SILVICULTURE OF EASTERN FRANCE 517 



hpst one of a clump of sprouts is left. In the case of beech, where two 

 of the sprouts from one root are in good condition and co -dominant, 

 both specimens are reserved. The poorer one of these two is almost 

 invariably cut at the end of the second coppice rotation. For the 

 mountain ash, which develops several sprouts per root, all of the 

 healthy ones are reserved over a second rotation, at the end of which 

 usually all but one arc cut. While the markers are primarily con- 

 cerned with reserving all the best trees, the results in imiformity of 

 spacing are surprisingly good. 



The density of the stands and their composition by sizes before cut- 

 ting are indicated by the following figures At 30 years of age, the 

 coppice, including only stems that have reached a diameter of 1 inch or 

 more at breast height, may run from 1,200 to 7,000 trees per acre. Even 

 assuming that an average of six sprouts grew per stump, a spacing of 

 6 by feet would be indicated. As a matter of fact, about three is the 

 average number per stump ; in other words, the coppice forests are sur- 

 prisingly den^e. They develop complete canopies before they be- 

 come 10 years old. The coppice stems at 30 years old run from less 

 than 1 inch d.b.h. up to 5 or 6 inches for a few of the fastest growing 

 species on good sites. The heights range from 10 to 30 feet. An 

 average tree would be about 3 inches d.b.h. and 20 feet high. 



The standards of 60 years old vary in number from 30 to 150 per 

 acre, depending on the marking policy of. the owner, the quality of the 

 site and consequent condition of the trees. They run from 4 or 5 to 

 10 or 12 inches in diameter and rarely attain a height of over 40 feet. 

 After 30 years' growth in the open, they have usually developed well- 

 rounded and branching crowns and are putting on diameter more than 

 height increment. 



The trees of 90 years and over are comparatively scattered. As a 

 criterion of age in this case, a minimum diameter of about 11 inches 

 d.b.h. is assumed. There may be from 4 to 20 per acre of these trees. 

 Occasionally a beech, oak, or ash may have a diameter of 3 feet and a 

 merchantable length of four 16-foot logs. The trees after the third 

 coppice rotation, when they are still reserved for growth, develop very 

 large crowns and occupy wide areas. 



In considering the interrelation between the coppice and the stand- 

 ards, that is, all the trees more than one rotation old, the reserves have 

 a fairly uniform spacing averaging 20 to 35 feet, trunk to trunk. In 

 other words, each tree that is reserved has full overhead and side light 



