Gennin<ition of Longleaf Pine 537 



Seedling Growth: That Longleaf pine seedlings are capable of 

 making a much better growth than that indicated by this plot 

 is shown by the accompanying photographs. Figure 1 is a view 

 taken on the plot, the small black spots representing the seedHngs. 

 Figure 2 shows a group of seedlings of the same age which 

 average two feet and over high. They come from the same 

 region, but grew on an open field and never had to contend with 

 fire. The field was abandoned some fifteen years before and 

 was well turfed before the seed fell. While soil and moisture 

 conditions may have been slightly better in this field than in the 

 old turpentine orchard where the other photograph was taken, 

 they could not possibly have been sufficiently so to account alone 

 for the great difiference in size. Assuming even as much as one- 

 half the height growth shown in Figure 3 to be due to superior 

 soil and moisture conditions, it is evident that fire has retarded 

 the height growth of the seedlings shown in Figure 1 more than 

 50 per cent. 



A group of 15-year-old Longleaf pine saplings grown on an old 

 field averaged 3 inches in diameter and 20 feet in height. This 

 shows that Longleaf pine can make a very rapid growth when 

 conditions are in its favor. 



Summary: The conclusions from the data here presented may 

 be summarized briefly as follows: (1) Longfeal pine seeds are 

 not apt to be carried more than 150 feet from the seed trees 

 which stand in the woods; (2) Longleaf pine seeds will not 

 germinate on a heavy litter; (3) germination takes place best on 

 mineral soil from which the litter has been burned; (4) most of 

 the seedlings perish from fire, drought or shade before the end 

 of the first season; (5) seedlings one year old will often with- 

 stand surface fires where the litter is only the accumulation of 

 a single year; (6) with soil, moisture and light conditions favor- 

 able Longleaf pine seedlings can withstand annual fires after 

 their first season for at least ten years and may be able to with- 

 stand them many years more; (7) such fires, however, retard 

 their height growth at least 50% for the first decade. 



