Existing Stand Structure 



Distribution by Stand Size Class Sawtimber stands dominated in the 

 working circle according to distribution by stand size class data. Sawtimber 

 stands occurred on 61 percent of the commercial timberland acreage at the 

 time of sampling. Only 34,600 acres, or 2.9 percent of all timberlands in the 

 working circle, were found to be nonstocked (see Figure 7). 



Distribution by Stand Age Class Distribution by stand age class data 

 showed much of the timberland acreage to be occupied by medium aged 

 stands. About 63 percent of the total softwood acreage -- 690,700 acres — 

 was covered by stands between 61 and 120 years old (see Table 25) . 



The other private ownership group had the largest percentage of its 

 land occupied by young- to medium-aged stands. Seventy-four percent of 

 the other private timberland had stands less than 101 years old. 



Distribution by Stand Volume Class Most stands of timber in the work- 

 ing circle had low to medium amounts of board foot volume on a per acre 

 basis. Overall, 63 percent of the commercial timberland had less than 5,000 

 board feet Scribner per acre. Stands in the higher volume classes, which 

 carried at least 10,000 board feet per acre, occurred on only 159,600 acres or 

 14 percent of the commercial timberlands in the working circle (see Table 26). 



Commercial timberlands owned by the other private ownership group 

 contained very few high volume stands. Only 11 percent of the timberland 

 contained 10,000 or more board feet per acre. Stands with less than 5,000 

 board feet per acre occurred on 68 percent of the other private ownership 

 group's commercial timberland. 



Distribution by Stocking Percent Stocking is a qualitative term used to 

 describe the "degree of adequacy" of a stand in a particular condition to meet 

 a certain timber management objective (Gingrich 1964). (Table 27 shows an 

 assessment of the forest's stocking for producing board-foot volume by dis- 

 playing the amount of area in each stocking percent class.) Stocking percent 

 is the amount of space available to one live tree on a given acre compared to 



-46- 



