VALLOMBROSA FOREST IN ITALY 



649 



gorge. An attractive shrine was later erected at this 

 place in commemoration of the saint, and to this day a 

 tablet marks the spot of the bitter struggle. Farther 

 up the gorge above the monastery, an old hermitage was 

 converted during the war into a retreat for orphan chil- 

 dren of the war and for children of soldiers serving at 

 the front. These children were brought by the hundreds 

 from the congested cities of the lower valleys. The 

 expenses were met by a fund subscribed by Italians and 

 English as well as by Americans. 



The forest itself, the official name of which is "Foreste 

 Demaniale de Vallombrosa" consists of an area of 3500 

 acres and reaches its highest point at a place called 

 Secchiate at an elevation of 3500 feet. Of this area only 

 875 acres are of chestnut, 125 acres of three varieties of 

 Italian pines (Pinns Sylvcstris, P. Austriaca or Nigricans 

 and P. laricio). The remainder of the forest consists of 

 European beech {Fagus sylvatica) and silver fir {Abies 



THE PONTE VECCHIA IN FLORENCE 



The famous Arno flowing through the heart of the city of Florence in 

 Tuscany. Florence is the starting point for a visit to the forests of 

 Vallombrosa and this river has its head waters along the crest of the 

 Appenine Divide near Vallombrosa. In the foreground is the well- 

 known old Ponte Vecchia. 



pectinata). This forest has been under continuous 

 forest management by Italian forestry officials since 

 1869, and for centuries before that date the monks 

 carefully protected, cultivated and cared for the 

 forest. Much of the timber was mature, having been 

 planted by the monks from ninety to one hundred and 

 twenty years ago and was ready to be cut to meet the 

 great emergency arising out of the Italian war program. 

 With the abnormally large imports of lumber cut off 

 owing to the lack of ships, the native Italian forests 

 were largely resorted to to meet this great emergency 

 and the splendid forest of Vallombrosa, held almost 

 sacred in the hearts of many Italians, was sacrificed very 

 largely for this purpose. 



The forestry officials have determined that the so- 

 called financial maturity or the age at which trees can 



be cut to best advantage measured in terms of profit as 

 well as for the best interest of the forest itself are as 

 follows. The silver fir is considered mature at from 90 

 to 100 years of age, the beech at 120 years and the chest- 

 nut at 34 and 51 -years of age. No pine in this forest is 

 over 40 years of age, it having been planted about the 

 year 1878, and was cut for war purposes as the timber 



SIXTEENTH CENTURY MONASTERY 



The Monastery at Vallombrosa built in the Sixteenth Century as a 

 retreat for the Benedictine Monks. From 1870 to 1912, it was used as ' 

 the home of the Royal Italian Forestry College. It is now the 



headquarters of the Valkmbrosa Forest, as well as one of the State 



Ranger Schools. 



was badly needed and the areas are being replanted at 

 once with silver fir, which has been shown to be the best 

 tree for forest management. 



The purpose of management of this forest is not only 

 to supply timber, but to maintain the forest as more or 

 less of a summer resort and vacation retreat for those 

 throughout the Italian peninsula. Even where cuttings 

 were made to serve the war emergency, strips were left 

 along the highways and woodland paths so that the im- 

 pression of devastation and desolation which is so often 

 associated with logged off forests is not present. 



At the above maturities, the product of the various 

 kinds of trees was as follows : 



The average production of silver fir was 240 cubic 

 meters per acre, whereas the maximum stands ran up to 

 440 cubic meters per acre. Beech produced 140 as an 

 average, of which one-half was used as fire wood and a 

 maximum of 200 cubic meters per acre. The average 

 pine at 40 years produced 100 cubic meters per acre and 

 a maximum of 140 cubic meters per acre. The chest- 

 nut production at 17 years was about 52 cubic meters 

 per acre, at 34 years, about 104 meters, and at 51 years, 

 some 156 meters per acre. 



Chestnut trees are chiefly cut at an age of 17 and 34 

 years because if left to grow to an age of 5 1 years the 



