212 FIRST BOOK OF FORESTRY 



The broad-leaved or hardwood forests occupying the 

 greater portion of the eastern United States may be divided 

 into a southern and a northern half. The former extends 

 from New England to Missouri, and is characterized by 

 the fact that, almost everywhere, the hardwood forest is 

 dotted conspicuously by pine ; the part north and west of 

 the Alleghenies is practically without this mixture. On 

 the whole, this great hardwood forest may be called an 

 oak forest with a variable mixture of chestnut, hickory, 

 yellow poplar, el in, ash, beech, and other broad-leaved 

 trees. At its northern limit the oaks give way to birch, 

 and at its southern to pine. 



Both the northern and southern belts of conifers are to 

 this day large, almost unbroken forests, with compara- 

 tively little settlement. It is in the great hardwood 

 region of our country that a goodly share of the forest 

 has made way for the plow and that the greater part of 

 our people live. 



The coniferous forests of the Rocky Mountain ranges, 

 composed mostly of yellow pine, red fir, and spruce, are 

 interrupted by numerous prairies and bare lands, and thus 

 cover but part of these mountains. 



The forests of the Pacific coast region are among the 

 most remarkable forests in the world. Those of Cali- 

 fornia are largely made up of gigantic redwoods, red fir, 

 and pine, while those of Oregon and Washington are 

 chiefly forests of red fir, hemlock, cedar, and balsam. 



