SILVICS 15 



naturally from the stump, and the result is that another forest 

 all of whose trees are of the same age comes up to take the place 

 of its predecessor. These are called "even-aged forests." 



Of a very different character is the virgin forest of the Adiron- 

 dacks or the White Mountains. Here one will find stunted 

 spruces that have not attained a height of three feet in fifty 

 years along with one-year-old seedlings overshadowed by larger 

 spruce and immense yellow birch that have been growing for 

 over three centuries. This is an uneven-aged, or as it is often 

 termed, a selection forest. Patches of seedlings spring up here 

 and there in small openings where a few grow into saplings and 

 finally into large trees. With such a variety of sizes and species 

 these forests are often most beautiful, but on account of their 

 unevenness are usually least profitable to manage. 



We have now described the chief distinguishing characteristics 

 of all our forests. Whatever the composition, the forest must fall 

 into each of these groups: it must be pure or mixed; even- or 

 uneven-aged; coppice or high forest. 



The business of forestry is chiefly concerned with the harvest- 

 ing of a crop in such a way as to leave a young growth of the 

 desired species. To bring this about various methods have been 

 developed to suit the requirements of different classes of forest. 



For purposes of uniformity the classification of forest forms 

 set forth by Graves^ is here given in tabulated form. 



A. HIGH FOREST FORMS. 



1. Selection Form. — Seedling trees of all ages, from seedhngs 

 to veterans, are represented mixed together individually or in 

 groups. 



2. Regular or Even-aged Form. — The trees are approximately 

 even-aged. 



3. Irregular Form. — A stand which is not even-aged, nor yet 

 of all ages, but has for some reason, either artificial or accidental, 

 two or more ages well represented. 



^ See "The Principles of Handling Woodlands," by Henry S. Graves: Wiley & 

 Sons. 



