20 PRELIMINARY STUDY OF 



eastern parts of Sevier, Blount, and Monroe Counties. The cut- 

 over lands are covered by irregular, uneven-aged stands of defective 

 and suppressed old trees mixed with young growth. Even-aged, 

 second-growth forests are found only in the vicinity of old iron fur- 

 naces or on old fields where clear cutting took place. The most im- 

 portant commercial timbers are yellow poplar, hemlock, and chest- 

 nut, although a great variety of valuable hardwoods as well as 

 white pine and spruce are also found. Altitude and exposure are 

 of great importance in determining the character of the forest. 

 Two broad types may be distinguished coves and slopes. While 

 the slope type comprises a much larger proportion of the territory, 

 the coves are of greater commercial importance, since they contain 

 by far the heavier stands and better quality of timber. A survey 

 of a tract of 110,000 acres in Polk and Monroe Counties shows 12 

 per cent of the total area to be cove land. 



Coves. The cove type includes the sheltered belts along drain- 

 age lines and the hollows at headwaters of creeks and branches. 

 The soil is deep and fertile, with a constant and even supply of 

 moisture. Yellow poplar and hemlock are the characteristic trees 

 of the type, the former comprising from 3 to 10 per cent of the stand 

 and the latter from 25 to 50 per cent. The associated species in- 

 clude chestnut, birch, basswood, hickory, white pine, maple, red 

 and white oaks, buckeye, and cherry. At the higher elevations the 

 proportion of hemlock, birch, maple, and cherry increases at the 

 expense of yellow poplar, oak, and chestnut. Yellow poplar, chest- 

 nut, and white pine occur as dominant trees singly or in small 

 groups, their crowns reaching above the tops of the other trees. 

 In virgin stands the ground is usually covered with a deep humus 

 and a good accumulation of litter, since ground fires are not fre- 

 quent in this type because of the moisture. A scattering under- 

 growth is usually found, chiefly of hornbeam, holly, beech, dogwood, 

 and witch hazel. Reproduction of oak and chestnut takes place 

 where light is admitted through openings in the crown cover ; while 

 scattered seedlings of the more tolerant trees, such as hemlock, 

 birch, basswood, beech, and maple, are found here and there under 

 the older trees. Because of the fertility of the soil and the preva- 

 lence of a good moisture supply, the trees are of good form, with 

 long, straight trunks, clear of branches to a great height. Virgin 

 stands in this type will average from 8,000 to 10,000 board feet to 

 the acre over extensive areas, while individual acres will, in some 

 cases, yield from 20,000 to 35,000 feet. Thrifty second-growth 



