FOREST CONDITIONS IN" WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. 47 



small shingle mills are operated in connection with the saw mills, and 

 this enables them to utilize small and poor timber. One mill was cutting 

 laths from pine logs that were as small as 5 inches in diameter at the 

 top. The only shingle mill of importance cuts 500,000 shingles annually. 



The pulp and extract wood business is carried on very extensively 

 with no immediate sign of lessening. Probably about four-fifths of the 

 exported wood is chestnut, about one-tenth poplar, and one-tenth pine 

 and miscellaneous pulp wood, together with a considerable amount of 

 fuel wood which is shipped to Asheville. Tanbark is nearly exhausted, 

 though several carloads are shipped annually from most of the railroad 

 stations. A considerable number of ties are cut and delivered along the 

 railroad right of way. Other minor wood industries in the county are a 

 handle factory, a planing mill, and a furniture factory. Henderson is 

 one of the most densely settled counties, and will always make a consid- 

 erable demand upon its forests. Its location with reference to markets, 

 and its population, make possible a complete utilization of the timber 

 resources. It will remain primarily a farming and stock-raising county, 

 though it contains large areas of absolute forest land. The people are 

 progressive, and are aware of the damage by forest fires. There is a 

 county stock law and a live public sentiment which help to keep most 

 forest fires in control. 



Forest reproduction is good, except in remote mountain districts 

 where fires still occur. White pine, while not abundant commercially 

 except in the southwest, comes in remarkably well on old fields where 

 there are nearby seed trees. Its height growth will average fully 2 feet 

 a year, and this makes it one of the best species for planting. Chestnut 

 is not reproducing well, which is possibly partly due to the fact that it 

 is culled out so that the stumps are too much shaded by other species 

 for successful coppice growth. Its poor sprout growth may also be due 

 to the fact that the trees are cut at the season of the year which least 

 favors sprouting. Poplar also comes in poorly except along the edge of 

 clearings and waste areas. The chief reproduction in the forest here, as 

 elsewhere, is oak, especially scarlet oak. On many old clearings, poplar 

 and locust come in well, and on clear cuttings the oaks and chestnut 

 flourish. White pine is seeding abundantly under the rather open wood- 

 lot forests of black and white oaks, where there are seed trees. In many 

 places, especially south of Hendersonville, it would be wise to cut out 

 the overhead oaks for fuel, leaving a good stand of young white pine 

 which is already on the ground. 



This county is widely known for its advantages as a summer resort. 

 Large areas about Hendersonville, Flat Eock, and the several artificial 



