III. METHOD OF WORK ON THE FOREST FLORA 



OF JAVA. 



The following report on Dr. Koorders's method of studying the forest 

 flora of Java is the first note regarding his successful methods that has 

 been published in the English language. The manuscript of the present 

 article was carefully examined by Dr. Koorders before I left Buitenzorg. 

 Dr. Koorders has published several articles on his method of work in 

 "Teysmannia," a periodical published in Batavia, but as his articles are 

 in the Dutch language, and this periodical is accessible to but few Amer- 

 ican forestry students, it is hoped that the present article will prove of 

 importance to those Americans who are interested in the subject of for- 

 estry, and especially to the workers on the problems presented by Philip- 

 pine forestry conditions, which in many respects resemble the conditions 

 in Java. 



Manifestly, the method of conducting forest flora investigations out- 

 lined below has little or no bearing on the forestry conditions in a tem- 

 perate country like the United States, where extensive areas exist prac- 

 tically entirely occupied by a single species and where the individual tree 

 species are few in number. But in a tropical country like the Philippines, 

 where there are to be found no large areas occupied exclusively by a single 

 species and where the number of tree species is very largely developed, 

 it is evident that some special method of conducting the forest flora in- 

 vestigations must be adopted. The forester and lumberman must each 

 take into consideration all the trees in the area in which he is working, 

 whether or not they are of economic importance. It is of the utmost im- 

 portance also that accurate information be compiled to enable us to pre- 

 pare correct guides for the identification of the more important trees in 

 the Archipelago. 



While it may prove impossible to apply Dr. Koorders's method as a 

 whole to Philippine conditions, yet certain features at least can be ad- 

 vantageously applied here. 



After receiving his appointment in the year 1888 to conduct inves- 

 tigations on the forest flora of Java, Dr. Koorders spent several years 

 traveling in all parts of the island, selecting and studying the type vege- 

 tative areas, and collecting data and botanical material for working up 

 the forest flora of the island. Since 1888 the numbered botanical collec- 

 tion of the herbarium of the Java Forestry Bureau, or the H('rl)arium 

 Koordersianum, has reached a total of about forty thousand numbers, 

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