516 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



are of no benefit, and if left they may feed a forest fire 

 that will cause severe injuries to the Utter trees. In 

 addition to the sickly trees, some of those with smaller 

 crowns that have not quite reached the general level of the 

 >tand should be removed to give the adjoining trees room 

 to spread their tops a little further in the sunlight. Occa- 

 sionally there will be found a tree which is much taller 

 and larger than sur- 

 rounding trees and 

 rapidly o v er top p in g 

 them : by cutting 

 (new greedy individ- 

 uals the thinning is 

 made to yield more 

 valuable material and 

 the conditions of 

 growth for the re- 

 maining trees are 

 equalized. If the 

 young forest is 

 dense, it may be 

 necessary to remove 

 half or even two- 

 thirds of the aver- 

 age-sized trees in 

 order to give the 

 remainder sufficient 

 space for profitable 

 growth. Before 

 healthy trees are 

 marked for cutting, 

 the defective, 

 crooked, forked or 

 knotty trees and 

 those which show- 

 fungus fruiting 

 bodies or insect work 

 should be taken out. 

 If soil and climatic 

 conditions favor the 

 pine, it should be 

 given preference 

 over broad-leaf 

 trees. The object to 

 be borne in mind in 

 marking the trees 

 for thinning is to 

 leave those that are 

 to continue growth as uniform in height and spacing as 

 possible. In the absence of other trees over a larger 

 Space than two or more square rods, all classes of trees 

 should Ik- retained. 



Millions of shortlcaf, longleaf and loblolly pine trees in 

 the South have been killed in recent years by the southern 

 pine Inretle. The Ins- caused by this insect is estimated 

 to l>e more than $10,000,000 for the past twenty-year 

 period. A practical remedy is to convert the trunks of 

 the infested trcc^ into cord wood and use the wood for fuel 

 before the beetles leave the bark, or to manufacture the 



THE CROSS CHARACTER OF THE SHORTLEAF PINE IX CROSS-SECTION 



logs into lumber or other products and immediately burn 

 the slabs of bark. A moth attacks and deforms the tips 

 of vigorous young saplings, sometimes causing consider- 

 able injury for several successive years in some localities. 

 This tree is not subject to serious fungus enemies ex- 

 cept such as attack the tree through wounds made by forest 

 fires. Forest fires probably cause much greater financial 



loss than any other 

 enemy of shortleaf 

 pine. Trees which 

 are not killed out- 

 right are weakened 

 and retarded in their 

 growth. Young 

 shortleaf pines are 

 blessed with an 

 ability to send forth 

 vigorous sprouts up 

 to the time they are 

 8 to 12 years of age, 

 and for this reason 

 they are able to re- 

 cover from the 

 effects of many fires 

 which completely 

 eliminate other 

 kinds of young pines 

 from the forest. 



The principal 

 value of shortleaf 

 pine for planting lies 

 in the establishment 

 of commercial forest 

 plantations. Its 

 growth is so rapid 

 and it adapts itself 

 so well to the pur- 

 poses of the forester 

 that in years to come 

 it is likely to be 

 planted extensively. 

 The seed may be 

 sown directly, either 

 broadcast or in seed 

 spots, where the 

 trees are to grow 

 permanently. Direct 

 planting of young 

 trees gives more certain results and it is not a difficult mat- 

 ter to raise the seedlings in seed beds. For general planting 

 they should be set out early in the spring, spaced 6 feet by 

 6 feet, when they are a year old and before the tap root is 

 greatly developed. If the land is very weedy or soil 

 conditions are unfavorable, two-year-old transplanted 

 stock should be used. However, the present need in most 

 instances is better care of existing native growth. Short- 

 leaf pine produces seed abundantly from youth to old age. 

 1 rees growing in the open bear seed in 20 years. Cut- 

 over lands or old fields near shortleaf pine seed trees are 



