SILVICULTURAL PROBLEMS IN" PKN XSVLVAXIA 503 



report of the Committee of Forest Terminology of the Society of 

 American Foresters ' silviculture is defined as the art of producing and 

 tending a forest, or as the application of the knowledge of silvics in 

 the treatment of a forest. 



These definitions seem to lead to the conclusion that silviculture is 

 an art, which functions primarily in operations, methods, systems, 

 practices, and techniques ; and only by their proper development and 

 rational application may we hope to make and maintain productive, 

 sanitary, and attractive forest stands. 



Silviculture in Pennsylvania, in spite of its great age, still appears 

 juvenile and weak. Just as the white pine under the oppression of 

 scrub oak, aspen, and fire cherry, struggles for an existence or waits 

 for a chance to grow, so silviculture has been waiting for the time 

 when economic conditions and public sentiment would favor its normal 

 development. This time appears to be at hand in Pennsylvania, and if 

 nourished and handled properly and given a full chance to develop, it 

 will soon become a strong, practical, and effective branch of forestry. 

 But in order to accomplish this, it will be necessary to change its food. 

 We have been trying to bring it up largely on an imported diet, and 

 it has not been thriving. First we tried to adopt the methods and 

 techniques used in foreign countries, then an attempt was made to 

 adapt them, and now that both have been found wanting, we have been 

 compelled to strike out anew and begin the development of original 

 studies which will aid in the formulation of practical and economical 

 procedures. 



The urgent need of silviculture to-day is more and better information 

 about the fundamentals of tree growth and the essentials of forest 

 crop production. Better information implies close and continuous 

 observations and original studies in the locality where the unsolved 

 problems are at hand. Good silviculture recognizes the boundaries of 

 no State or country, and does not place an undue value upon the 

 opinion of any forester, however eminent he may be. The best silvi- 

 cultural methods are often developed and used by practicing foresters 

 located in remote regions, where they may employ original methods 

 without fear of official censure. It is, however, unfortunate for the 

 profession that their accomplishments are usually unheralded and often 

 die with them. i)r. Fcrnow '' summarizes this subject well and states 



"JOURNAT, 01- FoRnSTRV : \'oI. X\', Xo. 1. 



" Fernow. B. E. : Jol'kn.m, of Forf.strv. \'o1. X\'II, Xo. 7, page SS2. 



