reforestation possible. The Forest Service estimates that 3/2 million acres 

 on national forests are in need of immediate planting in order to bring the 

 land into production of timber, to protect watersheds, and yield other 

 returns to the public. 



Protection from fire . — Despite widespread efforts to protect forest resources 

 many million acres are burned over each year. Land that has been logged 

 is likely to burn over because of the large amount of slash that is left. 

 This slash is composed of branches, tree tops, and damaged portions of the 

 trunks. When not lopped, that is, cut in small pieces that will lie 

 close to the ground and absorb moisture, it dries out and will catch fire 

 easily. It takes money to hire men to lop this slash and for that reason it 

 is very often left as it falls when the logs are cut. It is the burning of this 

 accumulated dry brush, leaves, and weeds left after logging that keeps the 

 forest from growing again. 



Some people think nothing is lost where no large trees are burned, but 

 young trees are often killed by a fire that would do little harm to an old 

 tree. The young tree is important for the future forest and so has a value. 

 Most often forest fires are started by someone who is thoughtless and does 

 not realize either the danger or the loss. 



Nine out of every ten fires are man-made (table 7, p. 45). Smoking, 

 camping, debris burning, logging operations, and lightning are among the 

 chief causes of forest fires. In a recent 5-year period 1.6 percent of all 

 fires recorded were caused by lightning, and the remaining 92.4 percent 

 were man-caused. Most of the lightning fires occur in the higher areas of 

 the West in seasons of drought. 



Protection for the attractiveness of the forest. — Being careful in the cutting of 

 decorative greens is one way to protect the forest. It is not necessary to go 

 without or even reduce our use of these materials, but they must be harvested 

 in such a way that the trees or roots that provide them are not destroyed. 

 Particularly is this true when gathering ground pine, holly, ferns, or other 

 decorative plants. Picking up all papers and debris left from a picnic or 

 after camping is also important forest protection. 



Protection from insects and diseases. — The Federal Government guards con- 

 stantly against importation of trees diseases and damaging insects from 

 other countries. These small and often invisible foes may ruin great sec- 

 tions of forests before their presence is discovered. Insects and diseases 

 work in forests in many different ways. Although many forms of both 

 are usually present in any normal forest, damage is usually rather limited. 

 When, however, either insects or diseases suddenly build up to epidemic 

 proportions, prompt action must be taken to control them and thus to 

 prevent widespread destruction. Disease and insect control is often neg- 

 lected on privately owned forests because of the great cost involved in 

 protection, and for this reason protection of adjoining publicly owned 

 forests is sometimes futile. 



Protection by proper cutting. — Harvesting of the mature crop, if carelessly 

 done, may result in the ruin of a forest by so cutting the big trees that they 

 are permitted to break down the little ones; by not leaving seed trees to 

 reproduce the stand for the next crop; by taking all the good species of trees 

 and leaving the worthless kinds to take possession of the land; by using 

 heavy logging machinery that smashes down the young timber; by leaving 

 a tangle of brush and broken trees to form a fire trap and encourage total 

 destruction of the forest cover by fire; by leaving diseased and insect-infested 

 trees in the woods to spread the infection to healthy young stands. The 



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