FORESTS OF THE LOWER MOUNTAINS. 209 



character of the soil influence the kind of growth. It is doubt- 

 ful, however, if changes of soil in the larger mountain masses 

 above 5,000 feet elevation produce any change at all in the kind 

 of trees, the number of species being limited to those whose hardi- 

 ness of crown or foliage and short growing-season render 

 capable of withstanding the sudden changes of temperature to 

 which they are subjected toward the summits of the higher moun- 

 tains. At high elevations certain trees are to be found both along 

 dry ridges and in cold swamps; the white and pitch pines and 

 black gum ; and, choosing less noticeable extremes of soil, are 

 the red oak, hemlock, beech, birches, and sugar maple. 



The forests of the mountain region are separable into three 

 zones or belts lying at different elevations. These may be 

 described as follows: (1) The forests of the lower mountains; (2) 

 the forests of the higher mountains ; (3) the forests of the moun- 

 tain summits. 



THE FORESTS OF THE LOWER MOUNTAINS. 



The forests of the lower mountains lie between 1,500 and 3,000 

 feet elevation. They occupy the eastern and southern slopes of 

 the Blue Ridge and its outlying spurs, and the minor chains of the 

 Brushy and Sauratown mountains which penetrate or lie within 

 the Piedmont plateau region ; and to the westward of the Blue 

 Ridge they occupy the hills and lower moiintain slopes about to 

 the maximum elevation given above. 



Oaks, white, chestnut, black, scarlet, red and shingle, with some 

 hickory, chiefly white, bitternut and rarely the shagbark and small- 

 nut, with the chestnut and occasionally dogwood, are the chief 

 broad-leaf trees. The pines are the short-leaf, pitch, Table moun- 

 tain, scrub (Jersey) and the white. These form a story of vary, 

 ing density, but never constituting over one-half of the trees, 

 slightly above the broad-leaf trees ; or are coordinate with them 

 and fewer in number. As the quality of the soil improves, either 

 as regards fertility or constant proportion of moisture, and the indi- 

 vidual specimens composing the broad-leaf element reach a larger 

 size, the pines become fewer in number, restricted in kind to those 

 attaining the greater size, the white and short-leaf, and are con- 

 14 



