THE SPRUCE REGION 223 



Hardwood. — Here a condition exists radically different from 

 that in the other three permanent types. The large number 

 of hardwood trees makes it difficult for the spruce to reproduce 

 abundantly, because the leaves of the hardwoods form a thick 

 cover on the ground which is very unfavorable for the germi- 

 nation of spruce seed. 



In past lumbering operations the merchantable spruce has 

 been cut and most of the hardwoods left standing. Under such 

 treatment the reproduction following cutting is of hardwood 

 species, and spruce may entirely disappear. 



Just the opposite policy must be pursued to secure an increased 

 amount of spruce in the second crop: that is to say, the hard- 

 woods must be heavily cut and numerous spruce seed trees 

 allowed to remain. This cutting should be in the nature of a 

 selection cutting, taking out the hardwood trees down to the 

 smallest merchantable size, and cutting only the spruce above 

 a certain large diameter, such as fourteen inches, breast-high 

 (four and a half feet from the ground) . This must be supplement- 

 ed by leaving spruce trees above this limit where cutting exactly 

 to the limit'would remove all seed trees. Provision must in this 

 way be made to leave at least two seed trees per acre. 



As yet the hardwoods are not salable throughout the entire 

 region, owing to the expense of transporting the heavy hardwood 

 logs to market. Near railroads they can be profitably handled, 

 but in the remote sections it is often impossible to cut the hard- 

 woods. On such lands it may be impossible to secure spruce 

 reproduction, and hardwood will take the place of the spruce as 

 it is cut. To prevent this change in the type it sometimes is 

 advisable to defer cutting of the spruce a few years, until trans- 

 portation facihties improve sufficiently to make possible the 

 close utilization of the hardwoods. Sometimes a plant utilizing 

 hardwoods may be estabhshed and solve the problem. 



The treatment so far suggested for the hardwood type is 

 based on the assumption that an increased amount of spruce 

 at once is wanted in the type; and such is silviculturally the best 

 poHcy. But from the financial standpoint it may be best to give 



