state and other forests of france. 1x5 



Character and Composition. 

 The crops in the forest may be divided into three kinds, viz. : — 



I. Those in which the standards are too numerous. 

 II. Those with a normal stock of standards 

 III. Those in which the Scots pine stands over broad-leaved 

 species. 



I. The French Government have a very great idea of high 

 forest, and consider it to be the only kind of forest worthy of the 

 State's superintendence. It is partly for this reason, and partly 

 on account of the sand in certain places, that the undergrowth in 

 the State forest is often valueless, and the standards are so close 

 together, that one might easily call it a poorly stocked high 

 forest. The evenness in age of the oak is very striking, and 

 clearly marks those planted after the Napoleonic wars. 



Seeing that the State never plant any underwood, it might 

 probably be more advantageous to work under high forest. On 

 such areas the standards represent about 2240 cubic feet per 

 acre, whereas 1400 cubic feet is sufficient for standards in an 

 ordinary coppice-with-standards Nevertheless, since the Govern- 

 ment require timber, they certainly attain their end, for the oak 

 is in splendid condition, and thriving well. 



The annual increment of the oak in girth, measured at 4 ft. 

 4 in., was 070 in. on fertile soil and 0-40 in. on sand. Among 

 the standards are ash, and white and grey poplar, the annual 

 increment in girth of which was i'48 and i'6o in. 



II. Certain parts of the State forest are splendidly stocked 

 with both coppice and standards, whilst the private forest con- 

 sists of underwood fourteen years of age, and 25 to 30 feet high, 

 with standards quite as good as those of the State forest. Great 

 trouble is taken in the private forest to obtain an even distribu- 

 tion of the standards, stores of one rotation being often trans- 

 planted from one part of the area to another. 



III. Up to between thirty and forty years of age the Scots 

 pine forms a dense forest with little or no undergrowth. After 

 this age, and up to seventy years, the wood gradually gets 

 thinner, and birch makes its appearance as advance growth, 

 together with a few oak. After the heavy thinning at seventy 

 years, followed by planting of oak, the Scots pine and birch 

 must be cut away where they interfere with the oak, so that the 



