the ground throughout the 
life of the forest stand — not 
just when pest populations 
get out of hand. While the 
State is called upon to help 
when an outbreak occurs, 
the need for prevention and 
protection through 
management is ever present. 
State forest management 
personnel can give advice to 
landowners, but pest 
problems cannot be dealt 
with regionwide as long as a 
high proportion of the 
nonindustrial private forest 
stands go unmanaged. 
Though the States have 
increased their service 
forestry staffs in recent years, 
there are still inadequate 
numbers of foresters in most 
areas. 
State pest-control staffs are 
called upon to identify and 
assist in the control of many 
insects and diseases besides 
those mentioned above. As 
more suburban homes are 
built on forested lands, the 
calls for assistance have 
greatly increased. Nursery 
operations often encounter 
insect and disease problems, 
some of which can wipe out 
thousands of seedlings in a 
few days. The State seed 
82 
orchard operations have 
also placed new demands 
on pest control staffs to deal 
with the cone and seed 
insects. These pests must 
be controlled to protect 
orchard investments and 
assure that genetically 
improved seed is produced 
and reaches the landowner 
as seedlings for reforestation. 
From 1980 through 1984, 
the Southern States have 
spent an average of 
$7,263,800 annually for forest 
insect and disease 
management. About 
one-third of that came from 
State funds, with the 
remainder from Federal 
sources. The amounts vary 
greatly depending on pest 
conditions from one year to 
the next (table 4). 
Urban Forestry Assistance 
Urban and community 
forestry is another area of 
responsibility recognized in 
recent years by the State 
Foresters. They provide 
technical assistance to help 
cities and towns inventory 
their tree resources and plan 
for establishment, protection, 
