The Alexandria Research Center

Historic, archived document

Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.

The Hlexandria Research Center

John T. Cassady and William F. Mann, Jr

Southern Forest Experiment Station
Philip A. Briegleb, Director

Forest Service, U.S.Dept of Agriculture

Cover: Direct-seeded longleaf pines just starting height growth. (Photo
by Elemore Morgan)

PAY LEANDER

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Figure |.-- Territory served directly by the Alexandria Research Center. The green shading
represents the area originally in longleaf pine forest.

FOREWORD

This booklet describes the work of the Alexandria Research
Center. The Center is a field unit of the Southern Forest Experiment
Station, Forest Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Its special
mission is to find practical solutions to the most urgent land-manage-
ment problems of the cutover longleaf pine lands west of the Mississippi
River (fig. 1).

The Research Center was established in July 1946. It did not
have to start from scratch, however, for it was able to draw on work
begun in 1934 by Forest Service technicians stationed in New Orleans.
In this early period, Philip C. Wakeley, working at the Stuart Nursery
and on the Palustris Experimental Forest, carried out much basic re-
search in pine seed processing, nursery practices, and planting. Many
of Wakeley's plantations are now being used for studies of thinning
methods and other management techniques. In 1944 and 1945, Dr. R. S.
Campbell started studies in forest grazing, forest range improvement,
and the use of chemicals to control scrub oaks. By 1946, therefore, the
Research Center had a very solid foundation on which to base its
program. :

The Center's chief field laboratory is the Palustris Experimental
Forest, which consists of 7,830 acres in two separate tracts (figs. 26
and 27, pp. 48-49). The oldest is the J. K. Johnson Tract, which was
established in 1935; it contains 2,030 acres. The second is the Longleaf
Tract, an area of 5, 800 acres dedicated to research in 1950.

For several years after 1946,the Alexandria Research Center
was financed almost entirely by Federal funds. More recently, public
agencies, private industries, and individuals have contributed facilities,
manpower, and money for cooperative studies. Among the cooperators
are:

Louisiana Forestry Commission

Louisiana Forestry Association

Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station

Kisatchie National Forest

Soil Conservation Service, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture
Bish and Wildlife Service, U. S. Dept. of the Interior

lems.

facilities.

June 1954

Agricultural Research Service, U. S. Dept.

A. J. Hodges Industries, Inc.
Nebo Oil Co.

Industrial Lumber Co.
International Paper Co.
Crosby Chemicals, Inc.

Roy O. Martin Lumber Co.

Hillyer-Deutsch-Edwards Lumber Co.

And eight individual cattle owners.

of Agriculture

In early 1947, a research advisory committee was organized to
help keep the research program aimed at the most vital technical prob-
Currently the committee is made up of the following members:

Pavan

ay

a
He

gee eS

Commission

W. Hayes Dir:é ¢ tor; School of Forestry, Ll. SU:
V. Holbrook General Manager, Long-Bell Lumber Co.
E. King Chief Forester, Industrial Lumber Co.
H. Lewis, Jr. Chief Forester, Crosby Chemicals; Inc.
S. McKean Extension Forester, Agricultural Extension
. Service ox

McLemore Private landowner and cattleman

Mixon State Forester, Louisiana Forestry

M. Palmer, Jr. Chief Forester, Nebo: Oil Co.

Service

A. Ryan Division Forester, International Paper Co.
S. Redding Supervisor, Kisatchie National Forest
E. Williams : Area Conservationist, Soil Conservation

The staff of the Alexandria Research Center is grateful to all who
have cooperated todevelop and maintain the work. Additional cooperation
is in prospect, and it is anticipated that research can soon be started on
problems that so far have had to be neglected because of insufficient

JOHN T. CASSADY
Officer in charge,
Alexandria Research Center

Beale

CONTENTS

THE ALEXANDRIA RESEARCH CENTER

—

REFORESTING THE CUTOVER PINE LANDS . 4
Choice of species. 4
Stimulating longleaf pete Beat 6
Direct seeding . : : 8
Stimulating seed Vaoduetion : 12
Converting scrub oak stands to pine. Ns)
Forest tree improvement 14

MANAGING PINE PLANTATIONS FOR OPTIMUM RETURNS . We)
Thinning loblolly pine plantations 1)
Management of longleaf plantations . ee
Thinning slash pine plantations LLG)

CONTROLLING LOW-VALUE HARDWOODS WITH CHEMICALS . 20
Effective methods developed “ak

IMPROVING MANAGEMENT OF LIVESTOCK AND FORAGE ON

FOREST RANGES . Aen se 24
Management of livectock on Peoweat range 25
Management of forage on forest range . 30
Improvement of forage on forest range. 34

COST AND RETURNS OF GOOD FOREST MANAGEMENT . a9

PUBLICATIONS . 4]

MAPS

Figure 1.--Territory served directly by the Alexandria

Mesoanveh Center lit eve ha ee lasidetront, Cowes

Figure 26. --J. K. Johnson Tract . 48

Figure 27. --Longleaf Tract. 49

Figure 28. --Main roads to Johnson Tract and Longleaf Tract,

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John T. Cassady and William F. Mann, Jr.

Most of the land in the territory served by the Alexandria Re-
search Center is better suited to growing timber than to any other use.
This means that the development and prosperity of the region depend
vitally upon improved forest management. The most pressing need is
to get the huge area of cutover land back into high production quickly
and at a reasonable cost. This step alone would triple the region's pine
timber production.

The territory in question covers 7,141,000 acres in central and
southwestern Louisiana and east Texas (fig. 1). Almost 80 percent, or
5,664,000 acres, is commercial forest land, and less than 10 percent is
cultivated. About half of the forest land once.supported magnificient
stands of virgin longleaf pine (fig. 2), and the whole region is now some-
times called the cutover longleaf pine belt. The other half of the forest
is divided between loblolly and shortleaf pine and upland and bottomland
hardwoods.

Over 20percent of the forest land, or 1,250,000 acres, is barren
of trees and mustbe planted with pine if it is to be restored to timber
(fig. 3). About 3,000, 000 acres of timber land are producing much be-
low full potential because scrub oaks andother low-value hardwoods are
over-abundant and the pine stand is inadequate.

Upland soils are too shallow, poorly drained, or infertile for
farming. Numerous hill farms have been abandoned or converted to
pastures and headquarters for range livestock operations (fig. 4). The
good agricultural land is in the flood plains of the major streams, and
here new farms are still being created by clearing and draining the
land. Thus, the acreage of bottomland hardwoods is decreasing.

Figure 3. --More than a million acres of barren forest land need to be
planted or seeded with pine trees.

Figure 4, --Most hill farms in the cutover longleaf pine belt have either
been abandoned or converted to semi-improved pasture.

The cutover pine lands support an abundant stand of native
grasses, and range livestock grazing is an important industry. The
grass is nutritious in spring and early summer, but decreases in value
as the year advances. Grazing is mostly conducted on the free range
principle. Most of the range is unfenced and all kinds and grades of
stock graze together. Under this system the individual owner has little
control over his own or his neighbor's animals and therefore finds it
impractical or impossible to improve his herd by breeding, by feeding
when range forage is poor, or by practicing good herd management
generally.

The mission of the Alexandria Research Center is to develop
improved methods of reforestation and management to guide forest land-
owners in the task of attaining optimum production and income. When
the Center was established in 1946, its first step was to study the forest
situation in the area and to propose a research program to its Research
Advisory Committee. This group selected, as most urgent, these five
lines of investigation:

Reforesting the cutover pine lands.

Managing pine plantations for optimum returns.
Controlling low-value hardwoods with chemicals.
Improving management of livestock and forage on forest

me wh e

ranges.
5. Determining costs and returns of good forest management.

The progress that has been made in these research projects is
described in the following pages.

REFORESTING THE CUTOVER PINE LANDS

If landowners are to restore their forests to production quickly
and efficiently, research will have to find the answers to many trouble-
some questions.

Under what conditions is it most profitable to plant slash pine?
Longleaf pine? Loblolly pine? How can planting techniques be improved
to attain better survival and growth? Can selection or crossbreeding
develop new pine varieties that will be easier to grow and more pro-
ductive? The cost of planting nursery seedlings is high; can money and
time be saved by sowing pine seed directly in the field? Where pine
seed trees are left, how can they be made to restock the land fully and
quickly? What is the most efficient system of converting the vast acre-
age of scrub hardwoods to pine?

Choice of Species

Since most of the acreage that now needs restocking was once
covered with nearly pure stands of high-quality longleaf, it would seem
natural to plant or seed this species again. The trouble is that longleaf
is hard to get established, while loblolly and slash pine are easy to
plant and grow vigorously on many former longleaf sites. Accordingly,
many landowners have turned to loblolly and slash, despite the fact that
young trees of both species are highly vulnerable to fire.

Slash pine, which does not naturally occur west of the Mississippi
River, has enjoyed the greatest popularity (fig. 5). Recently, however,
heavy damage from ice storms and the southern fusiform rust (Cronar-
tium fusiforme) have caused some landowners to switch to loblolly for

well-drained sites.

Loblolly vs. slash in plantations. --Studies confirm that loblolly
is the better species on average or better sites that are well drained. In
one 23-year-old plantation, the loblolly trees were 2 feet taller and 1
inch larger in diameter than slash. The loblolly yielded 4 cords more
pulpwood per acre than the slash. Nearly 25 percent of the slash pine
had rust cankers on the trunk; loblolly had almost no trunk cankers. Ice
damaged about 50 percent more slash than loblolly pines.

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000 acres of denuded land in central Louisiana have

been planted to slash pine. Is it the best species to plant? The plantations

. --About 100,

Figure 5

and southern fusiform rust, but

have suffered from wildfire, ice storms,

(Photo by Elemore

most of them still have a fairly good stand of trees.

Morgan)

This plantation is now being studied to learn if the early advantage
of loblolly will be maintained.

Slash pine also has distinct values. It yields gum for the naval
stores industry and ordinarily produces a straighter pole than loblolly.
On poorly-drained soils it is unquestionably superior in growth and form
to loblolly. Evidence is accumulating, too, that damage from ice and
fusiform rust can be lessened by planting the trees at a spacing of 6 by
6 feet (1, 200 trees per acre) and keeping the stand dense as it develops.
In a 13-year-old slash plantation, rust cankers were found on 19, 14, 13,
and 11 percent of the trunks of trees planted at the rate of 190, 795, 1,005,
and 1,515 per acre, respectively. Ice damage was also less severe in
the close spacing and the lightly thinned stands.

Development of natural stands of slash pine. --Will heavily stocked
natural stands of slash pine resist disease and ice better than planted
stands? To answer this question, a 250-acre plantation, severely dam-
aged by fires and ice storms, has been divided into 9 plots and cut back
to 70 seed trees per acre. When 2,000 or more well-distributed seed-
lings per acre are obtained, the overstory trees will be further reduced:
three plots will be left with 5 overstory trees per acre, three with 10
trees, and three with 20. On half of each plot the overstory will be re-
moved when the seedlings reach a height of 12 feet and can be prescribe-
burned. On the other half, the overstory will be retained until the first
thinning is made at age 15. ~

This study will help guide landowners in the future management
of the 100,000 acres of slash plantations already started in this area.
Although they have been damaged by wildfire, ice, and disease, many
of these plantations still are reasonably well stocked with pole-size trees
of good form.

Stimulating Longleaf Height Growth

Regardless of the trend toward other species, some landowners
continue to plant longleaf on the cutover lands. Once it is established,
longleaf has some outstanding advantages. First of all--as evidenced
by the original stands--it will grow successfully on the rather dry, sandy
upland soils that cover much of this area. This ability to succeed where
other pines fail arises from longleaf's superior resistance to wildfires
and the fact that it suffers very little from disease after it reaches 5 or
6 feet in height. . Longleaf also produces clean, straight poles and saw-
logs of high quality.

Most of the disadvantages of longleaf belong to the seedling stage:

Planting costs are higher than for the other pines.

First-year survival is comparatively low.

Young stands must be fenced to protect them from woods hogs.

Even under good conditions, longleaf seedlings usually re-
quire at least 3 years to start height growth. The brown
spot needle disease often keeps them ''in the grass" for
several more years, causing loss of growth and further
mortality.

If longleaf is to be planted successfully, methods must be found
to improve survival and stimulate early growth. The most practical
means of stimulating height growth of longleaf seedlings is carefully con-
trolled grass fires that check brown spot disease.

In a 100-acre experimental longleaf plantation started in 1934-35,
plots that were burned at 3 and 6 years of age to retard brown spot in-
fection now have twice as many trees in active height growth as un-
burned plots. Even on the burned plots, however, only 20 to 25 percent
of the original seedlings survived and began growing. Studies were
started in 1949 on the Johnson Tract to find a more satisfactory method
of stimulating height growth. In the first experiment, longleaf seedlings
were planted on replicated quarter-acre plots, each having one of these
site treatments:

Grass burned before planting

Soil disked before planting

Grass burned and soil disked

Furrows plowed with a fireline plow

Old grass rough--no ground preparation.

Each plot was split into four quarters. Seedlings on one quarter
were sprayed with bordeaux mixture and fertilized with an N-P-K mix-
ture. The other quarters got one of these treatments: spray but no
fertilizer, fertilizer but no spray, no fertilizer or spray.

After four years, seedling survival was unusually high on all
plots and had not been increased by any site treatment. Above-average
rainfall favored high survival. Sprayed seedlings were larger and more
vigorous than unsprayed. However, the early advantage gained by
spraying was not great; 54 percent of the sprayed seedlings were making
height growth, as against 40 percent of the unsprayed. The fertilizer
did more harm than good except where seedlings were planted in

furrows. It caused a rank growth
of weeds and grasses that retarded
the pine seedlings. Seedlings de-
veloped best on furrowed plots

that were sprayed and fertilized;
71 percent of the seedlings were
making height growth after 4 years
(fig. 6). The benefits of disking
and furrowing were lost on un-
sprayed plots because brown spot
infection built up more rapidly than
on the uncultivated plots. The
seedlings planted in the grass
rough and given no other treatment
were remarkably successful in
this test--over 50 percent were in
active height growth after 4 years.

Figure 6. --These longleaf pine seed-
lings were planted 5 years ago.

Another study is testing the
effect of clipping the needles on

The largest ones (row to left) were
sprayed with bordeaux mixture to
control the brown spot needle dis-

ease. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

longleaf planting stock or dipping
them in wax. The object is to re-
duce water losses through the
needles until the roots can recover

from transplanting. So far it

appears that clipping the needles to
a length of 5 inches distinctly improves survival ina dry year. Dipping
the needles in wax or other substances has sometimes increased survival
and sometimes reduced it.

Since large nursery seedlings often start height growth earlier
than small ones, special tests are under way on the production and plant-
ing of extra large seedlings. An attempt is also being made to find the
best age to burn longleaf seedlings for disease control. Observations
indicate that the first burn should be made 2 years after planting rather
than 3 years.

Direct Seeding

If all of the treeless longleaf land in Louisiana and Texas were
reforested by planting l-year-old nursery seedlings, the job would take
50 years or more at the present rate. Because direct seeding promises
to be cheaper, faster, and more effective than planting, it has become a

main project of the Alexandria Research Center. Since 1947, about
3,000 acres have been direct-seeded in experiments or tests with long-
leaf, loblolly, and slash pine. No sure-fire method has been found, but
major causes of failure have been identified and work has been con-
centrated on controlling or avoiding these causes.

Seed-eating birds, chiefly meadowlarks and sparrows, are the
greatest obstacle. Coating the seeds with a repellent seems the like-
liest solution, and some chemicals now being tested show promise
(fig. 7). Rodents, another menace to seeds, can usually be controlled
by burning the grass rough. Reduction of the rough also insures that
the seeds will reach mineral soil. Burning should be done at least six
months before seeding, because fresh burns attract birds.

Longleaf. --Research so far indicates that the greatest chance
for success in direct-seeding longleaf pine will be obtained by this
procedure:

1. For average sites: Burn the grass rough at least 6
months before seeding time. The light rough that _
will develop after the burn will be a favorable seedbed.
On dry sites, or for insurance against a dry season:
Burn the grass as above, and also disk during the
summer before seeding to lessen grass competition.
To reduce costs, the disking should be in strips 6 to
8 feet wide and 6 feet apart, and seeding should be
confined to the cultivated strips.

2. Sow seed in November as soon as autumn rains begin
and temperatures are under 80°F. Sowing after
November is not recommended, because the chance of
heavy seed losses to migratory birds is much greater
in December.

3. Sow 10,000 viable seeds per acre. This means about 3
pounds per acre of longleaf seed of average quality.
Seed must be tested to determine viability and the
amount required per acre. The seed can be broadcast
by hand or with hand-operated cyclone seeders (fig. 8).

Airplane sowing has not been satisfactory so far be-
cause of higher costs, poor seed distribution, and
delays during bad flying weather.

Figure 7. --These germinating longleaf seeds were covered with various

chemicals or coatings in an attempt to find a substance that would repel
birds. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

Figure 8. --With a cyclone seeder, one man can sow 30 acres to pine in
8 hours. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

4. Patrol the seeded area each day for several weeks,
especially during very early morning and late evening,
to prevent bird concentrations and to detect other
animals that may be destroying seeds. Special
control measures can be undertaken if needed. Grazing
animals should be excluded for several years, or until
the seedlings are high enough to escape trampling and
browsing damage.

The total cost of seeding has run from $4. 50 to $8. 00 per acre,
depending on the type of seedbed, the price of seed, and the method of
distributing it. In contrast, it costs $10 to $16 per acre to plant long-
leaf seedlings (1, 200 per acre) on nearby areas of the Kisatchie
National Forest.

Loblolly. --Techniques for direct-seeding loblolly pine vary with
cover conditions. So far the best procedure for open grassy areas is to
burn the grass in April or May, and then, in late summer,to disk strips
6 to 8 feet wide and about 6 feet apart.

From the experience of the Alexandria Research Center, it
appears that seed should be cold-stratified for about 90 days at 35°F.,
so that it will germinate promptly. (Tests of individual lots of seed,
however, may indicate different treatment.) The seed should be sown
in late February or early March, on disked strips, at the rate of 1
pound per acre. Since seedlings that germinate in fall are killed by
freezing weather, fall sowing has not been successful. Disking is
necessary because the newly germinated seedlings are unable to com-
pete with the grass.

On upland sites dominated by low-grade hardwoods, the best
method so far is to sow one pound of unstratified seed per acre ona
fresh burn in early November. The seed will not germinate until
spring, and falling leaves will conceal most of it from birds and
rodents.

Slash. --Slash pine seeding studies have not yet reached the
point where recommendations can be made. However, it has been
determined that slash seedlings can withstand freezing temperatures
and can come through on undisked grassy areas. This may mean that
slash can be sown in the fall, when both birds and rodents are less of a
problem than in the spring.

Ss Milo

Stimulating Seed Production

A considerable portion of the cutover longleaf pine area supports
scattered seed trees singly or in groups. Natural reseeding has failed,
in many cases, because good seed years have been few and far between.
There is hope, however, that these seed trees can be made to yield

larger and more frequent seed crops.

The following treatments are

under test with both longleaf and slash pines:

Figure 9. --Fastening a tight metal
band around the tree at stump height
seems to stimulate cone production.
(Photo by Elemore Morgan)

Partial girdling. Two half rings

are cut around the tree down to
the wood. The rings are about
1-1/2 inches wide and are placed
on opposite sides of the trunk, one
about 4 inches higher than the
other.

Strangulation at stump height. A
tight metal band is bolted around
the tree about 12 inches above the
ground (fig. 9).

Strangulation high on the bole.
Metal bands are bolted around the
tree in or just below the live
crown.

Hormone treatment. A 0. 2-per-
cent solution of 2, 4-D is put into
an intermittent frill around the
tree about 2 feet above the ground.

The first three of these
treatments have been used with
success in Europe. The hormone
treatment is new. The study was
installed in 1952.

= [De

Converting Scrub Oak Stands to Pine

Many upland sites have been taken over completely by scrubby
hardwoods--very little or no pine is left. These areas produce no tim-
ber and have low grazing value. A study installed in 1948 on the Kisatchie
National Forest shows that they can be converted back to pine quickly and
at a reasonable cost.

Loblolly, slash, and longleaf seedlings were planted at 6-foot in-
tervals under a fairly dense stand of inferior upland oaks. The oaks were
then girdled or poisoned to release the pines. Some plots were released
immediately after planting, some one year later, and some two years
later.

Hogs destroyed the longleaf seedlings after the first year, but the
slash and loblolly plots showed that both survival and height growth are
improved if the pines are released by hardwood control soon after plant-
ing (fig. 10). The longer release is delayed, the poorer will be the sur-
vival and development. Table 1 shows results three years after planting.

Figure 10.--These 5-year-old loblolly pines are growing on a site former-
ly dominated by worthless hardwoods. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

Table 1. --Three-year survival and height growth of pine seedlings re-
leased from overtopping scrub oaks

Loblolly pine Slash pine

Survival GCI Survival
height

Time of release Average

Percent meet Percent Heer
Immediately after planting 86 4.3 46 3.4
One year after planting 62 32 36 Zen
Two years after planting 39 Zit Si ray |
Not released 33 ib, (72 27 126

Girdling was as effective as poisoning in removing the oaks and
releasing the pine. Girdled trees sprouted more than poisoned ones,
but the pines outgrew the sprouts. Therefore, the cheapest method of
release is recommended. Other studies have indicated, however, that
where longleaf is being released, poisoning is necessary to prevent the
hardwood sprouts from resuppressing the seedlings before they are out
of the grass stage.

The pines that were released immediately after planting sur-
vived well during 1948. In contrast, the severe drouth of 1948 killed
nearly all seedlings planted in adjacent open areas. Survival was good
in 1948 because there was very little competition for available moisture
--the hardwoods were dead and the grass stand under the hardwoods
was only one-third as heavy as that in the open. The benefits of this
reduced competition continued for at least 3 growing seasons. By then
the pine trees were well established and above the grass.

Forest Tree Improvement

The Alexandria Research Center is participating in a South-wide
genetics program that seeks to breed fast-growing, well-formed,
disease-resistant pines, including hybrids. Work at Alexandria is con-
centrated on crossing trees that possess outstanding characteristics.
One such tree is a longleaf pine that, as a seedling in the nursery, dis-
played high resistance to brown. spot infection. Now that it is large
enough to produce cones, its flowers are being carefully selfi-pollinated.
Seedlings from this tree will be watched to see if they also can with-
stand brown spot.

= 4b =

MANAGING PINE PLANTATIONS FOR OPTIMUM RETURNS

By 1954, the Alexandria area already had 160,000 to 180,000 acres
of pine plantations; 15,000 to 25,000 acres more are being planted each
year. Since pine tree planting requires an investment of $7 to $16 per
acre, it is essential that landowners manage plantations so as to pro-
vide early, high, and sustained income. They especially need to know:

1. When the first thinning should be made.
How heavily to thin for various management objectives.

3. The type of trees to retain in stands being managed for
maximum growth of high-quality sawtimber.

4, The feasibility and best system of pruning in under-
stocked stands.

5. How and when to prescribe-burn for brown spot control.
or hazard reduction.

6. How to minimize damage from wildfire, insects, disease,
and storms.

Thinning Loblolly Pine Plantations

A thinning study in cooperation with the Louisiana Forestry Com-
mission was started on the Alexander State Forest in 1948. The study
tract is 40 acres of loblolly pine planted in 1928 at four different
spacings (4 by 4, 6 by 6, 8 by 8, and 10 by 10 feet). Light, medium,
and heavy thinnings were made in each spacing when the trees were 20
years old and again at age 25. Unthinned plots were left in the three
widest spacings to determine results of future deferred thinnings. The
thinnings will be repeated every five years.

The medium thinnings at age 20 took out about 11 cords per acre.
The wood sold for enough to repay, with interest, all previous costs of
planting, protection, and land rent. Total growth was greatest in the 8
by 8 spacing, which had 29.5 cords per acre or an average of 1-1/2
cords per acre per year.

At age 25, the 8 by 8 spacing showed a total average yield (in-

cluding the wood removed in thinnings) of 39 cords per acre. This was
slightly more than the total growth on the other spacing blocks. Because

RE

there 1s only one plot (10 acres) of each spacing, the test cannot prove
the superiority of any one spacing. However, the 4 by 4 spacing is ob-
viously too close. Planting costs were excessive and many trees have
been lost by overcrowding. Those trees that remain are small and are
slow in reaching merchantable size. Each of the other spacings shows
some advantages, but the 8 by 8 appears superior for maximum growth
(figs 1s)

The greatest volume growth for the period 20 to 25 years of age
was made on the unthinned plots--those that supported the highest basal
areas or stand densities. Even the light thinning showed reduced vol-
ume growth, but not so much as the heavy thinning. Furthermore, ex-
perience with natural loblolly stands suggests that the unthinned plots or
densest stands will continue to produce the most wood until about age 35.
It seems, therefore, that if loblolly pine plantations are being managed
for maximum production of pulpwood on a short rotation, they should not
be thinned at all.

Figure 11l.--The 8 by 8 loblolly plantation after the second medium thin-

ning. Enough well-spaced trees are left for an early crop of sawlogs.

(Photo by Louisiana Forestry C
nae * 3 ; 7 mea a ) 7

ommission)

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But when sawlogs or other large products are being grown, timely
thinnings are desirable. In this study, the heaviest thinnings not only pro-
duced the fastest diameter growth but also concentrated it on selected crop
trees. The heavy thinnings will give comparatively early production of
large poles, piling, and sawlogs. It is of interest that the best rate of
growth was around 2.5 inches in 10 years even on widely spaced and
heavily thinned plots where trees had more than half their height in live
crown. This is a bit short of the oft-advocated goal of 3.0 inches of
diameter growth in 10 years.

To stimulate diameter growth, thinnings must be heavy (fig. 12).
However, when heavy thinnings are made, volume growth per acre is re-
duced. During the 5 years between cuttings, the heavily thinned plots in
this study forfeited 3 cords of pulpwood growth while gaining only an
extra 0.35 inch of diameter growth.

Management of Longleaf Plantations

A 100-acre longleaf pine plantation was established in 1934-35 on
the Johnson Tract for a study of spacing, prescribed burning, pruning,
and thinning.

On 60 acres, seedlings were planted at rates of 250, 700, 1,150,
1,600, 2,150, and 2,500 per acre. This part of the plantation has been
protected from fire. On the other 40 acres, seedlings were planted at
only four rates--250, 1,150, 1,600, and 2,500 per acre. At 3 years and

Figure 12. --Increment cores taken from the 8 by 8 loblolly plantation
when the trees were 25 years old. Heavy thinning was necessary to boost
diameter growth. Light thinning merely prevented a decline. (Photo by
Louisiana Forestry Commission)

AGE 20 YEARS: _
FIRST THINNING

Ein

© 6 years after planting, these plots
"., were prescribe-burned to control
» brown spot needle disease. Wild-

‘fires burned over them at 8 years
en 4 and 17 years after planting. Another
Wf controlled burn to remove excess
fuel was made in February 1950,
. 15 years after planting.

_

At age 15, there were about
twice as many trees in active height
growth on the burned plots as on the
; unburned plots. For example, on
Sj areas planted at the rate of 1, 600
- trees per acre, unburned plots had
only 176 trees per acre in active
height growth while burned plots
Si had 363. These plots are fairly
typical of the difficulties that have
= been experienced in growing planted
longleaf. During the first 15 years
© all plots suffered losses from town
ants, hogs that temporarily invaded
' the fenced plantations, salamanders
(eastern pocket gophers), and
brown spot. Fires reduced the
& stands on the burned plots, but not
So much as the brown spot infection
on the unburned plots.

ne
AS.

Lek Bi

SS ; ¥ 3% When the stands were 16
Figure 13. --In open-grown stands, years old, three pruning treatments
100 longleaf trees per acre can be were applied to a total of 4, 800
pruned to a height of one log for rough, limby trees in the wider-
about $5.50. (Photo by Elemore spaced plots: 1. --All trees pruned
Morgan) up toa height of 17 feet (1 sawlog);
2. --One hundred selected trees per
acre pruned to 17 feet (fig. 13); 3. --One hundred selected trees per acre

pruned to about two-thirds of the tree height.

One-log pruning required 3 man-minutes of labor for a tree 4
inches d.b.h. and 6 minutes for an 8-inch tree (which usually had larger
branches). At 85 cents per hour for common labor and 25 cents per hour
for transportation, supervision, and other expenses, pruning costs per
tree averaged from 5.4 to 11.1 cents.

sRTIG I

Pruning higher than 17 feet was harder and more expensive. It
took only 3. 3 minutes to prune a 6-inch tree to 17 feet, as compared to
5.5 minutes to prune to 23 feet.

As the trees are cut, a special study will be made to determine
if the increased return from pruned trees will repay the investment in
pruning. Thinning studies will be started in these plantations in 1955.

Thinning Slash Pine Plantations

There is considerable evidence that much damage to slash pine
plantations is caused indirectly by heavy thinnings or wildfires that
leave the stands open. Asa rule, fully stocked slash stands have good
resistance to both ice damage and fusiform rust.

The only unburned slash plantation on the Johnson Tract has
been placed under study to determine if planted slash will produce satis-
factory yields of pulpwood, poles, pilings, and sawlogs in central
Louisiana. The plantation is 8 acres in size and was planted in 1934-35
at the rate of 1,150 trees per acre (a spacing of 6.25 by 6.25 feet). Be-
cause the stand has never been depleted by fire or cutting, it is still
relatively dense and will be kept this way by light thinnings at 3-year
intervals.

It was first thinned in 1948, when 5.7 cords per acre were re-
moved from a total stand of 14.4 cords. The 1951 ice storm destroyed
1.8 cords that were not salvaged. The second thinning, in 1952, took
out 3.4 cords per acre from a total volume of 20.2 cords. Total growth
has so far been 25.9 cords per acre in 18 years, an average of 1.4
cords per acre each year. This plantation has suffered insignificant
damage from the series of severe ice storms that heavily damaged
nearby slash plantations that had been opened up by wildfires.

= nO: =

CONTROLLING LOW-VALUE HARDWOODS WITH CHEMICALS 1/

When the virgin pine was harvested, a variety of small hardwood
trees and sprouts was left on many areas and immediately started growing
and spreading. Today hardwood trees and brush dominate about one-
third of the cutover pine land and have encroached heavily on another one-
third. In many places they are too thick for pine seedlings to become
established. Where pines do get started, they are often smothered or
badly suppressed for many years. These upland hardwoods--chiefly
blackjack oak, post oak, red oaks, sweetgum, and hickory--have little or
no value for timber (fig. 14).

Foresters have found that it pays well to remove or deaden such
trees to release pine seedlings for rapid growth. Some range cattle
owners are also eradicating the scrub hardwoods, because they reduce
the amount of forage and form thickets that interfere with livestock
management. Ina study on the Longleaf Tract, grass forage increased
from about 700 to 1,900 pounds per acre inthe first three seasons after
a heavy hardwood stand was controlled.

The old-fashioned double-hack girdle is most practical for many
hardwood control situations. However, some trees live a year or longer
after being girdled. Trees under 12 inches in diameter are apt to sprout
vigorously, often sending up several stems to replace the old trunk. For
these and other reasons, forest landowners need improved control
techniques that will give quick and positive kills, reduce or eliminate
sprouting from stumps and roots, and require a minimum of manual
labor, especially hazardous ax work. It is also very important that
control methods be economical, for they will be applied on hundreds of
thousands of acres.

1/ In January 1954, funds and manpower for these plant-control studies
were transferred to the Agricultural Research Service of the U. S.
Department of Agriculture. The ARS is continuing the work in close
cooperation with the Alexandria Research Center.

LA 2OF =

way a Se © Re ett

Figure 14. scrub oaks have invaded large areas of cut-
over pine land. Pine planting is needed on some of these areas and hard-
wood control is needed on all of them.

Since 1944, research has been under way at Alexandria to develop
effective methods of controlling hardwoods with chemicals. The Research
Center has tested many substances, particularly those not poisonous to
humans, livestock, or game. The-object is to find the cheapest and most
effective tree killers, the best concentrations and seasons of application,
and the most efficient methods of getting the chemical into the tree.

Effective Methods Developed

The first and still the most reliable chemical method developed
at Alexandria is that of placing one tablespoon of Ammate (the trade
name of ammonium sulfamate) crystals in notches chopped 6 inches
apart, edge-to-edge, around the base of the tree (fig. 15A). This
method kills scrub oak trees quickly and allows very little sprouting. It

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is being used throughout the United States wherever a quick and positive
kill is needed on small or medium-sized scrub oaks. It is less effective
on large,tall trees.

The next method developed at Alexandria is that of pouring a
water solution of Ammate into a frill made around the tree trunk ata
convenient chopping height. A frill is a single-hack girdle that severs
the bark and peels it back slightly (fig. 15B). A 19.3 percent solution is
recommended; it is made by dissolving 2 pounds of Ammate crystals ina
gallon of water.

The frill-and-solution method kills large hardwoods readily and
is cheaper and more convenient than the crystal-in-notch system. There
is usually some sprouting, but if the pines beneath the hardwoods are at
least 1 or 2 feet tall they can usually keep ahead of the sprouts. Many
industrial foresters in Louisiana and elsewhere now use _ this as the
standard hardwood control method.

Complete instructions for using Ammate are available in a leaf-
let, ''How to control southern upland hardwoods with Ammate,"' pub-
lished in 1949 by the U. S. Department of Agriculture.

In recent years, many new chemicals have come into use as
agricultural weed-killers. The Alexandria Research Center has screened
and tested the best of these on scrub hardwoods and recommends two of
them: 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D.

When applied in frills during spring or fall, 2,4, 5-T (16 pounds
of acid equivalent in 100 gallons of diesel oil) kills over 90 percent of the
tree tops, with not much sprouting from stumps. 2,4-D (16 pounds of
acid equivalent in 100 gallons of diesel oil) is a little cheaper but not
quite so thorough. Both treatments cost slightly more than Ammate so-
lution in frills but are more effective, especially in sprout reduction.

Trunk spraying with the oil solution of 2,4,5-T is also useful
(fig. 15C). Scrub oaks and hickory were killed by spraying the lower 16
inches of the trunks until the bark was wet. Trunk spraying costs nearly
one-third more than pouring solution into frills, but ax work is elimi-
nated and the costs may be reduced by further tests.

a Pave

IMPROVING MANAGEMENT OF LIVESTOCK
AND FORAGE ON FOREST RANGES

After the great lumber mills had cut out and moved westward,
the production of range livestock became a logical occupation for most
residents of the pineywoods. The upland soils were too poor for row-
crop farming, but native forage was abundant and free. This situation
still exists on several million acres where the pine stand has not re-
covered adequately. Cattle, hogs, and sheep are the chief types of
stock.

In 1944 to 1946, surveys of the grazing situation of Louisiana
forest ranges pin-pointed severe problems that needed detailed study
and correction.

First of all, meat production per animal is extremely low--
about one-third of that possible under good management. This low
production results from a combination of factors: serious deficiencies
in native forage during fall and winter that are not compensated for by
adequate supplemental feeding; low-grade stock and uncontrolled
breeding; inadequate control of diseases, insects, and internal para-
sites; and the general lack of good management that goes with free,
unfenced forest range.

Another major problem is that range livestock grazing often
prevents successful pine reproduction and growth. Pine seedlings are
destroyed by fires that livestock owners set to eliminate old grass and
otherwise improve grazing. Livestock destroy pine reproduction
directly by rooting, browsing, and trampling. Hogs, for example,
relish longleaf pine seed and root up smali pines to eat the fleshy part
of the roots. Sheep nip succulent spring buds on small longleaf pines.
Cattle trample or browse seedlings on over-grazed areas. Much of
this damage is in late winter and early spring, when livestock forage
is scarce.

It was concluded from these early surveys that forest range
grazing research should be concentrated in three closely related pro-
jects: Management of livestock, management of forage, and improve-
ment of forage.

eye

Management of Livestock on Forest Range
The studies under this project have two major objectives:

To find practical systems of grazing forest ranges
with no significant damage to timber; and

To find a system of range beef cattle management
that will greatly increase beef production per cow
and per acre.

The nature and extent of grazing damage has been determined and
reported sufficiently for landowners and livestock owners to eliminate
most of the damage, if they work together. However, studies so far
have not developed an acceptable management system to increase beef
production.

Hog damage to pine reproduction. --Free-ranging woods hogs
destroy longleaf pine plantations that are not fenced or otherwise pro-
tected for the first 5 to 10 years. Hogs also prevent the establishment
and growth of natural longleaf seedlings. Very few longleaf plantations
or natural seedling stands in central and southwest Louisiana have been
kept free of hogs long enough to produce good stands of second-growth

longleaf.

Many people believe that hogs get a spring tonic from eating pine
roots. The truth is that the fleshy root has a very high percent of carbo-
hydrates--80 percent, about equal to corn--and hogs eat the bark because
they are hungry. Nearly all hog damage to pines occurs in late winter
and spring. At this season pine and oak mast is gone and other food is
scarce, but pine roots are succulent and the ground is soft for rooting.

One adult hog can root up and kill seedlings at the rate of 5 or 6
a minute. He can destroy a whole acre of planted seedlings in a day or
two (fig. 16). Hogs sometimes return to an area year after year, until
all young pines have been rooted out. Longleaf seedlings are especially
vulnerable because they often remain in the grass stage of growth for 4
years or more,

Hogs also root up and peel fleshy lateral roots of longleaf and

slash pine saplings. This may not kill the trees, but it leaves them
susceptible to wind-throw and disease.

arses

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

24 aay ay ae the hogs out of young pine stands,
Seu mawhex Oa. especially longleaf.

Figure 16. --The free-ranging woods

hog is probably the worst enemy of Damage by cattle.--Asa
longleaf pine. 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:

as

1. Do not permit any grazing on direct-seeded areas for
at least 3 years after seeding. The amount of grazing
allowable thereafter will depend on circumstances too
numerous to list here.

2. Protect plantations of 1-0 pine seedlings from grazing
for at least 2 years, if practical. Some seedling loss
will occur even under moderate grazing. However,
there may be situations where the landowner will feel
that the cost of fencing and livestock exclusion will
exceed seedling losses from grazing.

3. Do not permit overgrazing of any forest range. For
yearlong grazing, each cow needs 12 to 15 acres of
open range, 16 to 30 acres of average piney woods range,
and 30 to 50 acres in well-stocked timber stands with
scattered openings or firebreaks.

4, Watch out for and prevent undue concentrations of
cattle. Any treatment that stimulates grass growth
usually attracts cattle and results in concentrated grazing.
The damage is apt to be great if the treated area is small
in comparison to the surrounding range even if it is—
lightly stocked with cattle.

5. Although this section deals with cattle specifically,
it should be kept in mind that pine reproduction may suffer
even greater damage from sheep, goats, and horses.

Serious cattle concentration and damage has occurred in these
situations:

Burned areas. Small burns ina large grazing area are bad.
Fall or winter burns to prepare planting sites leave essentially
nothing to graze until the next spring, except the planted pines.

Cultivated or disked areas. Cattle flock to such areas or strips
as soon as the new grass starts growing. In one instance the
disturbance of old grass rough by a planting machine was suffi-
cient to draw cattle from the surrounding open range.

Fertilized areas. Cattle may graze such areas closely enough
to destroy the native grasses and pine seedlings.

m7 eee

Timber-stand-improvement areas. Grass grows vigorously
under the dead hardwoods and is choice forage.

Winter feeding of range beef cattle. --During fall and winter the

forage on pine forest range 1s seriously deficient in protein and other
nutrients. Since many cattle graze the range yearlong, they need supple-
mental winter feed if they are to do well.

A feeding study was started in December 1946 in cooperation with
the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station and the Bankston-Donald-
son Stock Farm near Dry Prong, Louisiana. Range beef cattle were
divided into three equal lots and fed a daily ration of cottonseed meal
during the winter months. One lot received 1.7 pounds of cottonseed
meal per head per day, one lot 2.5 pounds, and one lot 3. 3 pounds.
Feeding continued for three winters. All lots were permitted to graze
on forest range during the winter and most of the rest of each year.

Contrary to expectations, the cottonseed meal did not raise beef
production appreciably during the three years. Furthermore, no real
advantage was gained by feeding 3. 3 pounds of meal instead of 1.7.

What the study did reveal was that the range forage in winter has un-
suspected deficiencies that cannot be corrected merely by feeding a
protein supplement. The extent of these deficiencies was not clear, but
the animals seemed to need more carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins
than they were getting. Bull service was poor also, probably because of
these same dietary deficiencies.

Management of beef cattle on forest range. --Why do beef cattle
that graze the cutover longleaf pine ranges produce less than half as
much beef per cow as those in well-managed western range herds? The
low production is expressed in two ways--calf crops of around 50 per-
-cent, and small calves that weigh from 250 to 325 pounds at weaning
time(s) a7)

In 1951 a study was started on the Longleaf Tract to finda
system of herd management and nutrition that will materially increase
beef production where range forage makes up a major part of the cattle
diet (fig. 18). This is a cooperative study presently using three herds
of cattle owned by W. M. Monroe, Alfred Tate and S. C. Duplissey,
and E. H. Winegeart. The cows graze for 8 to 12 months each year on
three fenced experimental pastures containing about 580 acres each.

The cattle were placed in the pastures during the fall of 1951,
and preliminary herd management and production records were

SPAS Ss

Figure 17. --Cattle that graze unrestricted on pine forest range usually pro-
duce one small calf per cow every two years. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

Figure 18.--This herd is being studied to see if the production of range
beef cattle can be materially increased by improved breeding, adequate
yearlong nutrition, and the control of diseases, insects, and pests.

started. The results so far fur-
ther emphasize the low production
of range beef cattle in this area.
Average calf crops for all herds
were 52.0 percent in 1952 and 51.0
percent in 1953. The highest calf
crop was about 62.0 percent and
the lowest was 44, 4 percent.

Even though the cattle
owners provided a fairly high level
of supplemental feed during winter,
they have not been able to increase
calf crops. The cost of winter
feeding averaged $9. 09 in 1951-52,
$11.38 in 1952-53, and $8.41 in
1953-54. The feeding seasons
lasted from 100 to 130 days and
averaged 115 days, mostly in
December, January, February, and
early March.

Figure 19.--Harvesting a grass The owners fed distinctly
plot in a study of the productivity different rations and costs varied
of Louisiana's forest ranges. In between herds, but no system has
the 3 years after the hardwoods proved superior to the others so
in the background were deadened, far. It seems evident that supple-
grass production doubled and the mental feeding or better forage is
growth of pine seedlings increased needed during late summer, fall,
markedly, (Photo by Louisiana and winter, and that the ration
Forestry Commission) should be "'tailor made" to supply

the forage deficiencies of each
season. However, no amount of feeding will be effective or profitable _
unless the cattle are well managed in other respects--mainly breeding
practices, culling, grade improvement, and control of diseases, insects,
and parasites.

Management of Forage on Forest Range

The studies discussed here were established to determine and de-
scribe the physical, chemical, nutritional, and ecological qualities of
forage on the cutover forest lands (fig. 19). This information is needed
for proper management of forest ranges, and it now appears basic to the
development of effective supplemental feeds for range caitle.

iO

Louisiana forage study. --This project was started in 1944 in
cooperation with the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station. It was
completed in 1949. The work concentrated on determining the forage
plants grazed by cattle week by week throughout the year. Samples of
the plants were analyzed by the Feeds and Fertilizer Laboratory of
Louisiana State University. In addition, during 1945, 1946, and 1947,a
herd of 80 beef cows that grazed most of the year on the forest range
was studied to determine grazing habits, weight gains and losses, and
beef production.

It was found that grasses make up over 90 percent of the cattle
diet on forest ranges, with weeds (forbs) furnishing only four percent
and shrubs less than two percent. Bluestem grasses (Andropogon spp. )
compose more than half of the ground vegetation. They have better than
average palatability and contribute about two-thirds of the cattle diet.

The nutritional analyses of cattle diet samples showed that crude
protein was present in adequate amounts for three months only, starting
about March 15. There was never quite enough phosphorus in the native
forage for best growth of cattle (fig. 20). The cattle weights verified
these analyses: All cattle usually gained weight for about 100 days in
spring; calves gained a little but cows lost a little for 100 days during
summer and early fall; then from October to March nearly all cattle
lost weight heavily if left on forest range without supplemental feed
(Ginter 7210)

This study yielded additional information about forage production
on various kinds of forest ranges in Louisiana and pointed out the need
for the other studies reported here. The complete findings are
summarized in ''Grazing Values for Cattle on Pine Forest Ranges in
Louisiana, '' bulletin 452 of the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment
Station.

Forage plant identification. --To aid users of forest BERS in

identifying and evaluating the forage plants, the Alexandria

Research Center in 1947 began to collect and study the plants on long-
leaf pine-bluestem ranges. Several eminent botanists, experts on the
various plant families, contributed their services. In 1952, about 80
of the most valuable forage grasses, grasslike plants, forbs, and
shrubs were described and illustrated in the ''Field Book of Forage
Plants on Longleaf Pine-Bluestem Ranges,"' published as Occasional
Paper 127 of the Southern Forest Experiment Station. The field book

= Sila

YEARLINGS

CALVES
-Seasonal weight gains

and losses by beef cattle on forest
--The amount of grass

and weed herbage produced on open forest range dominated by pinehill

range in central Louisiana, 1945-

Figure 21. -
48.

(spunog)® iva ° 5607 8

This was done to get an estimate of the effects
“137 =

(Andropogon divergens) was measured at two-week intervals

--Crude protein, cal-

cium, and phosphorus in cattle
Herbage production on bluestem range.

“| CRUDE PROTEIN

CALCIUM —
describes the plants so that they can be readily identified, discusses their

food value for cattle and game, and lists their special habits, values, or

properties.

-were protected from grazing but during the 32 weeks from March 15 to

October 27 they were harvested with shears at selected frequencies:

during the growing seasons of 1947, 1948, and 1949. All study plots
Ze 4h ang ES) times:

diet on forest range in central

Louisiana.

Pagune 20.
bluestem

ANFIIYIAS

—-—- 1947 (NORMAL RAINFALL)
— — 1948 (VERY DRY)
s*- 1949 (VERY WET)
———. 3 - YEAR AVERAGE (Parabolic regression)

:

POUNDS PER ACRE, AIR-ORY
8

500

7

4 18 U 15) 29) 13 2
AUGUST |SEPTEMBER] OCTOBER

Figure 22. --Cumulative grass pro-
duction on very open forest range
dominated by bluestem grasses.
Central Louisiana, 1947-49.

of close and repeated grazing on
the production and nutritive value
of range forage.

Grass production on anun-
grazed range with very few trees
was about 2,121 pounds per acre
(air-dry) during 1947, a year of
In 1948,
when there was a record drouth,

near-normal rainfall.

production was 1,308 pounds of
grass, or 40percent less than the
normal year. The 1949 growing
season was comparatively wet,
and grass production jumped to
3, 083 pounds or 42 percent above
the average year.

A "normal" grass produc-
tion curve, drawn from these data,
showed that about half of the grass

was produced by June 1, 75 percent by July 22, and 90 percent by

September 5.
year to insure 1,200 to 1, 500
pounds of grass by July 1. Growth
thereafter varied greatly with the
rainfall (fig. 22).

Close and repeated har-
vesting seriously reduced grass
production. Areas harvested 15
times during the season produced
only 1,300 pounds of grass per
acre in 1947, while areas har-
vested only at the end of the
season yielded 2,121 pounds (fig.
23). Furthermore, 35 to 50 per-
cent of the grass stand was killed
by this close harvesting in. just
one season. It was clear that
heavy grazing will materially re-
duce grass production the first
year and, if continued, will de-
stroy the valuable bluestem
grasses.

Further, there was enough winter-spring moisture each

HARVESTED
U

UNDISTURBED
2——--—--— TWICE
4—— —— 4 TIMES

POUNDS PER ACRE, A/R-DRY

s+ IS TIMES

Figure 23. --Cumulative production
of herbage under 5 harvesting fre-
quencies. Very openforest range in

central Louisiana, 1947.

SB

Hardwood control increases forage. --Between 1948 and 1950,
grass production doubled on an area that was converted from oaks to
pines by underplanting and hardwood control (fig. 19). Prior to 1948
the area supported about 330 scrub oaks per acre. Grass under these
hardwoods averaged 700 pounds per acre. In February 1948, pine seed-
lings were planted at a spacing of 6 by 6 feet, and the hardwoods were
girdled or poisoned with Ammate.

Grass growth was stimulated immediately. By 1950, it aver-
aged 1, 886 pounds per acre, more than twice as much as before. Since
it was also more succulent and nutritious, cattle showed a definite pref-
erence for it. By 1958 the increased forage will probably total 6 cow-
months of grazing per acre. With good cattle management, grazing will
repay a major part of the cost of hardwood control.

Management of slender bluestem ranges. --A study was started
in 1952 to determine how slender bluestem (Andropogon tener) is affected
by burning, grazing, and competition from pine trees. The study will
also show how three degrees of grazing and burning affect the growth of
slash and longleaf pine. The study consists of 18 fenced plots of 1/3-
acre each, Six of the plots will be ungrazed, six moderately grazed, and
six heavily grazed from April to July of each year. Two plots in each
category will be unburned, two will be prescribe-burned, and two will be
burned by wildfire. The two burning treatments will be applied early in
1955 and at three-year intervals thereafter. Half of each plot has been
planted with pine seedlings--75 longleaf and 75 slash. Records show
forage production and utilization, grazing and fire damage to pine trees,
changes in the composition of the grass stand, and water infiltration
rates.

The main purpose is to find basic facts to guide improved manage-
ment of forest ranges dominated by slender bluestem. Since the other
bluestem species maintain higher nutritive value in summer, falls sand
winter, it is hoped that some of the treatments will reduce the proportion
of slender bluestem and increase the more valuable species. Meanwhile,
the study is yielding precise information on forage production, grazing
Capacity, and grazing damage to pine seedlings.

Improvement of Forage on Forest Range
One of the major problems in utilizing forest ranges is that the

forage has such limited nutritional value in summer, fall, and winter.
Many livestock owners want to know if and how they can grow more

Bc, a

nutritious forage plants on forest ranges, especially for summer-fall
grazing. Work has been going on this project since 1945, 2/

The problem is complicated by the fact that most of the land is
better suited to growing timber than to other uses. Cultivation of the
forest land and investment in forage improvement must therefore be
limited. A happy solution would be to find forage plants that meet these
requirements:

Are nutritious in summer and fall or in winter.

Can be established on forest range with little soil disturbance
and fertilization.

Will grow successfully in competition with native grasses
under moderately intense grazing.

Testing common pasture plants on forest range. --Studies were

started in 1945 to find a practical way to establish three common
pasture plants on forest land--carpetgrass, Dallisgrass, and common
lespedeza.

Applying 200 pounds of calcium metaphosphate and broadcasting
3 pounds of carpetgrass seed per acre on recently burned range in
March 1945, followed by close grazing, produced a carpetgrass sod
that has stood up under heavy usage for more than 6 years. In fact,
cattle kept the sod so closely cropped that the seeded strips have served
as firebreaks.

Common lespedeza required about the same treatment as carpet-
grass. However, it did grow ina light stand for 3 years when seeded on
a range that was fertilized but not burned or cultivated. Dallisgrass
could not be established successfully without rather complete cultivation
and fertilization. In general, carpetgrass and lespedeza persisted only
under close grazing that prevented the growth of native grasses and the
establishment of pine seedlings.

Since calcium metaphosphate is not available commercially in
this area, it was not used in any other range improvement studies.
Basic slag is proving to be as good as calcium metaphosphate.

2/ In January 1954,funds and manpower for the work in range reseeding
were transferred to the Agricultural Research Service, U. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture. The ARS is continuing this work in close cooper-
ation with the Alexandria Research Center.

polos

Establishing and grazing firebreaks. --In 1949, a series of new
tests was started to find economical and effective ways to establish
sodded strips to serve as firebreaks and provide nutritious summer-fall
grazing.

The first test of this series was made in cooperation with the
Industrial Lumber Company, Elizabeth, Louisiana, in the Company's
slash pine plantations. Here a dense carpetgrass sod was established
in one growing season on strips that were disked, fertilized with 1, 000
pounds of basic slag per acre, seeded with carpetgrass and common
lespedeza in April 1949, and then grazed by cattle season-long (fig. 24).
This method was very effective and rapid, but relatively expensive.

In 1950, test plots were installed on the Longleaf Tract to find
the minimum treatment needed to establish a sodded firebreak strip. It
was concluded that the cheapest method is to prescribe-burn the dry |

Figure 24.--This firebreak of carpetgrass sod was established in one
season.

grass during winter and then, in early March, distribute 500 pounds of
basic slag per acre and broadcast 3 pounds of carpetgrass seed and 10
pounds of common lespedeza seed per acre. The seeded area must be
grazed closely during the first and succeeding growing seasons to control
native grasses and favor carpetgrass.

The sod established in the 1950 test has provided about 4. 5 cow-
months of grazing per acre each season from 1950 to 1953. In com-
parison, open forest range bordering the study area has a recommended
grazing capacity of 1 cow-month per acre.

Practical tests of grazed firebreaks. --In 1953, four firebreak
strips 17 to 20 feet wide and totalling nearly 3 miles in length were
established on the Longleaf Tract. Two seedbed preparations were
used--disking after the grass was burned, and disking without burning.
Fertilizer and seed were distributed at these rates: 1,000 pounds of
basic slag, 5 pounds of carpetgrass, and 10 pounds of Kobe lespedeza
per acre (common lespedeza was unavailable). Disking without burning
was tried because plowing two parallel fire furrows and then burning
the grass from between them proved both expensive and hazardous.

Good seedbeds and seedling stands were obtained both with and
without burning. Disking in unburned grass was less expensive and is
much to be preferred because it avoids the use of fire. The total cost
for disking, fertilizing, and seeding was $26.19 per acre, or $52. 38
per mile of firebreak averaging 16-1/2 feet wide.

A good carpetgrass sod was established the first season and
provided improved summer-fall grazing for cattle. Data will be taken
to see if the strips promote better distribution of grazing. Tests during
March 1954 showed the strips to be effective fire barriers. Ground
fires did not creep across the strips even on dry windy days. The
strips also stopped very hot headfires that were running with a south
breeze (9 miles per hour).

Forage plant nursery. --Over 30 choice forage plants that are
not native to the pinelands but that have grown successfully in other
parts of the South are being studied in a nursery established in 1953 on
the Longleaf Tract (fig. 25). The plants that do well in the nursery will
be tested on cutover pineland to see if they can survive, withstand
grazing, and maintain a stand. The successful sod-forming species and
low-growing plants that stay green during winter will also be tested on
firebreaks.

as 2

Sage
~ — 2

Figure 25. --In the forage plant nursery a number of species (blue
lupine, in this plot) are being tested to see if they can grow success-
fully on the cutover pinelands. (Photo by Elemore Morgan)

Previous nursery tests indicated that sericea lespedeza, yellow
bluestem, hairy indigo, and subterranean clover will grow on the cut-
over land, and they are being tested again in the new nursery.

=) B83} S

eS

ee Se

COST AND RETURNS OF GOOD FOREST MANAGEMENT

Reliable data on production, costs, and income from improved
forest management of cutover land are needed by progressive land-
owners. Many basic studies are conducted on small experimental plots
that do not give satisfactory cost and production data. Therefore, new
and improved methods are tested and demonstrated on fairly large areas,
either on the Experimental Forest or on private lands in cooperation
with landowners.

A study of integrated management of timber and beef cattle has
been started on 550 acres of cutover land on the North Pasture of the
Johnson Tract. The main objective is to get the tract into high timber
production rapidly and economically. Meanwhile, the forage will be
utilized by range beef cattle. The most practical methods known or
developed by current research will be followed in the reforestation and
timber management program. Accurate data will be kept on both the
timber and the cattle operation. Early income from sales will be re-
invested in the project.

The beef cattle operation began in 1951 with 20 cattle owned by
Mr. John C. Johnston and his son J. W. Johnston. Culling and herd
improvement started in 1952, and the herd is to be built up to about 35
head of high-grade cows.

In 1951, the area had a few scattered patches of merchantable
timber suitable for sawlogs, crossties, pulpwood, and fence posts.
About 250 acres were understocked and needed planting. Hardwood
control was necessary on about 200 acres. A salvage cut of damaged
and diseased pines was made in 1951 following a severe ice storm. The
income was $2,077 from 611 cords of pulpwood at $3.40 per cord
stumpage. Additional income was obtained from 515 tons of longleaf
pine stumpwood that sold for $1. 26 per ton, or $649.

In the winter of 1951-52, 60 acres of open land were hand-
planted with slash pine for $9. 00 per acre (800 seedlings per acre).
About 16 acres were hand-planted with longleaf pine (1, 200 trees per
acre) at a cost of $13.58 per acre. About 81 acres were direct-seeded
with 3-1/2 pounds of longleaf seed per acre. Direct-seeding costs

Cs

averaged $4. 02 per acre, including $3. 33 for seed, $0.39 for labor and
supervision, and $0. 30 for controlled burning.

About 95 acres in planted slash and natural longleaf pines were

released in 1952 by girdling the overtopping hardwoods for an average
Cost of $2. 80 per acre.

So far, the income from timber and stump sales has been $2, 726,
while $1, 349 has been spent for planting and hardwood control.

—74 On—

PUBLICATIONS

A study is not complete until the findings have been published
and thus made available to all who may be interested. Following are
the titles of the publications that have resulted from the work at
Alexandria. Those marked with an asterisk (*) are available for
distribution upon request.

Forestry Problems and the Alexandria Research Program

Cassady, J. T. Forest research at Alexandria. Forest Farmer 6(9):
bee Tiee ume 9 4i7.2

*Cassady, J. T. Researchers study Louisiana's cutover pineland pro-
duction. Forests and People 1(3): 18-20. October 1951.

Planting and Direct Seeding

*Hopkins, Walt. Machine planting--no cinch: Southern Lumberman 179
(2249): 172-175. December 15, 1949.

Muntz, H. H. Converting scrub oak areas to pine plantations. Journal
of Forestry 49: 714-715. October 1951.

Derr, H. J. Direct seeding by air. Forests and People 2(1): 20-21.
January 1952.

Derr, H. J., and Cossitt, F. M.: Longleaf pine direct seeding. Journal

of Forestry (in press).

Mann, W. F., Jr., and Derr, H. J. Warn landowners to guard against
rabbit damage. Forestsand People 4(2): 47. April 1954.

*Mann, W. F., Jr. Direct seeding research with longleaf, loblolly, and

slash pines, Proceedings, Third Annual Symposium, School of
Forestry, Louisiana State University, pp. 9-18. April 1954.

oe Anh

Plantation Management

Wakeley, P. C., and Muntz, H. H. Effect of prescribed burning on

*Muntz,

Muntz,

*Muntz,

*Muntz,

Muntz,

Mann,

Mann,

*Mann,

height growth of longleaf pine. Journal of Forestry 45: 503-508.
July 1947.

H. H. Ice damage to pine plantations. Southern Lumberman
175(2201): 142-145. December 15, 1947. Naval Stores Review
57(48): 13, 26. February 28, 1948.

H. H. Slash pine versus loblolly in central Louisiana. Journal
of Forestry 46: 766-767. October 1948.

H. H. Profit from thinning variously spaced loblolly pine
plantations. Southern Lumbérman 177(2225): 125-128. December
15, 1948.

H. H. Releasing pine planted under scrub oak. Southern Lumber-
man 181(2273): 200-201. December 15, 1950.

H. H. Early release of underplanted pine recommended. Forests
and People 1(1): 26-28. March 1951.

W. F.,.Jr. Rapid growth of loblolly pine. Forests and People
2(1): 14-15, 39. January 1952.

W. F., Jr. Thirty-six years of thinning research with loblolly
pine. Proceedings, First Annual Symposium, School of Forestry,
Louisiana Siate University, pp. 1-7. March 1952.

W. F., Jr.- Pine best-suited to choice sites in mid-Louisiana:
loblolly. Forests and People 3(3): 23, 39. July 1953.

*Derr, H. J.,.and Mann, W. F., Jr. Cost of pruning longleaf pine.

Mann,

Journal of Forestry 51: 579-80. August 1953.

W. F., Jr. Thinning loblolly pine. Forests and People 4(2): 20-21,
54, April 1954.

<A

Control of Low- Value Hardwoods

Peevy, F. A. How to kill blackjack oaks with Ammate. Southern
Forest Experiment Station mimeographed paper. 1946.
(Revised 1947).

Peevy, F. A. Killing undesirable hardwoods. Southern Lumberman
IMMOUAZ2OL)eel2 S125. December 19477.

Peevy, F. A., and Campbell, R. S. Poisoning undesirable hardwoods.
Forest Farmer 6(7): 6-7. April 1947. Naval Stores Review
STZ) ns, October 4; 1947.

Peevy, F. A. Your customer: the forest farmer; here's how chemical
tree killers clear timberland. Southern Seedsman 11(3): 16, 56.
March 1948.

Cassady, J. T., and Peevy, F. A. From scrubby hardwoods to
merchantable pines--timber owners kill defective hardwoods with
chemicals. Southern Lumberman 177(2225): 115-119. December
15, 1948.

*Peevy, F. A. How to control southern upland hardwoods with Ammate.
U.S.D. A. M-5296, 7 pp. 1949.

Peevy, F. A. How to kill unwanted trees and sprouts with Ammate.
Progressive Farmer 64(10): 114, 125. October 1949.

*Peevy, F. A., and Campbell, R. S. Poisoning southern upland weed
trees. Journal of Forestry 47: 443-447. June 1949.

*Campbell, R. S., and Peevy, F. A. Chemical control of undesirable
southern hardwoods. Journal-of Range Management 3(2): 118-124.
April 1950.

Campbell, R. S., and Peevy, F. A. Poisoning certain undesirable
southern hardwoods for forest and range improvement. American

Midland Naturalist 44(2): 495-505. September 1950.

Campbell, R. S. Hardwood control. Forest Farmer Manual, second
edition, Forest Farmer 10(5): 25-28. February 195l.

*Peevy, F. A., and Grano, C. X. ABC's of hardwood control. Southern
Lumberman 185(2321): 211-213. December 15, 1952.

Bye. eye

*Peevy, F. A. Chemical control of southern upland hardwoods. Pro-
ceedings, Second Annual Symposium, School of Forestry,
Louisiana State University, pp. 35-41. April 1953.

Grazing Damage to Pine Seedlings

Hopkins, Walt. Pigs in the pines. Forest Farmer 7(1): 3, 8. October
1947.

Hopkins, Walt. Piney woods hog hunt. Forest Farmer 7(2): 3, 7.
November 1947.

*Hopkins, Walt. Hogs or logs? Southern Lumberman 175(2201): 151-153.
December 15, 1947. Naval Stores Review 57(43): 12-13.
January 24, 1948.

Hopkins, Walt. Piney woods porkers turn bark into bacon. Naval Stores
Review 57(48): 16-17. February 28, 1948.

Hopkins, Walt. Louisiana hog hunt. Naval Stores Review 57(52): 16-17.
March 27, 1948.

Hopkins, Walt. Hog dog! American Forests 55(12): 20-22. December
1949.

Hopkins, Walt. Hungry cows and planted pines. Progressive Farmer
(Ark. -La. -Miss. edition) 66(12): 109. December 1951.

*Hopkins, Walt. Woods hogs vs. pine logs. Louisiana Forestry
Association special publication. 14 pp. 195l.

Peevy, F. A., and Mann, W. F., Jr. Slash and loblolly pine plan-

tations destroyed by hogs. Forests and People 2(4): 20, 37.
December 1952.

a Bh

Timber and Livestock Production Combined

Campbell, R. S. Timber and cattle. Forest Echoes 6(9): 6-7, 14.
October 1946.

Campbell, R. S., and Cassady, J. T. Bridging the gap: cattle can help
the tree farmer. Southern Lumber Journal 51(3): 19-20, 87.
1947.

*Bond, W. E., and Campbell, R. S. Planted pines and cattle grazing--
a profitable use of southwest Louisiana's cut-over pine land.
Louisiana Forestry Commission Bulletin 4, 28 pp. 1951.

Hopkins, Walt. Grazing in the cut-over longleaf pine region. Journal
of Forestry 50: 384-386. May 1952.

Cassady, J. T., and Campbell, R. S. A near dozen essentials go into
the making of a good forest grazing lease. Progressive Farmer
67(5): 96. May 1952. |

Management of Forest Range Forage

Campbell, R. S. Forest range grass best during spring. Coastal Cattle-
man 11(4): 7. June 1945.

Campbell, R. S. Determination of grazing values of native vegetation on
southern pine forest ranges. Ecology 27: 195-204. July 1946.

*Cassady, J. T., and Shepherd, W. O. Grazing on forested lands [in the
South| . Grass (Yearbook of Agriculture, 1948) pp. 468-472. Sep-
arate No. 2065. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington,
Dane, ~ L948,

*Campbell, R. S., and Cassady, J. T. Determining forage weight on
southern forest ranges. Journal of Range Management 2(1): 30-32.

January 1949.

*Cassady, J. T. Utilizing forage on longleaf pine forest ranges. Associ-

ation of Southern Agricultural Workers, Forestry Section Symposium,

10 pp. 1949.
*Campbell, R. S., and Cassady, J. T. Grazing values for cattle on pine

forest ranges in Louisiana. Louisiana Agricultural Experiment
Station Bulletin 452, 3l pp. May 1951.

Ate ae

*Campbell, R. S., and Cassady, J. T. Instructions for forage weight
method of range inventory for use on southern national forests.
Southern Forest Experiment Station, 12 pp. July 1951.

*Cassady, J. T., and Campbell, R. S. Pine forest ranges in Louisiana.
Southern Forest Experiment Station, 7 pp. March 195l.

*Cassady, J. T. Bluestem range in the piney woods of Louisiana and
east Texas. Journal of Range Management 4: 173-177. May
1951.

*Langdon, O. G., Bomhard, Miriam, and Cassady, J. T. Field book of
forage plants on longleaf pine-bluestem ranges. Southern Forest
Experiment Station Occasional Paper 127, 117 pp. June 1952.

*Cassady, J. T. Herbage production on bluestem range in central
Louisiana. Journal of Range Management 6: 38-43. January
1953:

*Campbell, R. S., and Cassady, J. T. Moisture and protein in forage

on Louisiana forest ranges. Journal of Range Management 7:
41-42. January 1954.

Improving Forest Range Forage
*Campbell, R. S., and Peevy, F. A. Grazing values on southern pine
lands reduced by hardwood invasion. Southern Lumberman 171

(2153): 23 Of7025'2. 12342954 8 December lS e194.

*Cassady, J. T. Grass production doubled by control of scrub oak.
Journal of Forestry 50: 462-463. June 1952.

*Peevy, F. A. Fertilizing and seeding forage on forest range in
Louisiana. Agronomy Journal 45: 164-166. April 1953.

SCA ae

Range Livestock Management

*Cassady, J. T. Feed, forage, and forests: The need for winter feed.
Coastal Cattleman 13(8): 7-8. October 1947.

Hopkins, Walt. Don't wait until Christmas. Progressive Farmer
(Miss. -Ark. -La. edition) 65(12): 17. December 1950.

Cassady, J. T. Grazing on forest land. Forest Farmer Manual,
second edition. Forest Farmer 10(5): 86, 88, 90. February 1951.

Cassady, J. T. Grazing on forest lands in Louisiana. Forests and
People 1(2): 16-17, 38-41. July 1951.

eae

SEC 28|SEC 27 2
N SEC 33 71SEC 34 49, Ks
=
+
a

ECONOMICS OF INTEGRAWED

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Figure 27.-—Longleaf Tract, Palustris Experimental Forest.

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Figure 28.-—Main roads to Johnson Tract and Longleaf Tract, Palustris Experimental Forest.

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