THE ASHES : THEIR CHARACTERISTICS AND MANAGEMENT. 43 
individual trees or small groups of trees of less than a quarter acre in 
area — which, are gradually enlarged until they meet, it is called the 
shelterwood group method, and where the general cuttings are made 
uniformly over a considerable area it is known as shelterwood com- 
partment method. The latter method is suitable for comparatively 
regular forests, while the former is more applicable to irregular 
forests, including overmature natural forests, and hence is the one 
to be most often used under present forest conditions. The compart- 
ment system is preferable where possible, because it involves less 
expensive and complex silvicultural and lumbering operations. 
In broken or open stands, where ash seed trees occur with com- 
paratively free crowns, the first and second cuttings may be very 
much restricted or even omitted altogether. There will usually be, 
however, in such stands obstructing undergrowth which should be 
removed when there is a good seed year, preferably cut with a brush 
hook or bolo in the late summer so as to encourage the feeble growth 
of tender sprouts which otherwise will likely be winterkilled. The 
mature stand should be removed as soon as possible after reproduction 
takes place. Much of the black and blue ash seed will lie over and 
not germinate till the second year, which may delay removal of the 
mature stand. Previous to the fall of seed much work can be done 
in the way of preparation of the seedbed, especially where it is thick 
and dry: (1) Wounding of the soil in logging operations; (2) burning 
of the forest floor; (3) turning in stock, especially hogs. This kind 
of work is not necessary when the cover is prevailingly of pine needles, 
as ash seed can work its way through (PL XIV, fig. 1). If reproduc- 
tion is inadequate at the first seeding it will not pay (except perhaps 
with green ash) to wait for another seed year, the area should be cut 
clean at once and fail spots planted up. 
CLEAN-CUTTING SYSTEM. 
This consists in clean cutting the stand when there is a good seed 
year at hand. Seed is secured: (1) By making the cutting after the 
seed has fallen; (2) by making strip or border cuttings 100 to 200 
feet wide on the most protected side of the stand, or by clean cutting 
in patches 100 to 300 feet wide, so that seed may be secured from 
trees in the adjacent stand; (3) by clean cutting except for scattered 
seed trees or groups of trees, several good seed trees or groups to' the 
acre if possible, well distributed. Clean-cutting methods are adapted 
only to moist or wet loamy soils with an open seedbed. Preparation 
of the seedbed as described for the shelterwood system will often be 
advisable. Green ash on southern river bottom lands is especially 
adaptable to this system, but the other species of ash are much less so. 
