:^U8 THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF WORKING PLANS 



of foretelling future needs and the uncertainty of predicting 

 yields were in contravention to the basic principles of forest 

 management for private ends and that, furthermore, the grow- 

 ing of timber, especially of the larger sizes, is primarily the duty 

 of the state and of the communities. These views coincided 

 with the actual conditions of forest ownership: in the forests 

 owned by the state high forest is the rule with a long rotation;* 

 the forests owned communally are usually coppice with stand- 

 ards; and the forests privately owned, simple coppice. But 

 of late conditions have changed substantially: the increased 

 prices of forest products and the decreased interest rate have 

 made the growing of the larger sizes of timber profitable also 

 for the private owner. 



The chief features of French forest organization are the 

 di\dsion of area, the methods of regulating the cut, the dis- 

 tribution of the periodic cutting areas, and the determination 

 of the allowed a:mual cut. 



Division of Area. — The state forests and the forests under 

 state control are divided into series. These series are adjacent 

 forest areas with uniform market conditions and a sustained 

 yield; they often coincide with the ranger districts (triages). 

 " By a series is understood a portion of the forest intended to 

 be covered by a special plan of utilization and consequently to 

 iurnish a series of annual cutting areas." j 



The series are subdivided into sections. '' By a section is 

 understood a portion of the forest distinct from the rest by the 

 general method of management " (coppice, regular high forest, 

 selection high forest, etc.). Accordingly, the segregation into 

 sections is based, preferably, on the general method of manage- 

 ment (regime) and on the specific silvicultural method of repro- 

 duction (mode de traitement). 



The series are further divided into periodic cutting areas 

 called " afi'ectations." 



The division by silvical units, i.e., stands, is called the par- 



* 140, 160, 200, and even 240 j^ears. 



t Tassy: " Etudes sur ramenagement des forets." 



