7 > ** 



P. -L 



:4 s 



3* » ::'.i- ; .3 Jlf?;'^ 



Figure 16. --The free-ranging woods 



hog is probably the worst enemy of 

 longleaf pine. 



During 1952 a new kind of 

 hog damage was noted and studied 

 in La Salle parish, where the hog 

 population is unusually high. The 

 hogs were found to be rooting a 

 basin around 3- and 4-year-old 

 slash and loblolly pine seedlings 

 and then girdling the bark. Near- 

 ly 500 acres of loblolly pine and 

 over 1, 000 acres of slash pine in 

 plantations were 50 to 80 percent 

 destroyed in one season. Where 

 hogs have a choice, however, their 

 order of preference is longleaf 

 first, slash second, and then lob- 

 lolly. 



Deer and rabbit repellents 

 do not keep hogs away from pines. 

 The only solution so far is to keep 

 the hogs out of young pine stands, 

 especially longleaf. 



Damage by cattle . --As a 

 general rule, cattle do not browse 

 pine foliage and have not been re- 

 ported to cause much damage to 

 pine reproduction. However, with increasing numbers of range cattle 

 and the expanded reforestation program, specific instances of severe 

 cattle grazing damage have been noted during recent years. 



Serious damage to pine seedlings has occurred mainly on over- 

 grazed ranges, on spots where cattle concentrated, and in places or 

 seasons in which forage was very sparse. Of course, the most critical 

 damage is on newly planted or seeded areas, where the total number of 

 seedlings is limited. Cattle grazing and trampling may kill small first- 

 year seedlings and reduce the growth of older ones. 



The best solution is to anticipate or recognize and avoid the situ- 

 ations where cattle damage is likely to occur. Here are some general 

 rules to follow: 



- 26 - 



