GENERAL CONDITIONS 73 



This type has a greater variety of species than any other forest 

 type in the United States because it is the meeting ground ol 

 northern and southern species. The cool summers on the 

 mountaintops allow such species as white pine, hemlock, and red 

 oak to extend their range southward while typically southern 

 species like loblolly and shortleaf pine, yellow poplar and cucum- 

 ber tree have worked their way from the foothills up on the higher 

 elevations. While it is impossible on a small scale map to sub- 

 divide the hardwood region, in the examination of any particular 

 tract it soon appears that there are three distinct types with 

 different climatic and soil conditions and consequently a distinct 

 tree composition. The mountain valleys — called coves in the 

 southeast — \vith deep, rich, alluvial soil, well watered, possess 

 the greatest variety of species. In fact all the kinds of trees 

 would grow here by preference, but yellow poplar, hemlock, the 

 oaks, the hickories, and occasionally the chestnut possess greater 

 reproductive capacity, more rapid growth or greater tolerance, so 

 that they are usually able to crowd out other species. Normally 

 a cove stand which has been untouched by the lumberman's 

 axe is either pure hemlock, pure chestnut, or a mixture of yellow 

 poplar, white oak, cucumber, hickory and hemlock. In this 

 type is found the best timber. It has been the main source of the 

 yellow poplar for which the southeast is so famous. But while it 

 produces large, long boled timber the stands are seldom very 

 heavy. While hemlock coves may occasionally cut better than 

 30,000 board feet per acre the average for the type is nearer 

 15,000 feet because the hardwoods do not stand so close together 

 as a tolerant species like hemlock. Unfortunately, also, the total 

 extent of the coves is not great. They seldom occupy more than 

 15 per cent of a tract and 5 per cent would more nearly repre- 

 sent the mountain conditions. Hence, reports of tracts in the 

 southern Appalachians which average 10,000 board feet to the 

 acre over large areas are always open to serious question. It is 

 the two other types, slope and ridge, which make up the bulk of 

 such tracts and their average stands are much less than that of 

 the cove type. 



The slope type is an intermediate one between the cool, moist 



