80 



TIMBER RESOURCES FOR AMERICA'S FUTURE 



Perhaps the outstandiBg combination of factors 

 localized to a particular region are the small pri- 

 vate ownerships of the South with 128 million 

 acres in 1.8 million ownerships and only 34 per- 

 cent of the recently cut lands in the upper pro- 

 ductivity class (fig. 39). 



MILLION ACRES 



they own a 

 big part 

 of the 

 commercial 

 forest land 



128 117 62 81 



SMALL ALL FOREST NATIONAL 

 OWNERS OWNERS INDUSTRIES FORESTS 

 SOUTH WEST U.S. U.S. 



34% 74% IV/^ 81% 



only 1/3 of 

 their recently 

 cut land 

 is as productive 

 as might reasonably 

 be expected 



Figure 39 



In addition, forest types enter into the picture. 

 There are "weak" areas in the West in Douglas- 

 fir, ponderosa pine, and western white pine on 

 small ownerships and in larch and western white 

 pine in the larger private and public ownerships. 

 The reason for the productivity of western white 

 pine types is explained on page 77. Likewise, 

 major weak areas show up in the East on small 

 ownerships in all types except maple-beech-birch 

 and aspen-birch, and on larger private ownerships 

 in oak-gum-cypress and oak-hickory. Consider- 

 ing all ownerships, the types with substantial 

 acreages and relatively low productivity appear 

 to be oak-gum-cypress, oak-hickory, and lobloUj^- 

 shortleaf pine. 



Productivity Highest on Public, Forest In- 

 dustry, and Large Private Ownerships 



Public ownerships, forest Industry, and large 

 private ownerships generally are identifiable with 

 relatively high proportions of the recently cut 

 areas in the upper productivity class. There is 

 considerable overlap between the forest industry 

 and large private categories. It is noteworthy 

 that the strong combinations with high propor- 

 tions in the upper productivity class, as shown in 

 figure 38, generally are not as large in acreage as 

 the weak area combinations. The nxunber of 

 ownerships involved in forest industry or large 

 private ownerships is a small fraction (less than 1 

 percent) of those in farm or small private 

 ownerships. 



Strong areas can be identified with respect to 

 forest types in the same manner as weak areas in 

 the preceding discussion. The southern pine 

 types on public and medium and large private 

 ownerships in the South, Douglas-fir and 

 ponderosa pine types in the West, and the 

 maple-beech-birch type in the North are pertinent 

 examples. 



The combinations illustrated in figures 38 and 

 39 are only a selected group. Others could be 

 selected. The particular ones chosen demonstrate 

 how the results of the survey of recently cut lands 

 can be used to identify strength and weakness in 

 the forest situation. 



The Significance of Ownership 



What happens to the timber resources of the 

 United States, both ciu-rently and in the future, 

 depends on the individuals who control private 

 timberland and on the policies of Government 

 agencies which control publicly owned timber- 

 lands. Subject to such legal requirements as are 

 imposed in some States, the ultimate control of 

 private timberlands is exercised bj^ the owner. 

 When an owner is disinterested or Ol informed, 

 other gi'oups such as timber buyers, loggers, or 

 tenants exercise great influence and, in some 

 instances, control for all practical purposes what 

 happens to timber resources on a given property. 

 But fundamentalh", the ultimate control rests with 

 the owner. Consequently, the identity of timber- 

 land owners, their characteristics, and the forces 

 that motivate their decisions are extremely 

 important in their effect on timber supplies. 



For the above reasons, the Timber Resom'ce 

 Review has given special attention to ownership. 

 Some information on ownership of land and timber 

 and on productivity of recently cut lands by kinds 

 of ownership has already been given. The 

 purpose here is to bring together that information 

 in one place and to supplement it with additional 

 information, especially on verj^^ small ownerships. 

 Consequently, there is considerable repetition 



