RESTORATION AND TREATMENT OF FORESTS 15 



we may choose, we are confronted with the absolute need 

 of increasing the productiveness of our virgin forests by 

 conservative treatment, and the equal need of making the 

 second-growth areas productive by caring for such valuable 

 species as now exist there, and also by planting where none 

 are to be found ; and this brings us to a consideration of 

 the treatment of all forests. 



Action along either of these lines increasing the pro- 

 ductiveness of present forest area and enlarging that area 

 over regions where trees once grew but have been destroyed 

 may, in general terms, be called Practical Forestry, 

 a science quite new to this country and but little under- 

 stood by the greater proportion of our people. Still, there 

 is nothing abstruse in it, nothing difficult to understand. 



But if we cannot increase the productiveness of our vir- 

 gin forests threefold, what can be done along that line ? 

 This cannot be definitely answered, owing to varying for- 

 est conditions, but some increase can be brought about, 

 though the limit will necessarily soon be reached. In tree- 

 life, as in all other, there is an age reached which we call 

 maturity. When a tree arrives at that period its best eco- 

 nomic development is secured. Thenceforth there is a de- 

 cline until death wipes it out of existence. When trees are 

 mature they should be removed and give room for others 

 to grow in their places. All the time embraced in the life 

 of a tree from maturity until it falls to the ground is just 

 that much time lost in the use of the land which it occu- 

 pies. Removing such mature trees as are not required to 

 produce seed for a future growth is known as Selective 

 Cutting sometimes called Conservative Cutting. 



If there should be found immature trees of valuable 

 species interfering with each other, the weakest should be 

 removed, as should also all diseased ones of any kind. If 

 badly developed trees or those of worthless species occupy 

 any portion of the ground, these, too, should be cleared 

 away, unless they will, for a time, serve as " nurse trees " 

 to compel the valuable ones to grow tall and free of limbs. 



