THE AGRICULTURAL LAND AVAILABLE FOR FORESTRY 



By C. I. HENDRICKSON, Senior Agricultural Economist, Bureau of Agricultural 



Economics 



CONTENTS 



Agricultural land abandonment in the originally forested regions east of 



the Great Plains 151 



Future requirements for agricultural land 162 



Future abandonment in originally forested regions east of the Great 



Plains 164 



Agricultural land available and to be available for reforestation in the 



originally forested regions east of the Great Plains 166 



Some social and economic problems of farm abandonment 167 



AGRICULTURAL LAND ABANDONMENT IN THE ORIGI- 

 NALLY FORESTED REGIONS EAST OF THE GREAT 

 PLAINS l 



The term " agricultural land" will be used here to refer to the land 

 used for the production of crops and livestock, including the necessary 

 farmsteads, lanes, and farm roads, but excluding the woodland or 

 forested area devoted to timber production. "Abandoned agricul- 

 tural land " refers to land which has definitely gone out of the produc- 

 tion of crops or livestock and has reverted to some less intensive use 

 or is being allowed to lie idle. Land which has gone out of agriculture 

 and into some more intensive use, such as residential or other urban 

 use, is not considered as abandoned agricultural land. 



These terms are used instead of the terms "farm land", "abandoned 

 farms", or "farm abandonment" which are often used without any 

 strict definition of their meaning. "Farm land " usually includes the 

 woodland within the boundaries of farms. The abandonment of a 

 farm effects no change in the major use of the woodland and to include 

 the woodland, as is done when the total farm land is used, exaggerates 

 the amount of agricultural abandonment. 



The term "abandoned farms" is most frequently used to refer to 

 farms on which agricultural operations are no longer being conducted. 

 In some instances it is used to refer to farms which have reverted to 

 the State or other political unit for the nonpayment of taxes; such 

 farms may or may not be operated farms. The extent of agricultural 

 abandonment would be underestimated if only abandoned farms, i. e., 

 those on which agricultural operations are no longer being conducted, 

 were considered. There is, in addition to wholly abandoned farms, 

 land in operated farms which has been abandoned for agricultural use. 



The abandonment of the agricultural land in specific farm units is 

 usually a gradual process. The stages vary from tract to tract. 

 Frequently, especially in the Northeastern and North Central States, 



i This discussion of agricultural abandonment is limited to the originally forested regions of the United 

 States east of the Great Plains. The prairie counties of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Arkansas, 

 Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas are not included. Most of the abandonment of agricultural land has 

 occurred in the originally forested regions east of the Mississippi River, and here abandonment is most 

 significant with reference to reforestation. 



168342 33 vol. 1 11 151 



