PROFITS FROM FARM WOODS 9 
MY CROP OF TIMBER 
* A FARMER IN THE UPPER PIEDMONT REGION FINDS OUT FOR HIMSELF HOW 
MUCH MONEY HIS TIMBER IS MAKING 
E. A. Spainhour, a farmer of Burke County, N. C., wrote a few 
years ago: 
I do not pretend to know much about forestry work, but parties were trying 
to buy land in this section of the State, and I wanted to know what the stands 
of young timber were worth before I priced my land to anybody. 
I selected an average acre of young shortleaf yellow pines for cutting. The 
land where this forest was growing is ordinary high-up land of the Cecil red- 
soil variety. It had been under cultivation or in orchard up to 30 years ago. 
when it was turned into pasture. 
Twenty-five years ago the 
area was reseeding with young 
pines. Within the area I re- 
cently laid out three-fourths of 
an acre and cut thetimber. The 
total amount cut and sold from 
this three-fourths of an acre 
was 30 cords, or the equivalent 
of 40 cords to the acre. It cost 
me $1.25 per cord to get the 
wood cut-and $1.25 per cord to 
get it hauled to market, so that 
selling at $5 per cord in town I 
had a clear profit of $75, or at 
the rate of $100 per acre, and I 
still own the land. 
This timber was 25 years of 
age and averaged a growth of 
135 cords per acre per year. 
This amounted to an average 
net yearly return from the tim- 
ber of $4 per acre. In addition 
to this the labor in the com- 
munity received $4 per acre per 
year. This makes the total 
money value of the timber 
growth $8 per acre per year. 
Average rate of growth or 
production per acre per year 
FIGURE 5.—Cutting pulpwcod from trees taken in 
was 1% cords. — ee his woods onuet Boly Turner of Ar- 
Average gros: return cansas to add to his farm income and improve 
CE ASC ET OSS es. et : his timber stands. The land is not being cut 
per acre per year $8. clean, as might appear. The trees have been 
Average net return per acre judeed and only those marked with a blaze are 
eing cu 
per year $4. = 
This is not a bad showing for ordinary land when one considers that the 
trees establiShed themselves naturally. I was not out a cent for seed or labor 
to grow the crop. My trees are worth protecting from forest fires. 
FARMER FINDS “WASTE” TIMBER PROFITABLE 
Boly Turner, a farmer living close to Hermitage, Bradley County, 
Ark., made $23.20 from three-fourths of an acre of “ waste ” timber 
he had considered valueless. Altogether, Mr. Turner had about 80 
acres of good second-growth pine timber which he had considered 
of little value and not worth working up into billets or logs. Tim- 
ber prices in his community were not attractive, so Mr. Turner 
had not tried to sell, preferring to let his timber stand and grow 
with the idea that some day it would be larger and more valuable 
and perhaps would do some of his children some good. 
