FARM - 40% 
LUMBER 
COMPANIES 
11% 
MISCELLANEOUS 
SMALL HOLDINGS 
FicurE 31.—Distribution of private commercial forest land 
by class of ownership. 
Whatever the class of ownership, there is ample 
evidence that private forestry pays and is good busi- 
ness. The more profitable opportunities occur 
where timber grows fast and markets are favorable, 
and particularly where there is enough accessible 
growing stock to operate with continuous revenue. 
The South, with its rapid timber growth, now offers 
the best example. In the North, good markets 
are a special advantage. ‘Throughout the country, 
a growing number of owners have started the 
practice of forestry. “Today this movement is fav- 
ored by high prices. Although no cause for jubila- 
tion from the public point of view because they 
are a symptom of timber scarcity, high prices should 
be helpful in powering the take-off of a larger 
forestry movement. 
Private forestry, however, has many, obstacles, 
some of which are implicit in the small size of 
holdings. Furthermore, the means and ability of 
owners to practice good forestry vary widely. 
Larger Owners Have Some Advantages 
Of the 84 million acres in 3,600 medium and 
large properties, the 41 million of pulp- and lum- 
ber-company lands especially lend themselves to 
good forestry. ‘Their owners usually have the fa- 
cilities including the financial strength needed to 
undertake sustained-yield forestry, granted the in- 
tent to practice it and the aim to keep mills and 
plants operating on a permanent basis. Much 
progress is being made. Yet even here, the fact 
that four-tenths of the cutting is poor or destruc- 
tive (see p. 49) shows that many of these lands still 
lack stable, proposeful management. 
Lumber-company ownership of forests is still 
exploitive in many instances. Generally, however, 
it has in recent years been becoming more stable. 
Today the objective of many owners is to integrate 
woods and mill for permanent operation. The 
number of operators who have achieved this seems 
to be increasing. Balance is being gained through 
measures to increase the allowable cut of timber— 
rehabilitating cut-over lands, managing and pro- 
tecting merchantable areas, and acquiring more 
lands. In some cases balance is being sought also 
through scaling down and modernizing plant fa- 
cilities. 
Cooperation between public and private owners 
to pool holdings into sustained-yield units will help 
stabilize lumber enterprises and the communities 
dependent on them. The sustained-yield unit act 
of 1944,44 authorizes agreements between the Sec- 
retary of Agriculture and willing private or public 
forest owners for sustained-yield management of 
interrelated national-forest and other lands. In 
return for committing his lands to a coordinated 
management plan, the operator can purchase na- 
tional-forest timber without competition at the 
appraised value. The Act gives similar authority 
to the Secretary of the Interior with respect to lands 
under his jurisdiction. 
One unit has been set up by the Secretary of 
Agriculture, and negotiations are under way for 
several others. It is tentatively estimated that from 
20 to 25 percent of the commercial area of the 
national forests eventually might be included in 
such units. 
The pulp industry—with heavy long-term invest- 
ment in plant and equipment, dependence upon 
a steady flow of pulpwood, and ability to use small 
trees—is making the best showing in private forestry. 
The pulp industry’s southward movement has been 
attended by acquisition of much southern pine 
forest. About two-thirds of pulp-company lands 
are under at least extensive management (see pp. 
50-51), but there is still a big forestry job to be- 
done in building up their productivity. 
The 43 million acres of large and medium prop- 
erties not in lumber- or pulp-company ownership 
“Act approved March 29, 1944 (58 Stat. 132). 
94 Miscellaneous Publication 668, U. S. Department of Agriculture 
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