12 BULLETIN 496, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



possible influence of these other factors. It is obviously impossible 

 to arrive at any legitimate conclusion concerning the best method 

 of brush disposal by limiting the discussion to the pathological side 

 of the question as seen in the rotting of the brush itself. The fire 

 hazard, as it seems to exist in Arkansas, is therefore briefly discussed 

 in connection with brush disposal from the pathological viewpoint. 



In the Arkansas National Forest about 3 to 5 white-oak trees are 

 felled to the acre, and about 5 to 10 pine trees to the acre. In the 

 Ozark National Forest the proportion of white-oak trees felled is 

 somewhat greater, running probably from 5 to 10 trees to the acre, 

 while there is but very little pine cut on this forest. This means 

 that on any area in either of these two National Forests where timber 

 is being cut, especially white oak, a much greater percentage of 

 standing trees of all sizes, including those below the merchantable 

 diameter limit, is left than is cut. This standing timber will add its 

 annual quota of fallen leaves to the ground cover, irrespective of 

 what method of brush disposal is followed. The amount of litter in 

 the shape of slash, on account of the small number of trees cut per 

 acre, in many cases will not make fires more likely to start or prevent 

 their control, since there will always be a sufficient quantity of leaf 

 litter and underbrush present to make a good ground fire, even if 

 there be no slash on the ground. If the deciduous trees are cut with 

 the leaves on them the amount of leaf litter will not be increased, 

 since these leaves would fall to the ground in the autumn even if the 

 trees were not cut; in fact, there would really be less leaf litter on 

 the ground, because the leaves persist on the felled tree tops and 

 branches from one to three years. 



There is also this fact to be borne in mind, that oak trees cut from 

 November to March, inclusive, are leafless or practically so, and the 

 brush from them will not materially increase the fire hazard unless 

 it is piled. 



In 1912 and 1913 the writer visited areas in the Ozark National 

 Forest which were then being logged. In the studies made in 1915, 

 only two to three years later, many of these areas had been burned 

 over. It can probably be said truthfully that the greater portion of 

 the Ozark National Forest, except about 100,000 acres in the middle 

 of the central division, will be burned over at least once within a 

 period of five years, and often within a much shorter interval. It 

 seems, therefore, that whatever system of brush disposal is followed 

 in this forest should take into consideration the certainty of fire as 

 well as the rotting of the brush. 



In the Arkansas National Forest many areas are not burned over 

 more than once in every 20 years. Under such conditions the rot- 

 ting of the brush is the main factor to be considered. 



