14 THE WOODLOT. 



openings. The result is that after a time the woods become very 

 irregular, with trees of many ages and sizes. The reproduction takes 

 care of itself, seed being furnished by the neighboring trees. This 

 method is often very successful, especially with trees capable of living 

 in shad}^ places, like Beech, Maple, Spruce, and Hemlock. With Oak, 

 Chestnut, and Hickory, which can not endure as much shade as the 

 species just mentioned, the young trees are apt to be so shaded from 

 the side, and in some cases from above, b}^ the older trees that they are 

 unable to develop into good specimens. Where this method is used 

 in southern New England, therefore, the woods frequently deteriorate. 



Ordinarily in southern New England the selection method of cutting 

 is practiced with little intention of producing or favoring reproduc- 

 tion. It is often unsuccessful because the owner selects the best trees 

 and leaves the poorest, not only of the merchantable class, but of the 

 smaller trees used for cord wood. The result is that the woodlot runs 

 down into undesirable species and poor individuals. Moreover, dam- 

 age is frequently done to the small trees when the older ones are cut. 

 Much of this could be avoided b}" care in getting out the wood, but 

 ordinarily this care is not exercised, and a great deal of young growth 

 of large prospective value is either destroyed or badly damaged. 



The selection method of cutting is recommended for home woodlots 

 where the inferior wood can be utilized for fuel and the better trees 

 either used or sold for special purposes. In making the cuttings, 

 however, great care must alwa3\s be taken not to injure young growth 

 in felling the trees, to select the inferior species and poor individuals 

 first, and at the same time to make also an improvement thinning, on 

 the principles already explained, among the remaining trees. If the 

 owner will take these simple precautions the woodlot will, after a 

 time, be well stocked with good trees. 



THE SPROUT METHOD. 



A still commoner method of reproduction cutting is the simple sprout 

 or coppice method. This, however, is not often practiced in its best 

 form. It consists in periodically cutting the hardwoods clear and 

 allowing them to sprout up again. This method is very extensively 

 used on woodlots in Europe. The woods are cut at shorter periods 

 than in this country' — usuall}^ in from twelve to twenty years — and 

 are always kept fully stocked by planting up the open places where 

 necessary. One reason why the Europeans cut their sprouts com- 

 paratively young is that after the trees are from 20 to 40 jqslys 

 old the sprouting power of the stumps is apt to fall oS. After forty 

 years some of the stumps ma}^ not sprout after cutting, and others 

 sprout only feebly. When it is desired to raise larger trees in coppice 

 woods, some individuals are allowed to remain over one or more cut- 

 tings. In the United States the sprouts are usually cut from 25 to 60 



