GROWTH AND UTILIZATION 



163 



Table 100. — Comparison of net annual timber growth and timber cut in the United States and Coastal 



Alaska, 1952 ' 





Growing stock 



Live sawtimber 



Species group and section 



Growth 



Cut 



Ratio of 



growth to 



cut 2 



Growth 



Cut 



Ratio of 



growth to 



cut' 



All species : 

 North 



Billion 

 cu. ft. 

 4. 66 

 6. 80 

 2.78 



Billion 



cu. ft. 

 L94 

 5.06 

 3.76 



2. 40 

 1. 35 



.74 



Billion 



bd.-ft. 

 12.07 

 24. 02 

 IL 31 



Billion 



bd.-ft. 

 6. 70 

 19. 60 

 22.54 



1. 80 



South,.- _. - . . . 



1. 22 



West and Coastal Alaska 



.50 







Totak _ . . - 



14. 24 



10.76 



L32 



47. 40 



48. 84 



. 97 







Softwood : 



North _ ___ 



.82 

 3. 56 

 2. 63 



. 70 

 3.05 

 3.74 



1. 17 



1. 17 



.70 



2. 47 

 14.50 

 U. 04 



2. 37 

 11.72 

 22. 46 



1. 04 



South . . . 



1. 24 



West and Coastal Alaska 



. 49 







Total 



7.01 



7.49 



.93 



28.01 



36.55 



.77 







Hardwood: 



North _______ _ 



3.84 



3.24 



. 15 



1. 24 



2.01 



.02 



3. 10 

 1. 62 

 6. 48 



9. 60 



9.52 



.27 



4. 33 



7.88 

 .08 



2. 21 



South. 



1. 21 



West and Coastal Alaska . . . 



3. 31 







Total 



7.23 



3.27 



2.21 



19. 39 



12. 29 



1. 58 







' For comparisons by regions, see appendix tables 57 through 62. 

 2 Ratios computed before rounding. 



The More Desirable Species Gener- 

 ally Have the Less Favorable 

 Growth-Cut Relations 



Heavy cutting of the more desirable species and 

 limited markets for the less desirable tend to 

 make the growth-cut relations for the former less 

 favorable than for the latter (figs. 66 and 67). 



Among eastern softwoods, for example, saw- 

 timber growth of white, red, and jack pine re- 

 mains less than cut; spruce and fir come next in 

 order with growth not greatly in excess of cut. 

 For the southern yellow pines, the ratio of growth 

 to cut is 1.22. "Other softwoods," including the 

 less valuable hemlock, have the highest ratio of 

 growth to cut. 



Among the eastern hardwoods, yellow-poplar, a 

 species of specialized value, is being cut somewhat 

 faster than it is growing. For other soft hard- 

 woods — those which have access to pulpwood 

 markets but are not generally otherwise under 

 pressure — growth is about VA times cut. Similar 

 ratios appear for the oaks and beech, yellow birch 

 and sugar maple — groups which include species 

 of mixed value. For other hard hardwoods — a 

 group which includes many relatively less desir- 

 able species — sawtimber growth is 2}^ times the 

 cut. Such relations point clearly to an increase 

 in the proportion of the less desirable species in 

 our future timber supply. 



Eastern species: 



Spruce and fir 



White, red, and jack pines 



Southern yellow pines 



Otlier eastern softwoods 



Yellow-poplar 



Other soft hardwoods 



Oaks 



Beech, yellow birch, and sugar 



maple 



Other hard hardwoods 



Western species: 



Douglas-fir 



Ponderosa and Jeffrey pines 



Western hemlock 



White and sugar pines 



Redwood 



Other western softwoods 



Western h ard woods 



In the West — where cutting is largely in virgin 

 timber with little or no net growth — the smallest 

 ratio of sawtimber growth to cut, 37 percent, is 

 that for Douglas-fir, the most heavily used species. 

 The ratios for redwood, western hemlock, and 

 ponderosa and Jeffrey pines are somewhat higher. 

 But for "other softwoods," the group that includes 

 such less desirable species as white and red fir 

 and lodgepole pine, annual growth is 91 percent 

 of cut. Western white and sugar pines appear as 

 an exception to the progression. For these highly 

 prized species, the ratio is almost as high as for 

 "other softwoods." 



Ratio of growth to cut 



Sawtimber 



Growing stock 



1. 11 



I. 20 



.93 



1. 05 



I. 22 



I. 15 



1.39 



1.57 



. 96 



1.33 



1.55 



2. 17 



1. 49 



1. 92 



1. 46 



2. 21 



2. 56 



3. 65 



.37 



. 46 



. 51 



. 79 



. 47 



.63 



.88 



1. 03 



. 40 



.47 



.91 



1. 56 



3.31 



6. 48 



