wounds in the top. The little-leaf disease, serious 

 in shortleaf and to a less extent loblolly pine, causes 

 the gradual decline of stands 20 or more years of age 

 in certain areas of the piedmont and results in pre- 

 mature death. Where little-leaf disease is serious 

 some adjustment is forest management, such as 

 shorter rotations, is required, since mortality rates 

 become very high before the timber reaches sawlog- 

 size. 



The southern pine beetle {Dendroctonus frontalis) 

 kills some pine every year, and in dry seasons follow- 

 ing mild winters this insect may become epidemic 

 and do great damage. The southern pine sawyer 

 [Monochamus titillator) attacks weakened or recently 

 killed pines; infested trees or logs left in the woods 

 for more than 3 weeks in the summer may be ren- 

 dered worthless. Various other insects damage the 

 sapwood or heartwood of living or dead pines and 

 hardwoods, and some cause serious losses to finished 

 products. The Lyctus powder-post beetles are par- 

 ticularly destructive of the seasoned sapwood of oak, 

 ash, and hickory in such finished forms as lumber, 

 handles, furniture, vehicle stock, woodwork, shunt 

 poles, and picker sticks. 



Because of the large losses from insects and dis- 

 eases, investigations leading to their control are es- 

 pecially worthy of public support. Such investiga- 

 tions are now being conducted by the Appalachian 

 Forest Experiment Station in the group of States in 

 the Station's territory, but the field is so large that 

 additional means should be provided. A trained 

 forest pathologist and a specialist in forest ento- 

 mology should be attached to the State Commission 

 of Forestry to conduct the necessary studies within 

 South Carolina, working in cooperation with Federal 

 and State specialists in related activities. This would 

 permit better application of research results in pest 

 control. A minimum of ?10,000 per year would be 

 needed to finance this work. 



Technical Assistance to Timberland Owners 



There is great need for technical assistance to 

 farmers and other landowners in the management of 

 their timberlands. Owners frequently require ad- 

 vice on proper selection of trees to be cut or left for 

 growth, and in preparing, grading, and marketing 

 forest products, in order to insure success in the 

 management of their properties. 



Several cooperative endeavors have been started 

 for the purpose of furnishing such assistance. Since 

 1941 timber-marking service has been available from 

 the South Carolina Forest Service, part of the cost 



being borne by that agency and part by the land- 

 owner. In 1938 the United States Forest Service 

 and the South Carolina Commission of Forestry en- 

 tered into an agreement which provided for the as- 

 signment of a forest-management specialist to work 

 with the commission on a cooperative basis. In 

 1940 a project sponsored by the State extension ser- 

 vice, the State forest service, and the United 

 States Soil Conservation Service was begun in Aiken 

 County for the purpose of increasing the produc- 

 tiveness of farm woodlands. 



These programs, however, are hampered by lack 

 of funds and personnel and are far from meeting the 

 needs of forest landowners throughout the State. 

 A material increase in funds would help immeasur- 

 ably in establishing higher levels of timberland 

 values, thus benefiting both the individual and the 

 State. 



Provision of More Tree Planting Stock 



Forest planting has certain advantages over 

 natural reproduction. The species and spacing are 

 subject to control, and areas can be restocked imme- 

 diately without waiting for naturally sown tree seed- 

 lings to become established. Planting is the only 

 means for stocking old fields, cut-over areas, and 

 burns that are far from seed trees. 



During the past decade, the South Carolina Com- 

 mission of Forestry has supplied increasing quan- 

 tities of seedlings from its nurseries; in the fiscal 

 year 1940-41 nearly 14^/^ million were distributed, 

 about two-thirds going to farmers and less than a 

 tenth to industrial and other nonfarm private land- 

 owners (4). 



Federal cooperation with the States in raising and 

 distributing forest tree seedlings is authorized under 

 the Clarke-McNary Act and the Cooperative Farm 

 Forestry Act, but these permit the distribution of 

 planting stock only to farmers. To extend Federal 

 cooperation to industrial and other nonfarm timber- 

 land owners, and to increase the distribution for 

 farm use, would require amendment of one or both 

 of these acts. Without such amendment, the cost 

 of reforestation expansion is a State responsibility, 

 and State allotments to meet the growing needs 

 should be provided. 



Equitable Forest Taxation 



Property taxes in South Carolina fall on the ma- 

 turing forest crop more heavily than on any other 

 soil crop. The taxation of forests and forest lands 

 shares the inequities of taxation affecting other 



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