4o6 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



October, 



A compilation of loo acres surveyed 

 on Jack Pine plains or pine barren type, 

 gives the following figures for tlie aver- 

 age number of trees per acre, one inch 

 and over in diameter : Jack Pine 88, 

 vScarlet Oak 8, Norway Pine i. Other 

 species represented, each with an aver- 

 age of less than one tree per acre, are 

 Aspen, Red Oak, White I'ine, and 

 White Oak. Jack Pine comprises nearly 

 90 per cent of all species. 



The maximum breast-height diameter 

 of Jack Pine was found to be 13 inches; 

 but three-fourths of the trees are 5 inches 

 and under, and the average diameter of 

 Jack Pine i inch and over is but 4.4 

 inches. 



A comparison of the volume tables 

 constructed for Jack Pine shows the de- 

 cided difference in the development of 

 the species on different qualities of soil 

 and locality. Two qualities were rec- 

 ognized. 



Quality i includes trees on moist sand 

 and gravel. 



Quality 2 includes trees on the dry 

 sands of the typical Jack Pine barrens. 



Volume Table for Jack Pine. 



The soil of the Jack Pine plains is 

 deep, fine sand, coarser and more grav- 



elly where they merge with the oak 

 flat type. It is too loose to afford suf- 

 ficient support for large trees, and wind- 

 fall was verj' common in the original 

 forest, many trees being blown down 

 before they reached a large size. The 

 openings, where the Indians did not 

 burn them over, came up in dense stands 

 of small Norway and Jack Pine, the 

 place being too dry for successful devel- 

 opment of White Pine. 



Omitting the figures for the other 

 types, it will be sufficient to give the 

 species in the order of their representa- 

 tion. It was found that the total num- 

 ber of trees per acre one inch and over 

 in diameter on the oak flats was 94; on 

 the oak ridges, 65. Scarlet Oak forms 

 half the growth on the oak flats, while 

 the Red Oak and White Oak together 

 form more than 60 per cent of the 

 growth on the oak ridges. Next in 

 point of numbers on both types are 

 Aspen and Jack Pine. Other species 

 are Norwav Pine, Red Maple, White 

 Pine, Pin Cherr}^, and Birch. 



With the exception of scattered White 

 and Norway Pines, survivors from the 

 original forests which were too small to 

 cut at the time the pine was lumbered, 

 the trees are young and small. The 

 oaks are almost entirely sprouts. They 

 range from one to twelve inches in di- 

 ameter. The average diameter of the 

 Scarlet and of Red Oak one inch and 

 over in diameter is only two inches, 

 and of White Oak 2.3 inches. 



Many of the swamps have escaped 

 burning. The total number of trees 

 one inch and over in diameter on the 

 average acre of swamp land is 241. 

 Four species, Tamarack, Cedar, Spruce, 

 and Balsam, form over 80 per cent of the 

 growth. The swamps have been culled 

 entirely of White Pine and partially of 

 Cedar. The merchantable timber re- 

 maining consists of a small amount of 

 Cedar, Tamarack, and a very small 

 stand of spruce pulp wood. 



Hardwood timber was but poorly 

 represented in the original forest on the 

 reserve. The hardwood forests remain- 

 ing near the reserve belong to private 

 owners. They have been culled of 

 their pine timber, and often the Hem- 

 lock and the more valuable hardwoods 



