50 years were classed as good, IJ^ to 3 logs as fair, 

 and 1 log or less as poor. 



The results of this classification are summarized in 

 table 8. Thus, roughly half the area in each forest 

 type is classed as fair, but there is considerable varia- 

 tion in the proportion of good and poor sites. The 

 poor site quality of much of the shortleaf and up- 

 land hardwood types may be attributed to the fact 

 that they are most common on the abandoned old 

 fields of the piedmont whose productivity has been 

 decreased by cultivation and erosion. Similarly, 

 the longleaf pine has a large proportion of poor site 

 quality because much of it is on the dry, sandy soils 

 of the sandhills. 



Table 8. — Proportion qfjorest-type areas in three site classes, J 936 



Forest Type 



Good 



Fair 



Poor 



Loblolly pine 



Longleaf pine 



PiTcent 

 42.1 

 21.1 



8.1 

 45.4 



8.6 



Percent 

 57. S 

 54.5 

 51.1 

 49.1 

 66.3 



Percent 

 0.4 

 24.4 



Shortleaf pine 



40.8 



Bottom-land hardwoods 



Upland hardwoods 



5.5 

 25.1 







Altogether, 85 percent of South Carolina's forest 

 area shows site qualities favorable to the production 

 of commercial timber. Of the remaining 15 percent 



(1.6 million acres), classified as poor site, a portion 

 will improve as the depleted soils are rebuilt by lit- 

 ter decomposition; but this is a long, slow process, 

 and for many years the timber produced in these 

 areas will be short-boled and of poor quality, suitable 

 only for fuel wood or pulpweod. 



Stocking 



Most of South Carolina's forests are understocked 

 (fig. 28), particularly the younger stands; that is, 

 they do not contain the number of trees or volume 

 of timber that the soil is capable of producing. Poor 

 regeneration on abandoned farm land, repeated 

 fires, and heavy cutting have left widely spaced, 

 branchy, and often poorly formed trees. 



An index to the degree of understocking for all 

 pine types combined is given in table 9. The aver- 

 age cord wood volume per acre of uncut stands by age 

 classes is compared with the average volume on the 

 most heavily stocked 10 percent of the area. The 

 volumes are weighted so as to take into account 

 variations in site quality. The table shows that 

 younger stands in particular are understocked; the 

 21- to 30-year class averages only 29 to 33 percent of 

 the volume contained in the best 10 percent. Even 

 in the 61- to 70-year group, the average uncut stand 

 is only half as well stocked as the best 10 percent. 



Figure 28. — Understocked lob- 

 lolly pine. Compare it with 

 the denser stand shown in 

 figure 26. 



27 



