84 FORESTRY INVESTIGATIONS U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



attacked by sawflies [Loplnjrus) than the tender young leaves of the lougleaf pine, as by the 

 rapidity of their growth the young leaves sooner harden, and are therefore less relished by these 

 depredators. The evidences of the work of the pine leaf miners (caterpillar of Gclccliia) have 

 been frequently observed in Alabama, and everywhere are seen the deformities caused by gallflies 

 and scale insects. 



Natural reproduction. — If the shortleaf pine has been spoken of emphatically as the future 

 timber tree of the light-rolling uplands of the interior, the loblolly pine might be fitly designated 

 as the timber tree of greatest promise in a large part of the coast plain from the Middle Atlantic 

 States to the limits of compact forest growth beyond the Mississippi Eiver. The promptness 

 with which it colonizes the old fields and other clearings, and the tenacity with which it retains 

 from one generation to another the ground once taken possession of, clearly point to the important 

 part this tree is to take when the ruthless stripping of timber lands practiced at present gives 

 place to the management of the forests under a system of fostering care, tending to their futuie 

 maintenance and to the disposal of their resources on the principle of true economy with an eye 

 to the future welfare of the country. No timber tree will be found better adapted for forest 

 planting in the southern part of the Atlantic forest division. It is only in the narrow belt of flat 

 woods along the shores of Florida, Georgia, and the eastern Gulf region that it is likely to find 

 its superior in the Cuban pine (Finns heterophylla). 



Besides the advantages of adaptability to varied soil and climate it excels in rapidity of 

 growth during the earliest stages, and the copious production of seeds which, almost without fail, 

 are plentifully distributed every year over the vicinity of the parent trees. As an evidence of the 

 facility with which the reproduction of a compact forest by this pine is effected, it is only necessary 

 to point out the spontaneous groves near the settlements, representing, as they do, every stage of 

 development. 



In the coast region the second growth, if not interfered with under proper soil conditions, 

 yields in Mty to sixty years timber of dimensions rendering it fit to be sawn into lumber well 

 adapted for various uses, as already mentioned. 



Conclusion. — In this attempt at a sketch of the life history of this tree, the object was constantly 

 kept in view of placing its value among the products of the Southern forests in the proper light. 

 From the consideration of the structure of the wood and its physical propeities, it cleaily appears 

 that although inferior to the wood of the longleaf and Cuban pines, the timber of this species 

 fully equals that of shoitieaf pine, and that the present practice of treating them as equivalent 

 seems therefoie justified. 



As an abundant and cheap source of timber of inferior grades, and especially when the 

 rapidity of its growth is considered, the loblolly pine is of no less economic importance than the 

 other timber trees of the same section. At present held in low esteem in the great lumbering 

 districts of the lower South, where the supplies of the superior timber of the longleaf pine still 

 abound and receive the preference, the value of the timber of the loblolly pine is quickly recog- 

 nized in other districts which, but a short while ago boasting of large resources, are now stripped 

 of them. Its physiological peculiarities make it an important factor in the future forestry of this 

 section. Its propagation is successful over a vast expanse in the southern section of the Atlantic 

 forest region, and by its productive capacity, mode of development, and behavior toward com- 

 peting species in the struggle for existence, the loblolly pine possesses great advantages for its 

 natural and artificial renewal, adapting it particularly for the restoration of the forests on the 

 lowlands of the maritime region. 



Comparative Rate of Growth. 



The species naturally develop somewhat differently, according to the soil conditions in which 

 they occur. Without going into a detailed discussion, which maybe found in the bulletin referred 

 to, a comparison of the rate of growth of the four species, based on a large number of measure- 

 ments, gave, for average trees and average conditions, the results shown in the accompanying 

 diagrams (figs. 1 to 3), which permit the determination of the rate of growth at different periods 

 of their life. 



From these it appears that the Cuban pine is by far the most rapid grower, while the longleaf 

 pine, which usually grows associated with the former, is the slowest, loblolly and shortleaf 

 occupying a position between the two. 



