266 THE PRINCIPLES OF HANDLING WOODLANDS 



amount of old timber, but it has also retarded the repro- 

 duction of the forest by killing off young growth and 

 seedlings in their tender stage. Deliberate burning of 

 the litter as a protective measure is justified only under 

 special conditions and only on selected areas. The con- 

 siderations bearing on the use of fire in this way are: 



1. It should never be used except where absolute 

 fire prevention cannot be assured, and there is real danger 

 resulting from heavy leaf litter. 



2. It should be used only in stands in which there 

 is no reproduction that it is desired to conserve. 



3. It should be used only where the benefit in fire 

 protection more than offsets the injury to the soil, result- 

 ing from repeated burning. 



4. It should be used only with very fire-resistant 

 species. 



5. It should be used only when the trees are old 

 and large enough to have developed the corky bark 

 necessary for resistance to the heat of the fires. 



6. It should be used only when the fire can be con- 

 trolled. 



The burning is done best in early spring, when the 

 loose litter is dry but the ground below is damp, the 

 purpose being to burn only the upper litter. 



In many places it is very difficult to control the burn- 

 ing without the use of fire-lines. A tract divided by 

 roads and paths into small blocks presents a simple prob- 

 lem, for each block may be burned separately, and there 

 is no danger of the development of a fire too large to 



