9 



uneven-aged better hardwoods of seedling origin in which 

 there might be scattered pine and hemlock. 



A better second growth hardwood stand (one in which the 

 better timber trees such as red oak, white ash, sugar maple, 

 yellow birch, etc., predominate) follows the clear cutting of 

 a previous stand of similar composition and is largely of 

 sprout origin or follows the cutting of a pine stand over fifty 

 years of age and is largely of seedling and seedling-sprout 

 origin. As shown by observations on the Harvard Forest, 

 when a pine stand is cut in a seed year (i. e., the autumn or 

 winter following a heavy fall of seed) great numbers of pine 

 seedlings (20,000 to 40,000 per acre) cover the area the fol- 

 lowing spring. Hardwood competition during the early life 

 of the new stand is so strong, however, that it is only in rare 

 instances that a second pine stand results, hardwood succeed- 

 ing the cutting of pine almost without exception. The better ' 

 second growth hardwood type is thus decidedly on the in- 

 crease throughout the region and is growing rapidly in eco- 

 nomic importance. Red oak and white ash are the most 

 important species, replacing to a large extent the dying chest- 

 nut which, once of great commercial importance, will prob- 

 ably be eliminated from future stands by the chestnut blight 

 (Endothia parasitica). Because it most nearly approaches 

 the climax, this type is the easiest to maintain and will be the 

 basis of future forest management on the better soils. Re- 

 production areas on the Harvard Forest show that under 

 simple forest management red oak and white ash may make 

 up as high ap eighty per cent of the total stand. Table I 

 (page 11) will serve to indicate the average composition of 

 natural stands. 



In inferior second growth hardwood stands gray birch, 

 red maple and poplar predominate, the percentage of red 

 maple being dependent upon the amount of soil moisture. 

 This type originates on burns or where pine stands under 

 fifty years of age are cut. If left beyond maturity (twenty- 

 five to thirty years for gray birch) the birch disintegrates and 



