LONGLEAF PINE. 47 
The piney- woods hog consumes large amounts of the seed, or mast ; 
but probably his chief offense springs from his fondness for the thick, 
succulent bark on the taproot and lateral roots of young longleaf 
pines. In southeastern Texas the writer counted as many as fifty- 
two 2-year-old seedlings killed by hogs in 1 square rod, or at the 
rate of 8,320 per acre. It is likely that in the course of one day a 
hog often destroys as many as 200 to 400 young pines. Those from 
2 to 5 years old probably suffer most, but not uncommonly saplings 
up to 10 years of age are killed. The spring season is the favored 
time for attack when the swamps are overflowed and food must be 
sought on the drier lands. In stripping the bark from the roots, 
sometimes the tops are left intact or are bitten off at the surface of 
the ground, and at other times the plants are pulled out of the 
The question of future longleaf pine forests turns 
largely on controlling fires and " razorbacks." Mil- 
lions of acres of young growth have been and are 
being destroyed by these agencies. Is the native hog 
worth while? 
Two experimental tracts at Urania, La., after five 
years of protection against hogs, contained an aver- 
age of 6,440 longleaf saplings per acre, as compared 
with an average of 8 per acre on two similar unpro- 
tected tracts. 
ground. (Fig. 6 and PI. XIX.) With the drying and hardening of 
the soil, or the exhaustion of the supply of trees, operations cease for 
the season. As a rule, a good stand of young longleaf will disappear 
completely in two to four seasons. 
Although the " razorback " is widely and generally distributed, 
especially where stock laws are not enforced, the number of hogs 
present and the amount of damage accomplished appear to be varia- 
ble, and in spite of the hog considerable young longleaf seems to get 
through the hog-danger period, only to go down in the losing battle 
with fires. No damage, so far as known, has been reported from 
blooded hogs, and with the passage of State-wide stock laws and the 
bringing of large tracts of land under farm management, the neces- 
sity for finding means for preventing damage from native hogs is 
lessening. In getting young longleaf stands started a good degree 
of protection against this class of hogs, if they are present, is very 
essential for at least the first five years. 
