CONTROL OF GIPSY MOTH BY FOREST MANAGEMENT. 5 



infested portions of Rhode Island and Connecticut lie in the " Sprout 

 Hardwoods Region." 



The White-Pine Region is broadly characterized by stands of (1) 

 pure white pine, (2) mixed white pine and hardwoods, and (3) mixed 

 hardwoods. The predominating hardwoods in this region are the 

 oaks. Other hardwoods are birches, beech, maples, hickories, ashes, 

 poplars, and chestnut. Pitch pine occurs in pure stands over certain 

 small portions. 



The Northern Hardwoods Region is characterized by stands of 

 maples, beech, and birches. The sugar maple, beech, and yellow 

 birch are particularly characteristic. Spruce, white pine, and hem- 

 lock also occur in the region, together with red oak, white ash, 

 black ash, black cherry, paper birch, and basswood. 



The Sprout Hardwoods Region is characterized by stands of 

 chestnut, either pure or in mixture with several species of oak. 

 Other hardwoods occurring in this region are maples, ashes, birches, 

 poplars, tulip, and hickories. 



The stands in all three of the regions vary greatly in composition 

 and are frequently very complex. This is largely due to the usual 

 methods of lumbering and to the repeated action of fire. Stands 

 have been repeatedly culled or cut clear with no provision for re- 

 production. This system and repeated fires have been responsible 

 in many cases for the extensive introduction of species which would 

 otherwise be absent or be represented by only a few individuals. 



A large amount of neglected pasture and cultivated land in New 

 England is reverting to woods. The trees which generally spring 

 up on such lands are white pine, gray birch, red cedar, poplar, pin 

 cherry, and, in places, red maple. The stands thus derived are usu- 

 ally very open for a long period of time, and the qualit}^, aside from 

 the composition, is therefore poor. 



Large blocks of woodland under single ownership are rather 

 scarce, and the woods for the most part occur on more or less isolated 

 small lots belonging to many different owners. Owing to this fact 

 and to the great diversity in the composition of woods, even on small 

 areas, it is impossible to classify the stands of timber growing in 

 the infested region except in a very general way. 



The complexity and variable composition of the woods in the 

 region infested by the gipsy moth are indicated by the table (p. 6). 

 This shows the composition of the stands on some of the areas used 

 for experimental work, and the trees are only the living ones which 

 are two and a half inches in diameter and over at breast height. 



