LITTLE TENNESSEE EIVER BASIN. " 205 



Reproduction. Most of the hard woods reproduce freely and j^oung seedlings 

 are abundant wherever the light conditions are suitable. Small trees of oak and 

 ash and larger ones of chestnut sprout from the stump after cutting. Many 

 hemlock seedlings are to be seen on logs and in the moss in the hemlock forest. 

 These will soon die, however, for want of light. 



Second growth..- In many places where the forest has been culled there are 

 thickets of thrifty saplings of oak, ash, poplar, and birch which will take the 

 place of the mature timber as it is cut. 



Undergrowth. In many places, especially on damp north slopes, under hem- 

 lock, birch, and red oak, there is a growth of laurel. 



Hate of growth. Accretion is good, especially of vigorous young trees and 

 in culled and cut-over woodland. It is very slow in old hemlocks and in timber 

 on the upper slopes and crests. 



Water poiver. The amount of available power is limited. 



Ownership. The lower part of the basin and the prong known as Little 

 Chogee are owned by resident citizens. There are 13 families on the creek. 



Prices of land. Forest land sells at $2 to $4 an acre; farming land, at $5 to 

 $20 an acre. 



BURNIXGTOWN CREEK BASIN (mACON COUNTY, N. c). 



Area. Total, 25 square miles; cleared, 4 square miles; wooded, 21 square 

 miles; severely burned, small. 



Surface. The surface of the lower part of the basin is low, rounded hills, 

 broken in places by low mountains; above it is a long, narrow valle}^ between 

 mountains with steep slopes. There are few large tributaries to the main stream. 

 The creek heads in the Burningtown Mountains and flows north into Tennessee 

 River. The basin is about 12 miles long. 



Soil. The soil is of line-grained loams and sandy loams, usually gray, over 

 limited areas, derived from metamorphosed sandstone, quartzite, pyrophillite, and 

 mica schist. Much of it is badly worn from long cultivation, and it is often 

 thin and gullied on steep slopes. About one-fourth of the cultivated area is 

 alluvial. 



Humus and litter. The leaf mold is thin or entirely wanting on south slopes 

 and on the lower hills. There is an excellent ground cover, however, on most of 

 the north slopes and in the hollows, especially at high elevations. 



Agricultural value. The sandy bottom lands produce well in corn, grass, and 

 small grain, where they are not too thoroughly drained. Some upland farms at 

 a low elevation have been abandoned, and the old fields are thickly set in broom 

 grass, which has also sodded many of the sandier bottoms. Apples do well at a 



