UTILIZATION AND MANAGEMENT OF LODGEPOLE PINE. 39 
Within the 25 National Forests in which lodgepole pine is the most 
important species the lodgepole-pine type has an estimated area of 
about 9,000,000 acres. The figures for the Deerlodge National Forest 
show an average annual increment of about 55 board feet. Assuming 
that the lodgepole-pine forests throughout the region are producing 
50 board feet per acre per annum, 450,000,000 board feet could and 
should be cut annually, together with a very large amount of material 
from tops, small trees, and thinnings too small to scale. To this 
amount can be added about 300,000,000 board feet produced on the 
6,000,000 acres of lodgepole-pine type in the 45 National Forests 
where the species is of commercial but not of primary importance. 
The grand total of 750,000,000 board feet is approximately 9 times 
the amount of lodgepole pine now being cut each year. 
REFORESTATION. 
Repeated fires have left considerable areas within the lodgepole- 
pine zone practically barren of forest growth. Natural reproduction 
can not be expected on such areas for many years, and it will be 
necessary to reforest them artificially if they are to return to useful- 
ness within a reasonable length of time. Where the main object is 
watershed protection, reforestation work should be confined chiefly 
to the higher altitudes toward the upper limit of the lodgepole-pine 
zone, where the forest cover has the greatest protective value. Where 
the chief object is timber production, the best results will be obtained 
on the better soils near the central part of the lodgepole-pine zone 
where the annual precipitation is 21 inches or more. A certain 
amount of artificial reforestation will also probably be used in the 
future to supplement natural reproduction after cuttings. 
SEED COLLECTION AND EXTRACTION. 
The fact that lodgepole pine bears some cones practically every 
year and a heavy crop every two or three years insures a continuous 
and plentiful seed supply. The cones may be picked either from 
felled or from standing trees, or gathered from squirrel hoards. 
Experience, however, has shown the last method to be the only one 
by which collecting can be done on a large scale at low cost. Cone 
collection from squirrel hoards is carried on in the fall, usually during 
September and October, when the caches are full and easily located 
in the woods. As much as 15 bushels of cones have been found in 
a single cache. Cones can usually be bought at contract prices per 
bushel from local residents who do the collecting. As a rule, one 
man collects from 3 to 6 bushels per day, the number of cones per 
bushel ranging from about 1,600 to 2,200. In good years it should be 
possible to purchase cones for from 30 to 40 cents per bushel, or in 
exceptionally favorable years for even less. The total cost of cones 
at the extraction plant should not exceed 50 cents per bushel. 
