SIMPLE COPPICE 



93 



does not sprout from the stump at all but produces root suckers in 

 abundance. These qualities must always be considered. The chief 

 species found in French coppice stands are locust, poplar, maple, oak, 

 beech, ash, elm, alder, birch, and hornbeam. In a great many localities it 

 is becoming very popular to introduce conifers into the coppice stand 

 with the idea of converting them gradually into high forest and in order 

 to have the conifers increase the production of timber. Maritime pine 

 and aleppo pine are also being introduced in coppice stands in the south 

 of France. 



The following official figures give an idea of the relative yield of 

 timber and fuel from simple coppice, coppice-under-standards, and high 

 forest : 



Simple Coppice. The important technique is to cut at the right 

 season and to cut smooth, sloping stumps close to the ground. In 

 France the season to cut oak is from March to May; for hornbeam, 

 March to April; for birch, November to December. August is the 

 most unfavorable month in which to cut coppice, and on fire lines it is 

 often of value to cut in August so as to weaken and decrease the sprout- 

 ing. It is of interest that there are two variations to the rule of cutting 

 low stumps: (a) In holm-oak stands where the ground is dry and the 

 climate hot, the stump may be cut 2 inches below the ground to increase 

 sprouting; (6) .on wet ground, where there is often standing water (as 

 in the Sologne) the stump may be cut 5 to 8 inches above the ground. 

 This method would be followed with willow along the river beds. To 

 maintain coppice in good condition the better species, such as oak, must 

 be occasionally planted or sown in the blanks; these seedlings must be 

 usually protected from suppression by the more rapidly growing sprouts. 

 When the coppice rotation is 25 years or more one thinning, about 8 

 years before the end of the rotation, is necessary for the following reasons: 

 The growth of the coppice will be increased; the first-year standards will 

 endure isolation better; valuable species, and especially seedlings, can be 

 assisted by cutting weed species which are competing with them; coppice 

 suppressing the lower branches of valuable reserves, which would start 

 rot, can be cut out; and short lived species can be removed before they die. 



