120 ANNUAL REPORT OF 



c. The third group comprises the so-called "Grinden," that is to say the 

 highest parts of the ridges, which are mostly level and have a tendency to boggi- 

 ness. They are covered by a dense growth of bilberry and heather, and are inca- 

 pable of producing more than a stunted tree growth, which yields only a scanty 

 quantity of firewood, frequently not covering the price of preparing it; hence 

 financial considerations are entirely out of the question, the areas being protected 

 merely for the sake of preserving some cover on the hill tops. The group com- 

 prises all parts which produce an annual increment per acre of 7 cubic feet and 

 under; they amount to 10 per cent of the total area. 



In so far as the management aims at the production of valuable material, and at 

 favorable financial results as regards outlay for artificial regeneration (where 

 natural regeneration has failed), for improvement, tending, etc., only the areas in 

 the first group can be considered. But in the treatment of those forests which 

 pertain to the principal mountain region of the Black Forest, representing a certain 

 drainage area, the task of forestry goes beyond mere financial considerations. It 

 has in fact been recognized that it is necessary to keep areas of this class well 

 wooded for the sake of a proper husbanding of the water supply in the streams. 

 Accepting this further task, the forest administration has endeavored, during the 

 last 50 years, to afforest the poorly stocked and frequently entirely bare areas at 

 the higher elevations of the Bunter Sandstein region. In so far as the cultural 

 operations were confined to the boulder drifts of the Bunter Sandstein, they were 

 moderately successful, but the cultural attempts made in the "Grinden" prior to 

 1870 turned out failures. Since 1873 the cultural operations in the Grinden pre- 

 sent a more hopeful aspect, owing to the experience gained by former failures, and 

 it seems desirable to continue them in the future. 



The working plan deals in detail only with the forest area subjected to intensive 

 management, but the group worked under the selection system has also been 

 adequately noticed in the general provisions. 



The working plan lays special stress upon the execution of improvement fellings, 

 more particularly the removal of cancerous silver firs. For this purpose the ordin- 

 ary thinnings are utilized; but over and above these, cancerous trees must also be 

 removed from the old woods, where otherwise no further thinnings would be re- 

 quired. In regeneration fellings the trees to fall first under the axe must be those 

 attacked by cancer. Even then not nearly all cancerous trees can be removed 

 during the next ten years. This fact teaches the management that in future a sharp 

 attack must be made on all cancerous trees at the time of the first and second thin- 

 nings, even if a temporary interruption of the canopy should thereby be caused. 

 On the rich deep soils of the granite area, which are almost exclusively concerned 

 in these remarks, even an interruption of the canopy extending over a somewhat 

 lengthy period would not be a misfortune, and preferable to the maintenance of a 

 full canopy consisting to a considerable extent of cancerous trees. The existence 

 of enormous quantities of such trees on the granite area was one of the reasons 

 which led to the yield being fixed at its present rate. 



5. "Utilization. 



a. Yield of Major Produce. The actual yield during the last 40 years has been- 

 as follows: 



