﻿40 BULLETIN" 11, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



to insure pruning of lateral branches and to keep the ground fairly 

 well shaded in order to prevent heavy undergrowth from springing up 

 and in order to keep the soil moist. Where large gaps are formed in 

 the upper leaf canopy by the removal of unhealthy or otherwise unde- 

 sirable dominant or codominant trees healthy overtopped trees 

 should be left to protect the soil. 



Thinnings should be made in the winter, when there is the least 

 danger from destructive insects breeding in the slash. Further to 

 lessen danger from insects it is always best to lop the tops of the trees 

 and burn the brush. 



IMPROVEMENT CUTTINGS IN MIXED STANDS. 



Improvement cuttings in mixed stands, to favor loblolly pine, will 

 often be advisable, especially for farmers with woodlots who can 

 work in their woodlands at spare times during the winter. They are 

 made, as their name implies, primarily to improve the quality com- 

 position of the stand, and may be conveniently classified under (1) 

 cutting in young sapling stands which will yield little or no usable 

 material, and (2) cuttings in older stands where the material removed 

 is large enough to be of some use. 



Cuttings in sapling stands 5 to 10 years old should consist in weed- 

 ing, or the cutting of undesirable species, and cleanings, or the cutting 

 of inferior individuals of desirable species. These are known as dis- 

 engagement cuttings, the object being to free or disengage the crowns 

 of the more desirable trees from injurious contact with or suppression 

 by the less desirable. This can often be accomplished by simply 

 topping the interfering saplings individually with one slash of a brush 

 ax or a corn knife. It is not necessary to cut back inferior trees which 

 are not interfering with the better individuals. One man should 

 cover from one to two acres a day in this kind of work. Scattering 

 large trees, which have been left in previous cuttings because worth- 

 less for anything but fuel, might also be cut at the same time. 



In mixed irregular stands, cut over several times but with a large 

 number of inferior trees remaining, under which considerable sapling 

 and small pole growth of loblolly pine and other species has sprung 

 up, there is often an excellent chance to make an improvement cut- 

 ting which will greatly benefit the loblolly. All the large inferior 

 trees should be cut, care being taken not to damage the young lob- 

 lolly pine which it is wished to favor. Sometimes, in fact, it may be 

 best simply to girdle the large trees and leave them standing. All 

 young growth of inferior species which is overtopping the pine should 

 also be cut. Besides benefiting the future stand, these cuttings should 

 at least be productive of a large amount of cordwood. 



