LONGLEAF PINE. 47 



The piney-woods hog consumes large amounts of the seed, or mast ; 

 but probably his chief offense springs from his fondness for the thick, 

 succulent bark on the taproot and lateral roots of young longleaf 

 pines. In southeastern Texas the writer counted as many as fifty- 

 two 2-year-old seedlings killed by hogs in 1 square rod, or at the 

 rate of 8,320 per acre. It is likely that in the course of one day a 

 hog often destroys as many as 200 to 400 j^oung pines. Those from 

 2 to 5 years old probably suffer most, but not uncommonly saplings 

 up to 10 years of age are killed. The spring season is the favored 

 time for attack when the swamps are overflowed and food must be 

 sought on the drier lands. In stripping the bark from the roots, 

 sometimes the tops are left intact or are bitten off at the surface of 

 the ground, and at other times the plants are pulled out of the 



The question of future longleaf pine forests turns 

 largely on controlling fires and " razorbacks." Mil- 

 lions of acres of young growth have been and are 

 being destroyed by these agencies. Is the native hog 

 worth while? 



Two experimental tracts at Urania, La., after five 

 years of protection against hogs, contained an aver- 

 age of 6,440 longleaf saplings per acre, as compared 

 with an average of 8 per acre on two similar unpro- 

 tected tracts. 



ground. (Fig. <j and PI. XIX.) With the drying and hardening of 

 tin- -oil. oi- the exhaustion of the supply of trees, operations cease for 

 eason. As a rule, a good stand of young longleaf will disappear 

 completely in two to four seasons. 



Although the " razorback " is widely and generally distributed, 

 ally where stock laws are not enforced, the number of hogs 

 present and die amount of damage accomplished appear to be varia- 

 ble, and in spite of the hog considerable young longleaf seems to get 

 through the hog-danger period, only to go down in the losing battle 

 with lit<-. No damage, so far as known, has been reported from 

 blooded hogs, and with the passage of State-wide stock laws and the 



bringing of Large tracts of land under farm management, the ne< i 

 sit \ for finding meant for preventing damage from native hogs is 

 ning. In getting young Longleaf stands started a g<><>d d< ••• 



of protection against this class of hogs, if (hey are present, i \'i'.\ 



nt i n 1 for at Least the first five rears. 



