Part 5 (1/2)
What should a young man learn at a forest school? Doubtless there will be some variation of opinion as to the exact course of study which will best fit him for the work of a Forester in the United States. The following list expresses the best judgment on the subject I have been able to form:
DENDROLOGY:
The first step in forestry is to become acquainted with the various kinds of trees. The coming Forester must learn to identify the woody plants of the United States, both in summer and in winter. He must understand their shapes and outward structures, and where they are found, and he must begin his knowledge of the individual habits of growth and life which distinguish the trees which are important in forestry.
FOREST PHYSIOGRAPHY:
Trees grow in the soil. It is important to know something of the origin of soils and their properties and values, and of the princ.i.p.al soil types, with special reference to their effect upon plant distribution and welfare. The origin, nature, value, and conservation of humus, that most essential ingredient of the forest floor; the field methods of mapping soil types; the rock types most important in their relation to soils, how they are made up, how they make soil, and where they occur--something should be learned of all this. Finally, under this head, the student ought to get a usable knowledge of the physiographic regions of the United States, their boundaries, geologic structure, topography, drainage, and soils,--all this naturally with special reference to the relation between these basic facts and the forest.
SILVICULTURE:
Silviculture is the art of caring for forests, and therefore the backbone of forestry. It is based upon Silvics, which is the knowledge of the habits or behavior of trees in their relations to light, heat, and moisture, to the air and soil, and to each other. It is the facts embraced in Silvics which explain the composition, character, and form of the forest; the success or failure of tree species in compet.i.tion with each other; the distribution of trees and of forests; the development of each tree in height, diameter, and volume; its form and length of life; the methods of its reproduction; and the effect of all these upon the nature and the evolution of the city of trees, and upon forest types and their life histories.
This is knowledge the Forester can not do without. Silvics is the foundation of his professional capacity, and as a student he can better afford to scamp any part of his training rather than this. A man may be a poor Forester who knows Silvics, but no man can be a good Forester who does not.
The practice of Silviculture has to do with the treatment of woodlands.
The forest student must learn the different methods of reproducing forests by different methods of cutting them down, and the application of these methods in different American forest regions. There are also many methods of cutting for the improvement of the character and growth of forests, as well as for utilizing material that otherwise would go to waste, before the final reproduction cuttings can be made. The ways in which forests need protection are equally numerous, and of these by far the most important in our country have to do with methods of preventing or extinguis.h.i.+ng forest fires.
Well managed forests are handled under working plans based on the silvical character and silvicultural needs of the forest, as well as upon the purpose set by the owner as the object of management, which is often closely related to questions of forest finance. The student should ground himself thoroughly in the making of silvicultural working plans, and the more practice in making them he can get, the better. So, too, with the marking of trees in reproduction and improvement cuttings under as many different kinds of forest conditions as may be possible.
The artificial reproduction of forests is likely to occupy far more of the Forester's attention in the future than it has in the past. Hence the collection of tree seeds, their fertility and vitality as affecting their handling, the best methods of seeding and planting, and the lessons of past failures and successes, with the whole subject of nursery work and the care of young plantations, must by no means be overlooked.
Much incidental information on the subject of forest protection will come to the student in the course of his studies, but special attention should be given to learning which of the species of forest insects are most injurious to forest vegetation, how their attacks are made, how they may be discovered, and the best ways by which such attacks can be mitigated or controlled. So also the diseases of timber trees will repay hard study. The princ.i.p.al fungi which causes such diseases should be known, how they attack the trees, and what are the remedies, as well as (although this is far less important) the way to treat tree wounds and the correct methods of pruning.
FOREST ECONOMICS:
Forest Economics is a large subject. It deals with the productive value of forests to their owners, and with the larger question of their place in the economy of the Nation. It considers their use as conservers of the soil and the streams; their effect on climate, locally, as in the case of windbreakers, and on a larger scale; and their contribution to the public welfare as recreation grounds and game refuges. It includes a knowledge of wastes from which the forests suffer, and the consequent loss to industry and to the public, and in this it does not omit the effects of forest fires. Statistics of forest consumption; the relation of the forest to railroads, mines, and other wood-using industries; its effect upon agriculture, stock raising, and manufacturing industries; and its effect upon the use of the streams for navigation, power, irrigation, and domestic water supply; all these are important. The student should consider also the forest resources of the United States, their present condition, and the needs they must be fitted to supply.
FOREST ENGINEERING:
Forest engineering is steadily becoming more and more necessary to the Forester. He must have a working knowledge of the use of surveying instruments; the making of topographic surveys; the office work required of an engineer; the making of topographic maps; the location of trails, roads, and railroads; and the construction of bridges, telephone lines, cabins, and fences, together with logging railroads, slides, dams, and flumes.
FOREST MENSURATION:
[Ill.u.s.tration: FOREST SERVICE MEN MAKING FRESH MEASUREMENTS IN THE MISSOURI SWAMPS]
Forest mensuration, the art of measuring the contents and growth of trees and forest stands, is of fundamental importance. The principles and methods of timber estimating, the actual measurement of standing timber, log rules, the making of stem a.n.a.lyses to show the increase of a tree in diameter, height, and volume, the construction of tables of current and mean annual growth per acre and per tree, and the methods of using the information thus formulated,--all these are necessarily of keen interest to the man who later on will have to apply his knowledge in the practical management of woods.
FOREST MANAGEMENT:
Forest management is concerned with the principles involved in planning the handling of forests. Questions of the valuation of forests form a most essential part of it,--such questions as the cost of growing timber crops, the value of land for that purpose, the value of young timber, the valuation of damage to the forest, and the legal status of the damage and the remedy.
Business principles are as necessary in the management of forests as in the management of mills or farms. These business principles work out in different forms of forest policy adapted to the needs of different kinds of owners, such as lumbermen and the Government. What the young Forester has learned about growth and yield, about timber estimates and forest statistics, and many other matters, all finds its application in forest management. He must also consider the methods and principles for regulating the cut of timber, or for securing sustained annual yields.