Forest Conditions 



In order to describe adequately the appearance 

 and condition of the forest stands, they have been 

 classified according to their age, quality, size, and 

 the degree to which they have been cut. 



Stands having the characteristics of the original 

 mature forests of the section are called old growth. 

 Young stands which have come in as a result of 

 cutting or other causes are called second growth. 

 Second-growth stands are classified as reproduc- 

 tion, under-sawlog size, or sawlog size, depending 

 upon their stage of development. If more than 10 

 percent of the board-foot volume in sawlog-size 

 stands has been removed, such stands are known 

 as partly cut. The lower limits of volume per acre 

 of old-growth or sawlog-size second growth stands, 

 as here classified, represent the lowest volume of 

 each class which is in general included in com- 

 mercial operations. The lower limits used were 

 1,000 board feet of hardwood or hardwood and 

 pine mixed, and 600 board feet of pine in old- 

 growth stands, and 600 and 400 board feet, re- 

 spectively, for the uncut and partly cut second- 

 growth stands. When the stands are cut below 

 this minimum and no satisfactory stocking of young 

 growth or reproduction is left, they are recorded as 

 clear-cut. 



The old-growth stands are often quite open, ow- 

 ing either to cutting or to natural factors. Young 

 growth establishes itself in the openings and, when 

 the old growth is removed, forms the nucleus of 

 second-growth stands in various stages of develop- 

 ment. Sawlog-size stands of second growth are 

 usually cut into when a considerable body of the 

 under-sawlog-size trees is still present. Clear-cut 

 areas usually restock with sufficient seedlings. These 

 become reproduction, reproduction grows into 

 under-sawlog size, and under-sawlog size into 

 saw-log size. There is, therefore, at all times a 

 continuous and involved progression of forest 

 conditions. 



More than 1% million acres, or almost 21 percent 

 of the forest area, are still classified as old growth 

 (table 4). Almost 58 percent of these stands have 

 been partly cut; and 63 percent of the entire old- 

 growth forest occurs in the swamps, bays, and river 

 bottoms — notably in Taylor, Dixie, Lafayette, and 

 Levy Counties, and in the vicinity of the St. Johns 



River — probably because of the difficulty and cost 

 of logging in such situations. The early concentra- 

 tion of logging in the flatwoods and rolling uplands 

 has left only 10 percent of the present forest area of 

 these situations in old growth. Almost 48 percent 

 of the old-growth hardwoods and nearly 55 percent 

 of the old-growth cypress stands have been partly 

 cut. In most cases the cypress, red gum, and 

 other valuable species were removed, leaving 





























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TURPENTINE PINE 



(4.947,400 ACRES) 



NONTURPENTINE 

 PINE 1535.000 ACRES) 



HARDWOOD 

 (t. 352,200 ACRES) 



CYPRESS 

 (413,100 ACRES 



[ Second growth 

 I sawlog size 



Second growth n „ n i 



N Reproduclion 1 



under sawlog size Li K LJ ( 



Figure 3. — Relative proportion of the different forest conditions 

 in each type-group area. 



only the swamp black gum and other species of 

 low value. 



Almost 65 percent of the forest area has restocked 

 to second growth. More than 70 percent of the 

 second-growth stands are in the turpentine pine 

 type group. Of these, about 40 percent have 

 reached sawlog size and furnish the bulk of the 

 longleaf and slash pines which are being worked 

 for gum by the naval stores industry (fig. 3). 



Clear cutting has been practiced in the old- 

 growth turpentine pine stands until today 20 per- 

 cent of this type, or over a million acres, supports 

 neither merchantable timber nor young growth. 

 These clear-cut tracts are in general, however, 

 scattered throughout the cut-over lands and if ade- 

 quate attention is given to fire protection, most of 

 them will restock naturally. Selective cutting is 



61857' 



13 



