80 NATURAL REGENERATION 



1. Cut clear strips at right angles to the wind and remove the stumps. 

 Clear the ground cover and harrow. Sow artificially with protection of 

 branches. If seeding does not take place within a few years plant at 

 once before the ground cover comes back. Never wait more than five 

 years. 



2. Proceed as in the case of the system described above, but with the 

 reservation of seed trees. 



Of the two methods, the one without seed trees is probably preferable. 

 The product would sell better; there would be no windfall; insect damage 

 would be lessened; with the surface completely cleared, temporary nur- 

 series would be more conveniently established where planting was neces- 

 sary; fencing would be less costly; there would be no damage to young 

 stock in the final fellings. 



Shelterwood for Fir. In order to secure fir regeneration it is necessary 

 to have a deep fresh soil and a humid climate; the chemical composition is 

 less important. In order that fir seedlings may develop properly it is neces- 

 sary to preserve the shelter of the cover stand as a protection against dry- 

 ing out and against spring frosts. It is also necessary to have a thick humus 

 cover and a protection against summer drought and weeds. The seedlings 

 establish themselves under the immediate shelter of the seed trees. In 

 every case the young seedlings develop naturally during the first five to 

 ten years under the cover of the mother stand. Therefore, any system 

 of clear felling is out of the question, but the shelterwood method may be 

 successfully used. In fir stands advance growth almost always exists, 

 therefore the seed felling is really a light secondary felling, since its object 

 is to allow this advance growth to develop. This first secondary felling 

 or seed felling is made very conservative so as to remove the cover gradu- 

 ally and not to expose the seedlings to drying out or to permit weeds to 

 take possession of the soil. Even if suppressed for a number of years, fir 

 seedlings have the ability to develop into good trees after the cover has 

 been removed. The other secondary fellings which follow should also be 

 "dark," since a gradual removal of the cover is essential. On the other 

 hand, the final felling should always be complete on account of the danger 

 from windfall and because of the damage which results to the old isolated 

 trees from drying out. De Gail has shown (see p. 75) that because of 

 windfall and the consequent irregularity of the stand (and derangement 

 of working plans) the shelterwood system for fir is fast proving unsuccess- 

 ful. An excellent illustration of the derangement of working plan yields 

 by windfall is in the forest of Gerardmer (Vosges). On September 1, 

 1908, the inspector reported that, in the first, third, fourth, sixth, seventh, 

 and eighth working circles, which had a prescribed annual yield of 11,971 

 cubic meters, on account of tremendous windfalls 46,378 cubic meters, or 

 the yield for almost four years, had already been cut. As a result of the 



