the local sup- 

 ply to meet the demands of 

 furniture, cooperage, veneer 

 and the local wood-using in- 

 dustries that demand hard- 

 woods in their products. 



This demand is seen in the 

 Forest Service statistics of 

 average prices secured for the 

 different species of hardwoods 

 cut in Florida. It is a notable 

 and interesting fact that oak, 

 red gum, hickory, ash and 

 tupelo bring better average 

 wholesale prices at the mill in 

 Florida than in any of the important hardwood producing states. 

 For example, oak in 1910 brought an average of $27 per thousand at 

 the mill, red gum $18.50, hickory $39.47, ash $30.75 and tupelo 

 $16.92. Florida is not an important hardwood state from the view- 

 point of large production, but a very great variety of woods is cut 

 there and they are all in strong demand as is evidenced by the 

 above prices. As compared with these, the average prices se- 

 cured for the same hardwoods in one of our great hardwood states, 

 Kentucky, are as follows: Oak $17.93, red gum $12.37, hickory 

 $22.47, ash $21.65 and tupelo $12.50. Although there may be 

 some slight inaccuracies in these statistics, yet they could not 

 account for the uniformly wide discrepancies as indicated above. 

 To one accustomed to the typical northern hardwoods such as 

 hard maple, beech, black birch, elm, hickory, ash, etc., it is a sur- 



TYI'ICAI. SW.VMP 

 \V.\TEI! HICKORY 

 GUM AXD 



R.iKTIXf; I.I II : 



HI iiii; MILL. 

 .NORTH ERX 



prise to find the same trees growing to good merchantable size and 

 height in such a southern climate. In fact, nearly all of the great 

 variety of important hardwoods that occur throughout the eastern 

 United States may be found in northern Florida. 



The topography in part of this section is somewhat hilly for the 

 southern coastal plain, and elevations of around five hundred feet 

 above sea level are quite common. On these rolling slopes one 

 finds a great variety of oaks, such as the red, white, post, Spanish, 

 cow, lii-e and black oaks along with two of our common northern 

 hickories (Hicoria alba and glabra). But the greatest variety of 

 hardwoods is found along the stream bot- 

 toms and along the swampy places below 

 where the longleaf pine grows. In com- 

 pany with the cypress, the water hickory, 

 tupelo and water gums, water oak, willow 

 oak, sweet bay and magnolia are the com- 

 mon trees. On the less moist situations, one 

 finds a great variety of trees, the principal 

 ones being red gum, yellow poplar, hard 

 and soft maples, beech, Florida basswood, 

 black walnut, elm, hackberry, sycamore, 

 cucumber, honey locust, holly, persimmon, 

 white, red. green and water ashes, hack- 

 \\. ', , f^F^H berrj', black and river birches, Cottonwood 

 Al^'^aW^^H ^^'^ sourwood. 



All of the trees mentioned above are 

 logged and utilized for poles, jjosts, ties 

 and similar purposes. Besides the above 

 list there are a great number of species 

 which reach commercial size, such as the 

 willows, chinquapin, red mulberry, horn- 

 beam, sassafras and a great variety of oaks. 

 In fact, there are known to be at least 

 fifteen separate species of oak in this lim- 

 ited region. 

 The principal trees represented in the lum- 

 ber cut in order of quantity 

 are as follows: Yellow poplar, 

 hickory, oak, cottonwood, ash, 

 tupelo gum, red gum and maple. 

 This list shows that the prin- 

 cipal available trees are also 

 some of our most valuable 

 hardwoods. The heaviest 

 stands in Florida are found in 

 the swamps and along the 

 stream courses. The yellow 

 pine stands run from only 

 about 3,000 to 12,000 board 

 feet per acre with an average 

 of about 5,000, whereas stands 

 up to 50,000 board feet per acre 

 are common with the hard 

 woods and cypress. However, the average is around 15,000 feet 

 per acre. Yellow pine stnmpage runs around $4 per thousand, 

 c.vpress $4.50 to $6, and hardwoods from .$4 to $10, depending on 

 species and location. 



In lumbering, advantage is frequently taken of the stream 

 courses in which to float the logs to the mill. As stated above, 

 most of the hardwoods lie along the streams or in association with 

 the cypress so that water transportation is the most feasible means 

 of getting the logs out. Railroad logging is the prevailing method 

 used with the yellow pine, and some of the hardwoods that grow 

 along the smaller streams on the pine barrens are transported on 

 the ears. Instead of the common loose driving, rafting is employed 

 to get out the cypress and hardwoods. A large raft such as is 

 shown in the accompanying illustration is the usual type. Owing 



— SB- 



GROWTH. Ttl'i;c.( 



CYPRESS. \V.\TER 

 RED GUM. 



CUOCTAWHATCHEE RIVER. 

 FLORIDA. 



