174 



A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



PKESENT TIMBER SUPPLIES 

 VOLUME AND DISTRIBUTION 



SAW TIMBER 



Saw timber deserves first attention. Of the broad classes of forest 

 growth, saw timber is in greatest demand, being required for lumber, 

 crossties, veneer, and similar sawed or sliced products. The long 

 periods required in its production, moreover, aggravate the problems 

 of those attempting to apply systematic forest land management, 

 particularly in the case of private owners. 



The present estimate of saw timber on commercial forest land in 

 the United States is 1,668 billion board feet (board foot estimates 



New England 



Middle Atlantic.. 



Lake.., 



Central 



South 



Pacific Coast. 



N. Rocky M+ 



S. Rocky Mt 



200 400 600 800 1000 



Billion Feet Board Measure 



Softwoods 



Hardwoods 



FIGURE 1. Softwood and hardwood saw-timber stands of the United States by regions. 



based on lumber tally). (Table 1 and figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4.) Of this, 

 1,346 billion board feet, or 80 percent, is old growth and represents the 

 remainder of the original stands that have been crudely estimated as 

 at least 5,200 billion board feet. The original forest growth on pos- 

 sibly 150 million acres was destroyed in clearing the land for agricul- 

 ture in the early days. The volume of old growth cut for lumber 

 since those early days has been estimated at 1,650 billion board feet. 

 Cuttings for other purposes and continuous losses through fire, disease, 

 and insects have taken the rest. Old growth characteristically two 

 or three hundred, often several hundred years old still dominates 

 the lumber market, but its days are numbered. It is doubtful that 

 man will ever grow, as Nature has grown, extensive crops of fully 

 mature trees, such as will furnish the strong and durable timbers of 

 large dimensions and the high proportion of clear products that have 

 commanded the best markets in the past and given lumber its high 

 rank as a valuable construction material. 



