THE NORTHERN HARDWOOD FOREST. 43 



among the hardwoods, aimed to free the crowns of the conifers. On steep slopes and 

 in exposed situations the cuttings, if done at all, should be very light. Where danger 

 from windthrow is slight the hardwoods should be marked heavily, but the stand 

 should be left sufficiently dense to afford reasonable protection from the wind. The 

 severity of the cutting should be expressed in terms of the crown classes and species 

 to be removed. If preferred, the approximate percentage of the merchantable timber 

 corresponding to the species and crown classes designated for removal may be added. 

 When even-aged groups of small hardwoods or conifers occur among older timber 

 they will be thinned, provided marketable material can be obtained. In groups of 

 small yellow birch, for example, considerable hub and bobbin stock may be avail- 

 able, but care must be taken not to thin too heavily. The same care should be used 

 in thinning groups of small softwoods for pulpwood, etc. Not more than a third of 

 the trees comprising the dominant stand should be removed, together with all the 

 subordinate trees that are merchantable. 

 Brush should be lopped and scattered. 



(b) With mixture of white pine and tamarack: 



As a rule, only widely scattered seedlings of pine or tamarack can be expected to 

 succeed under hardwood shade or in competition with hardwood reproduction. 

 Mature trees of these species should therefore be removed in the first selection or shel- 

 terwood cutting. Small or oppressed individuals should be freed and left for incre- 

 ment and whatever scattered reproduction they may succeed in starting. 



Brush should be lopped and scattered. 



(c) With mixture of ash, elm, basswood, or red oak: 



The light requirements of ash, elm, basswood, and red oak prevent their successful 

 reproduction under heavy shade. Where these species occur in the stand, however, 

 their reproduction should be the main object of management. This can best be 

 accomplished by local shelterwood cuttings. These should remove the stand in two 

 cuttings separated by a period of 10 or 20 years. The first cutting should be heavy, 

 reducing the crown cover fully one-half, removing the trees of all the lower crown 

 classes, and leaving large-crowned trees of the more valuable, less tolerant species to 

 restock. 



Brush should be lopped and scattered. 



(d) With mixture of paper birch or aspen: 



Where trees of these species occur individually among old-growth hardwoods, they 

 should be removed in the selection cutting in favor of the longer lived species, if a 

 market exists, except where they are not competing strongly, in which case they may, 

 if thrifty, be left for a subsequent cutting. Where birch and aspen form pure groups 

 among hardwoods they may be thinned, if practicable, and the most promising indi- 

 viduals left for a subsequent cutting. If promising reproduction is beneath them, 

 however, such stands should be cut as clean as the possibilities of utilization will 

 permit. 



Brush should be lopped and scattered. 



(e) Old-growth with beech predominating: 



The object of management should be eventually to replace the beech with some 

 species of greater promise, except on steep slopes, where the cuttings necessary to 

 accomplish this might cause serious erosion. The shelterwood method is best adapted, 

 approaching the clear-cutting- with-seed- trees method where the stand runs especially 

 heavy to beech. If it can be done without loss to the operator, all merchantable 

 beech shall be removed, together with only those trees of other species which are 

 defective or whose presence is unnecessary to preserve the uniformity of the shelter- 

 wood, or to serve as seed trees. Where possible, the logging should precede rather 

 than follow a heavy production of beech seeds. 



Brush should be lopped and scattered so as to lie close to the ground. 



