VEGETATION MANAGEMENT — EGLER 313 



especially pines, but also white ash, maples, elms, and birches. They 

 are not open to invasion by the shrubs of ornamental and wildlife 

 value, and so the unnecessary destruction of these by promiscuous 

 spraying becomes of very critical importance. The shrublands, 90 

 percent of them, are relatively "closed" communities, not being invaded 

 by tree seedlings once the original component of trees has been re- 

 moved. Some have lasted 25 years and are still flourishing. 



Blanket-sprayed grasslands have been more difficult to investigate, 

 for understandable reasons. Nevertheless I have inspected the rights- 

 of-way of the three eastern organizations that have most enthusiasti- 

 cally embraced this type of management, and that have been most 

 pleased with it. Let it be admitted that this type of herbicide treat- 

 ment has cut brush control costs markedly below those of the original 

 hand cutting. On the other hand, even if one were to ignore the 

 increased fire hazards and the destroyed wildlife and landscape values, 

 I still consider that the program is technologically short-sighted. The 

 first project, in New Hampshire, is relatively young, but white-pine 

 seedlings are already beginning to invade. The second, in western 

 Pennsylvania, is difficult to evaluate, for its sponsor has usually stopped 

 short of the goal of grassland (or rather, the herbicides have), and 

 is allowing "brush" of increasingly greater heights to develop before 

 respraying. After 9 years of spraying, it is not yet known what species 

 are still being sprayed and whether these are from original root 

 systems, or are seedling reinvaders. They are just "brush." The 

 third, in Virginia, is "successful" in having established about 4,000 

 acres of a vegetation predominantly broom sedge, widely known as 

 the Southeast's most flammable vegetation. Scrub pine is so rapidly 

 invading this community that respraying is planned on a 5-year cycle. 

 (This pine is peculiarly resistant to D-T sprays.) 



THE EXPERIMENTAL AREAS 



The committee on brush control of the American Museum of 

 Natural History has a policy of establishing research and demonstra- 

 tion areas in critical regions and continuing studies of the relative 

 stabilities of various grasslands and shrublands and thus their com- 

 parative costs of maintenance. The studies are being carried out in 

 cooperation with other agencies, and technical reports appear at 

 irregular intervals in various publications. The publications collec- 

 tively represent the American Museum System of Rightsof ways Vege- 

 tation Management. A list follows of the areas already established 

 (fig. 4). The town in which the area is located is of the same name, 

 unless otherwise given. All such lands have already undergone herbi- 

 cidal treatments, either on a commercial or research basis. 



