Treesearch

Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana Mill.) seed used in nurseries and for forest seeding ordinarily is collected from standing or felled trees in autumn. Some questions that concern the seed collector are: How early in the season does Virginia pine seed ripen? How does seed viability change if the cones are left on the felled trees?

This is a report on the timber resources of Maine. It is based on the findings of a forest survey made in 1954-58 by the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station, U.S. Forest Service. The Maine survey was part of a nationwide survey that is being made to evaluate the extent and condition of the Nation's forest resources.

The Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters serves the people in managing state forest lands and in helping private owners manage their forest lands. To produce more timber from Pennsylvania forests, the Department applies many different forestry practices. But the more effort it spends in one direction, the less it can spend in others. So the Department must make choices, seeking the directions by which it can gain the greatest possible increase in timber values for the money it spends.

Open-pit or strip mining has become an important method of mining bituminous coal in Pennsylvania. In 1958 some 19.5 million tons of soft coal - 29 percent of the total bituminous production in the State - were produced by this method.

Northern hardwood forests provide the industries of New England with their most valuable woods: yellow birch and sugar maple for veneer, paper birch for turning stock, and other hardwood species for a variety of specialty products. As a result of recent developments in hardwood pulping, these northern hardwood forests now represent a tremendous reservoir of raw material to the pulp and paper industry. To ensure a continued and balanced supply of timber for these wood-using industries, foresters must be well equipped with information on the growth and development of northern hardwoods.

Of the birches in the Northeast, the yellow birch is the elite species, by far the most valuable as a timber tree. More than that, it is one of the largest deciduous trees of northeastern America. It may reach 100 feet in height and more than 3 feet in diameter, and may live to 300 years of age. Pioneers told tales of the gigantic yellow birches they saw.

The eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr.), as its common and scientific names imply, is a native of the eastern United States and adjacent Canada. It is one of the four North American species of this genus. The genus name means "yew-leaved" and is of Japanese origin. In 1763 the species was named Pinus canadensis by Linnaeus. The genus was separated from Pinus in 1847 by S. L. Endlicher and the species was named canadensis in 1855 by the French botanist Elie A. Carriere. Other common names are hemlock, hemlock spruce, and Canada hemlock.

Planting experiments have been conducted for the past 10 years in the scrub oak type at the Delaware-Lehigh Experimental Forest in eastern Pennsylvania. The object of these experiments is to find a practical method of establishing a high forest of greater value than the area's present cover. In the course of these studies it was suggested that soil moisture might be a limiting factor in seedling survival and growth; so a study was made to determine soil-moisture conditions under the components of the scrub oak stand.

Virginia pine has finally attained its rightful place among trees of commercial importance. It has done so in spite of being called "scrub pine" and "poverty pine" - and in spite of the term "forest weed", which has lingered long in the speech of oldtimers who remember the days of timber-plenty.

Black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.) is the largest of the native cherry trees of the United States. It may grow to more than 100 feet in height, and to as much as 5 feet in diameter. It is the only species of its genus that provides lumber for commerce. And this lumber, because of its stability and its superior working qualities, is one of the most precious of cabinet woods.