The Natural Regeneration of Forests. 27 



the Neuessing group system, as seen in Neuessinger forest, near 

 Kelheim, Bavaria, I will endeavour to describe to you. The 

 forest is growing on chalky soil. The object of management is 

 to maintain a crop of 70 per cent, spruce, 20 per cent, silver fir, 

 and 10 per cent, beech. It is not intended that every compart- 

 ment should contain these species in the above percentage, but 

 that these proportions should be maintained in the forest as a 

 whole. Portions of the forest are still in the first stages of 

 regeneration, while in some compartments the regeneration has 

 been completed. Where the mature crop is still standing, the 

 trees are from 96 to 120 years of age. The average number of 

 stems per acre is 300, and the average cubic content 6000 quarter 

 girth cubic feet per acre. The first step in the regeneration of 

 this crop is to cut out the largest, coarsest, and diseased stems, or 

 stems of undesirable species, from the entire compartment. This 

 is done so that the parent trees of the future crop shall be of the 

 very best quality ; that by the opening of the canopy the soil may 

 be improved, and that the crcwns of the surrounding trees may 

 be stimulated to seed production. In many parts of the forest 

 seedling trees, especially silver fir, are to be seen springing up 

 under the mature crop, and often forming quite thick groups. 

 These are known as "advance growth," and should always be 

 cleared, as they never regain their natural vigour through being 

 so long suppressed. One tree, of which I counted the annual 

 growths, showed an age of almost 50 years. Its height was less 

 than six feet. After this preparatory felling and clearing of 

 " advance growth " the forest is allowed to rest for a vear or two, 

 during which young seedlings make tjieir appearance, especiallv 

 if a full seed year occur, on the spots opened up by the removal 

 of stems. The most promising and most convenient of these 

 patches of seedlings are chosen as centres round which the 

 regeneration groups are to be formed. In order, however, to 

 a\X)id damage in the later stages of the work, the highest .spots 

 are regenerated first, and thus the removal of the mature 

 timber from these parts is almost completed before the 

 regeneration in the lower parts has commenced. Round the 

 selected centres the first clear cutting is made by remnving the 

 stems so as to clear circles, the diameters of which are equal to 

 half the height of the mature crop. As far as possible, these 

 groups are regenerated pure, though the .spruce and silver fir do 



