A SUMMARY OF THE TIMBER RESOURCE REVIEW 



77 



There are certain sectional variations within the 

 same ownership group which are worth noting 

 (table 47). For example, recently cut national- 

 forest lands in the South and the North have a 

 higher proportion in the upper productivity class 

 than do western national forests. On the other 

 hand, State, county, and municipal lands show a 

 considerably higher proportion of operating area 

 in the upper class if they are located in the North. 

 In contrast to these two public ownership groups 

 which show better forest condition in the North 

 or South than in the West, the lumber industry 

 shows just the reverse with 78 percent of its 

 recently cut lands in the West qualifying for the 

 upper class as against 68 and 69 percent for the 

 North and the South. The pulp industry shows 

 still a different pattern with 94 percent or more of 

 its recently cut lands qualifying for the upper class 

 in the South and the West, and 66 percent in 

 the North. 



The farm and "other" private ownerships, which 

 are in poorest condition for the country as a whole 

 and are so important from an area standpoint, 

 show considerable variation between different sec- 

 tions of the country. Farm ownerships in the 

 South have the lowest rating with one-third of the 

 recently cut lands in the upper class and 28 percent 

 in the lower class. In the North, over half of the 

 farm -owned lands qualify for the upper class. The 

 "other" private ownership likewise shows the 

 poorest ratings for the South with 44 percent in 

 the upper class. 



Productivity Varies by Forest Type 



Forest type is another of the variables affecting 

 condition of recently cut lands. 



In the East, for all ownerships combined, the 

 aspen-birch and maple-beech-birch types show the 

 highest proportion of recently cut lands in the 

 upper productivity class. The oak-gum-cypress 

 and elm-ash -Cottonwood types, on the other hand, 

 show the smallest proportion in the upper class. 

 It does not follow, however, that the forest types 

 which show relatively small amounts in the upper 

 class necessarily show the largest proportion in the 

 lower class. Those types that have the biggest 

 proportions in the lower productivity classes in 

 the East (and they all average about 20 percent) 

 are longleaf-slash pine, loblolly-shortleaf pine, and 

 oak-pine (table 50). 



In the West, particularly in the Northern Rocky 

 Mountain Region, the western white pine and larch 

 types are conspicuous by the relatively low propor- 

 tions that qualify in the upper class. Produc- 

 tivity of the western white pine type is related to 

 the ecology of blister rust. In order to reduce 

 subsequent direct blister rust control cost, it is 

 necessary, following cutting, to provide sufficient 

 cover to shade out the alternate hosts for the 

 blister rust — currant and gooseberry plants. This 



Table 50. — Productivity oj recently cut commercial 

 forest land, by forest type group, 1953 



Forest type group 



Eastern type groups: 



White-red-jack pine 



Spruce-fir 



Longleaf-slash pine 



Loblolly-shortleaf pine_ 



Oak-pine 



Oak-hickory 



Oak-gum-cypress 



Elm-ash-cotton wood 



Maple-beech-birch 



Aspen-birch 



All eastern types _^ 



Western type groups: 



Douglas-fir 



Hemlock-Sitka spruce.. 



Redwood 



Ponderosa pine 



Western white pine 



Lodgepole pine 



Larch 



Fir-spruce 



Western hardwood 



All western types. . 



All forest type groups 



Productivity class 



Upper 



Percent 

 56 

 69 

 62 

 55 

 59 

 54 

 44 

 40 

 76 

 84 



60 



77 

 90 

 88 

 73 

 20 

 89 

 43 

 73 

 75 



75 



65 



Medium 



Percent 

 32 

 28 

 19 

 24 

 23 

 35 

 42 

 49 

 20 

 14 



26 



19 

 9 

 12 

 23 

 48 

 8 

 43 

 20 

 25 



20 



24 



Lower 



Percent 



12 



3 



19 



21 



18 



11 



14 



11 



4 



2 



14 



4 



32 



3 



14 



7 



5 

 11 



shade is also unfavorable to establishment of 

 western white pine. Consequently, because of 

 the blister rust control problem, forest conditions 

 favorable to prospective stocking with western 

 white pine often are deliberately not created until 

 some time after cutting. Western types that 

 have the largest proportion of recently cut lands 

 in the upper productivity class are hemlock-Sitka 

 spruce, lodgepole pine, and redwood. 



Clear Cutting, on Small Ownerships 



Although clear cutting need not result in lower 

 productivity than partial cutting, that condition 

 was found on small private ownerships under the 

 clear cutting that is now being practiced. Whereas 

 58 percent of the small private ownerships that 

 are partially cut fall in the upper productivity 

 class, only 32 percent of clear-cut lands in the 

 same ownership group were so classified. Some- 

 what the same pattern is evident in the medium 

 and large private ownerships, but not with the 

 public lands. 



In general, lands cut for a combination of both 

 sawtimber and cordwood products are left in 

 better condition than those cut for either one or 

 the other product alone. 



