Non-stocking due to prevalence of fire was limited 

 mainly to the Northern and Southern Coastal Plain. Six- 

 teen per cent of the non-stocking was due to this cause. 

 Annual burning, in many sections of the two regions, has 

 eliminated both pine and hardwood reproduction from 

 large areas. A seed source is often present, but the areas 

 cannot become stocked until adequate protection becomes a 

 reality. 



REPRODUCTION 



It has been shown that 28.3 per cent of the stocking in 

 North Carolina is reproduction. What is the proportion of 

 pine and hardwood in this class of trees under 5 inches 

 d.b.h.? Table 19 shows these proportions for the 21 sample 

 counties. 



Reference to Table 11 will show that the present stand 

 of under-sawlog size material in the North Coastal Plain 

 is composed of approximately the same proportion of pine 

 and hardwood as was present in 1938; the South Coastal 



Table 19 

 RELATIVE PROPORTIONS OF PINE AND HARD- 

 WOOD REPRODUCTION IN 21 SAMPLE COUNTIES 



County Per Cent Pine Per Cent Hardwood 



NORTHERN COASTAL PLAIN 



Beaufort 25.0 75.0 



Bertie 20.5 79.5 



Currituck 8.8 91.2 



Halifax 16.1 83.9 



Tyrrell 28.7 71.3 



Regional Average 22.0 78.0 



SOUTHERN COASTAL PLAIN 



Bladen 48.7 51.3 



Harnett 25.9 74.1 



Jones 51.4 48.6 



Pender 64.1 35.9 



Richmond 43.2 56.8 



Wayne 37.2 62.8 



Regional Average 49.3 50.7 



PIEDMONT 



Caswell 32.0 68.0 



Gaston 23.0 77.0 



Randolph 18.6 81.4 



Wake 34.5 65.5 



Yadkin 38.7 61.3 



Regional Average 28.3 71.7 



MOUNTAINS 



Ashe 8.0 92.0 



Buncombe 18.0 82.0 



Caldwell 21.0 79.0 



Graham 5.0 95.0 



Jackson 11.0 89.0 



Regional Average 12.9 87.1 



Plain has a gain in the proportion of pine; the Piedmont 

 has a gain in the proportion of pine ; the Mountains retain 

 practically the same proportion of both. Recruitment of 

 this material into sawlog size will give substantial stands 

 of pine for the next cut. A study of under-sawlog-size 

 only would cause no alarm over the so-called "hardwood 

 encroachment." 



However, a study of the reproduction that will replace 

 the present under-sawlog-size in the next cycle, presents 

 an entirely different picture. A comparison of present un- 

 der-sawlog-size pine-hardwood proportions, with present 

 proportions of pine-hardwood reproduction, is shown in 

 Table 20. 



Table 20 



PROPORTION OF PINE AND HARDWOOD 6"-8" 



CLASS VS. REPRODUCTION 



(Based on Tree Numbers in Both Cases.) 



Under-Sawlog-Size Trees Reproduction-Size Trees 

 % Pine % Hardwoods % Pine % Hardwoods 

 Region (6"-8") (6"-8") 



N. C. Plain 51 49 22 78 



S. C. Plain 71 29 49 51 



Piedmont 68 32 28 72 



Mountains 23 77 13 87 



The percentage figures in Table 20 were derived from 

 total numbers of tree stems in each category. In the North- 

 ern Coastal Plain, present under-sawlog-size material is 

 composed of 51 per cent pine and 49 per cent hardwood. 

 This trend is not out of proportion considering the large 

 percentage of swamp and river-bottom type in this region. 

 However, with only 22 per cent pine reproduction growing 

 to replace the present under-sawlog-size, the trend is defi- 

 nitely in favor of the hardwood. 



The Southern Coastal Plain, with 71 per cent pine and 

 29 per cent hardwood in the under-sawlog-size, and 49 per 

 cent pine and 51 per cent hardwood reproduction, reflects 

 the effects of continued burning. If the present rate of 

 woods burning is continued, the trend will be toward a re- 

 duction of hardwood stems and a corresponding increase 

 in pine in the larger classes. However, stands of pine will 

 continue to remain light if uncontrolled fire continues. 



The Piedmont presents the most serious condition in 

 reference to future pine stands. Present high pine ratios in 

 the under-sawlog-size are a definite reflection of land 

 clearing and abandonment. There are thousands of acres of 

 bandoned old fields supporting fine stands of young pine 

 in this region today. The trend, at present, is toward land 

 stabilization and when lands do become stable, the day of 

 the "old field pine" will end. 



Present under-sawlog-size is made up of 68 per cent pine 

 and 32 per cent hardwood while the reproduction is 28 per 

 cent pine and 72 per cent hardwood. Most of reproduction 

 size is, of course, in abandoned fields too. 



The Mountain region is primarily a hardwood region 

 and, thus, causes no concern. 



It can be seen that pine reproduction is fighting a losing 

 battle in all sections of the state. Present cutting methods 

 tend to increase the odds against the pine. Even conven- 

 tional silvicultural methods of cutting such as the selec- 

 tion, shelterwood, and seed tree methods do not insure re- 

 production of the pine species. In fact, they aid in the re- 



(28) 



