History of Forest Ecology 409 



lehre, which after revision appeared again in 1911 in its third 

 edition as Bodenkunde. The science of the soil and its relation to 

 forest trees is here elaborated in such a manner that the book has 

 become an indispensable asset to the silviculturist and the forest 

 ecologist. 



The Beginning of Forestry Investigations and the Establishment of 

 Forest Experiment Stations 



The application of the fundamental sciences like biology, physics 

 and chemistry to the theory and practice of silviculture was only 

 the first step in the development of forest ecology. The beginning 

 of forestry investigations and the establishment of forest experiment 

 stations were the final steps which put forest ecology upon a firm 

 and rational basis. 



The need for exact investigations in forestry made itself felt 

 very early. Probably the first suggestions for these were contained 

 in the instructions for the investigation of the growth of coppice 

 forests by Reaumur in 1713. Early in the 19th century investiga- 

 tions were for the first time carried out by G. L. Hartig upon the 

 durability of wood and by Hundeshagen upon the influence of the 

 removal of forest litter. But it was early recognized that isolated 

 investigators with limited means could accomplish little. As early 

 as 1826, Wedekind, inspired by the work of Hundeshagen, proposed 

 an organization in the form of a committee whose business it should 

 be to gather existing data and to review and organize it. Within 

 the next decade experiments were instituted in the field of forest 

 regulation. 



In numerous meetings of German Foresters in 1838 and 1839 

 suggestions were made that the various forest administrations 

 should take it upon themselves to promote the investigative phase 

 of forestry. Perhaps the most enthusiastic of these was C. Heyer 

 who, in a meeting in 1845, proposed the founding of an organization 

 for the promotion of forest statics. He received instructions at 

 this meeting to formulate a plan for such an organization. In 1 846, 

 he laid before a similar meeting his Introduction to Investigations in 

 Forest Statics, which contains the first explicit plan for the organi- 

 zation of forest investigations. Due, however, to a quibbling 

 among ofificials, this plan was never put into effect. In 1857, G. 

 Heyer, Faustmann and Baur emphasized again the need for investi- 

 gations in forest statics, while, in 1861 , Ebermayer recommended the 

 organization of forest experiment stations. 



