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Southern Pines Pay 



A STORY IN PICTURES 



By Wilbur R. Mattoon, senior forester, Forest Service 



TIMBER FARMING IN THE SOUTH 



TIMBER growing or forest farming is now a major industry in the 

 South. 



In the old days lumbermen found the forest already grown. Not until 

 the old growth was practically all cut off did people begin to realize that 

 if there was to be timber in the future it must be grown as a crop. 



Trees, like other crops, require some attention if they are to yield the 

 highest returns. They need to be protected from fire and to be properly 

 harvested; but, unlike most crops, they require no cultivation, no fertilizer, 

 and only a small amount of care. 



Timber farming means protecting trees and forests from fire and using 

 the ax and saw rightly. How should these tools be used? First, instead 

 of harvesting the trees when young and small, allow the straightest and 

 best trees to grow to make high-quality products, such as poles, piling, 

 veneer bolts, and sawlogs. Meanwhile cut out and use all the poorer and 

 crowded trees. When such cutting is rightly done, the products obtained 

 will usually pay for the operation. Incidentally, good practice involves 

 pruning the lower limbs, which increases both the quality and the value 

 of the resulting timber growth. 



With a little thought and action, timber farming can be made to pay. 

 Timber stands can be cut so as to yield harvests every few years. Owners 

 are sacrificing hundreds or thousands of dollars yearly by cutting their 

 timber when too young, cutting only the most promising trees, or cutting 

 the stands too clean. The average small owner should cut lightly and 

 frequently. Large timberland owners can afford, if they wish, to cut 

 somewhat more heavily and less frequently. 



Because trees grow rapidly and reclaim waste lands readily, if pro- 

 tected from fire, timber farming in the Southern States is not difficult. 

 Moreover, the wide variety of products obtainable from southern pines at 

 various stages of growth and the valuable uses which trees serve make the 

 practice of forestry in the Southern States an attractive proposition. 



Issued November, 1939 



