Practical Sylviculture 101 



many cases rather protects than hinders the seedlings. 

 Destroying this brush when necessary is often a difficult 

 operation. Unfortunately, most of the brush plants sprout 

 luxuriantly from the root when cut or burned over, and 

 consequently an attempt to cut or burn the brush off a cer- 

 tain tract often results in a second crop more dense than 

 the first. Probably the best method is to cut the brush 

 in early fall. The sprouts starting at this late date are 

 caught by the early frosts before they have matured and 

 are killed back. After such treatment, the stumps do not 

 sprout very vigorously the next spring. Sheep are an 

 effective means of cleaning up brush land. Enough 

 sheep should be driven on the area in spring to crowd it, 

 and they should be herded closely. Under these conditions 

 they will browse the tender sprouts and injure them 

 beyond recovery. In addition to browsing the sprouts, 

 their sharp feet cut the leaf mold, especially in the 

 early spring when the ground is soft, and expose the 

 mineral soil, thus putting the ground in good shape for 

 seeding. The first summer's grazing will kill most of the 

 brush, while a short period of close grazing the next spring 

 will catch the surviving sprouts and prepare the ground 

 for immediate seeding. 



(3) Leaf litter. — In most wooded or brush lands, 

 where fires have been absent for a long time, there will 

 be a heavy soil-covering of fallen and partially decayed 

 leaves. These leaves form a layer sometimes several 

 inches thick, and so poorly decomposed that a germinating 

 seed cannot reach- the mineral soil. Leaf litter may 

 contain enough moisture to cause seeds to germinate, 

 but before the rootlet can force itself down into the soil it 



