16 



MISSISSIPPI S FOREST RESOURCES AND INDUSTRIES 



Low stocking is due partly to lack of trees, especially 

 in stands below saw-timber size. A large portion of it, 

 however, is due to the fact that much of the growing 

 space is occupied by cull trees — unmerchantable species 

 on the diy uplands like blackjack oak, turkey oak, and 

 scrubby post oak, and trees of all species which are 

 eliminated from the growing stock because of defect. 

 One out of eveiy four trees of cordwood or larger size 

 is a cull. 



Growing Stock 



Sawlog growing stock totals 29.3 billion board feet,^ 

 an average of 1,776 board feet per acre of forest land. 

 This volume includes all merchantable sawlogs in soft- 

 woods 9.0 inches d. b. h. or larger (diameter breast 

 high ) and in hardwoods 11.0 inches or larger. The 

 loblolly-shortleaf pine type averages 2,013 board feet 

 per acre; the longleaf-slash pine type, 1,143 board feet; 

 bottom-land hardwood, 2,503 board feet; upland hard- 

 wood and upland hardwood-pine types, 1,389 board 

 feet. 



Nearly 60 percent of the total sawlog volume is 

 hardwood. In fact, hardwood species predominate in 

 all regions except south Mississippi (fig. 13). Red 



" All board-foot volumes quoted in this report are net 

 volume by the International '/4-inch kerf rule. Volume by 

 the Doyle log rule would total about two-thirds as much foi 

 the State. 



BILLION 

 BD. FT. 

 I5| 



10 



NORTH 



w^ 



SOUTH 



DELTA 



SOFTWOOD 



HARDWOOD 



oaks, sweetgum, and white oaks are the most abundant 

 hardwood species; loblolly pine is, by far, the most 

 common softwood species (fig. 14). 



SPECIES 



VOLUME 



LOBLOLLY PINE 



SHORTLEAF PINE 



LONGLEAF PINE 



SLASH PINE 



CYPRESS 



OTHER SOFTWOODS 



RED OAKS 



WHITE OAKS 



SWEETGUM 



BLACK a TUPELO GUMS 



OTHER HARDWOODS 



2 3 4 5 



BILLION BOARD FEET 



6 



PJ 7-50 



Figure 14. — Sawlog growing stock by species, 1946-48. 



Total growing stock (which includes sa\vlog grow- 

 ing stock, tops of softwood sawlog trees, and entire 

 stems of cordwood trees to a minimum top diameter 

 of 4 inches inside bark) amounts to 7.7 billion cubic 

 feet or 466 cubic feet (about 7 cords) per acre of 

 forest land. As with sawlog growing stock, hardwood 

 volume exceeds softwood in all regions except south 

 Mississippi (fig. 15). 



Tree and Stand Size 



Alost of Mississippi's timber is of small size. A 

 third of the total growing stock is in trees of cord\sood 

 size (fig. 16), and sawlog volume is concentrated in 

 the smaller sawlog tree sizes (table 2). Softwoods 

 have 43 percent of their sawlog volume in 10- and 



T.\BLE 2. — Sawlog volume in Mississippi, by tree diameter, 1946-48 



lln billion hoard feci— i. c, 000.000,000 omitteai 



DL-imeter class (inches) 



AM species 



Softwood 



Hardwood 



10-12 - 



8.3 

 13.8 

 5.0 

 2.2 



5.3 



5.3 



1.3 



.5 



' 3.0 



14-18 



S.5 



20-24 --- 



3.7 



26 and up 



1.7 







Total 



29.3 



12.4 



16.9 







Figure 13. — Sawlog growing stock by Survey region, 1946^8. 



1 10-inch hardwoods arc not included in sawlog inventory. 



