7-' r FORESTRY I ~ . / - JANUARY 1954 GEORGIA FORES TR Y litlt,,,.;,,, 'Woocl~-1~ We Ne.ed Police In Our Woods ,(/IJ,e eauiioneJ (From the Atlanta Journal) Forest fires a re destroying tinguish them. ln one period property in the northern parts of 24 hours, 36 blazes were of our state. The woods are a s si ght ed and in sufficient prox- dry as tinde r and a man driving imity to arouse suspicion about t hrough the m knows that o ne their cause. match flipped from an automobile , one lighted cigarette or cigar thrown c are lessly from the window, can light the countryside with a sweeping destruction of timber, wildlife and all the young t rees, leaving the area scorched and bleak. Some 25 fires have been put out, but 11 still burn and already 1,000 acres on Lookout Mountain have been turned into a stretch of charred and smoul- de r ing stumps. Some 800 acres have been burned on Mole Moun- tain. Such conditions, following the long drought of the late summer, and the continued lack of rain in the autumn, always leave the woods in dangerous conditions. But the normal danger Is enhanced, if ugly rumors are to be cre- The Forestry Commission is sendi~g every possible fire-sup- pression unit into the area; but even with this equipment the de- struction has not been brought under control. dited. We urge that law enforcement A spokesman for the Georgia Forestry Commission believes that woodland fires ''definitely are being set.'' officers, both state and county, JOin forces. If these fires are being set, the people of this state request that the utmost effort be made to detect the Latest reports are that fires criminals and that they be are springing up faster than brought to swift and positive the firefighting crews can ex- justice. Vol. 7 GEORGIA FORESTRY January, 1954 Published Monthly by the GEORGIA FORESTRY COl\1!\tiSSION, State Capitol, Atlanta, Georgia Guyton DeLoach, Director No.1 (From the Atlan ta Constitution) In the Georgia woods there has arisen that combination of circumstances which the foresters dread. The change of seasons has turned the forest floor to tinder. Nature's sprinkling system is on the blink. No rain of di:lr.~ening consequence has fallen in weeks. The wind has been high. At the same time traffic in the forest areas has picked up as folks go to see the pretty leaves and as the hunting season opens. All these factors add up to a high degree of fire hazard. In the past few days the woods across north Georgia have broken into flame. Some of the fires were caused by carelessness, some were incendiary. Some woods-burning suspects have been arrested. Caution is the word for those who now invade the forest, whether they go to hunt or simply to feast their eyes. Our woods are valuable assets, practically and aesthetically, and mus t not be sacrificed to the careless and inconsiderate, or to the wantonly criminal. l\l ember s, Board of Commi ssioners: G. Philip Mor g an, Chairman ___________________ --------------------------- Savannah John 1\1. McE lra th _____ ____Macon K. S. Varn ____________________Waycross C. M. Jordan, Jr, _______ Alamo H . 0 . Cummings ______ Donalsonville Georgia Forestry is entered as second class matter at the Post Office under the Act of Aug ust 24, 1912. Member of the Georgia Press Association. E DITOR _ * * * _____________ Richard E. Davis ASSO CIATE EDITORS _____ ____ _Rober t Rutherf ord , Catherine Dismuke * * * * DI:-;T RICT OFFICES, GEORGIA F OR ESTR Y COI\11\liSSION: DISTRICT I-Route 2, State boro DISTRICT VI- P. 0. Box 505, Milledgev ille DISTIUCT 11-P. 0 . Box 26, Camilla DISTHICT :1-P. 0. Box 169, A merict. DISTRICT I\ -P. 0. Box 333, Newnan DI STRH-:T 'r -I. 0. Box 328, McJ{ac DISTRICT VII- Route 1, Rome DISTRICT V III-P. 0. Box 811, Waycross DISTRICT IX-P. 0. Box 416, Gainesville DISTRICT X-P. 0. Box 302, Washington As the bright new year of 1954 comes upon the scene with its hope and promise, a new crop of fo rest seed l in gs l i f t the i r heads and start skyward -- carrying also a promise and hope of a brighter future for Georgia and the Southland. This will be a better future built on increased forest production with its increased and stabilized employment, increased commerce, and a higher standard of living. Providence brings forth the new year and the new forest crop. It remains for man to use this and future years to protect, manage, and wisely utilize the woodlands. JANUARY, 1954 55,975 Acres 3 7 Tree Farms Added To State System In 53 One of the most successful years in the entire history of the Georgia Tree Farm System was recorded during 1953, W. H. MdComh, assistant director in charge of management, Georgia Forestry Commission, reported this month. Mr. M::comb reported 37 new Tree Farms were added to the system during the year to bring the total Georgia Tree Farm area in the state to 1,064,281 acres. The new area added totalled 55, 975 acres. On Dec. 30, 1953, the total number of Tree Farms 1n the state stood at 100. Another significant Tree Farm accomplishment also was recorded in 1953--the passing of the million acre mark in Tree Farm acreage. The Coounission management chief pointed out, however, that despite the good record attained in 1953, the Commission '' .. is planning an even greater Tree Farm program for 1954. '' ''Now that we have gone past the million acre mark and reached the total of 100 on the number of Tree Farms,' 'he declared, ''we certainly do not intend to relax our efforts in enlisting many more Georgians in this outstanding program. While we are proud of the record that has been attained, we realize that the more than a million acres under the current program are but a fraction of the total lands eligible for Tree Farm certification.'' Additional praise for Georgia's outstanding Tree Farm accomplishments in 1953 came from additional forestry organiZa- tionsand representa tives throughout the nation. H. C. Berckes, executive vice president, Southern Pine Association, which sponsors the Tree Farm program throughout the entire South, labeled the 1953 record in Georgia as ''outstanding'' and cited the interest which the Tree Farm program had aroused in forest management work among farmers, landowners, and other citizens of Georgia and the South. ' 'Each of those 37 Tree Farms certified in your state during 1953, ' ' he told the Commission, ''represents an interest which was aroused in good management methods--an interest which cannot be computed in dollars and cents. As more and more southerners come to realize the benefits which come from growIng trees as a crop, so will corre an inc reased economic and agricultural prosperity for the entire region. Tree Farm pro grams such as the one now being carried in Georgia are of immeasurable value in bringing to the public that awareness.'' J. C. ~Clellan, chief forester, American Forest Products Industries, founder and sponsor of the nationwide Tree Farm program, also praised the rapid growth of the Tree Farm system in Georgia in 1953 and cited the fact the majority of the acreage added was in the small ownership class. ''With more than 70 per cent of Georgia's total forest area 1n small, private ownership," the A F P I forester said, ' 'a definite need exists for bring- (Continued on Page 10) NOTE TO READERS--Please fill out the enclosed postage-free card and return to us promptly. ntis will enable us to bring our mailing list up-to-date, and will insure your receiving future copies of GEORGIA FORESTRY with a minimum of delay. I SUCCESSFUL DAY FOR SCHOOL-AGE TREE PLANTERS--More than two million forest tree seedlings were planted in Georgia on the Georgia 4-11 Club sponsored Tree Appreciation Day. School children in nearly every county in the state participated. Typical of areas where Tree Appreciation Day was observed are these scenes from Fulton, DeKalb, and Gilmer counties. Allton county Ranger William Hyatt, upper left, shows Ben Hill school children how to plant seedlings. DeKalb County Ranger George LYon, upper right, presents seedlings to 4-11 leaders Nina Park and Jesse Padgett, while 4-H Advisor Mrs. Phylis Marvin and Principal Verne E. Came, of Hooper Alexander School, look on. Gilmer County Ranger W. L. Dover, center photo, shows future tree farmers in his county tips on planting. Jesse Padgett, wields the dibble and Nina Park sets the seedling in the ground, lower left photo, at DeKal~ s Hooper Alexander School. Ranger Hyate s presentation of seedlings to Ben Hill school children, lower right photo, is greeted with enthusiasm. -- J ANUARY , 1954 4 SPCA Meeting The annual meeting of the Southern Pulpwood Conservation Association to be held at the Atlanta Bil trrore Hotel January 19-20 will feature a variety of lectures, derronstrations, and panel discussions covering all phases of the pulpwood industry, according to an announcement by S. P. C. A. General Manager H. J. Malsberger. Foresters, landowners, and industry representat1ves will be present to listen to and participate in discuss1ons on current pulpwood problems. On Tuesday afternoon, Harry Rossoll, U. S. Forest Service, will discuss ''How to Prepare and Display Exhibits.'' Ralph Wall, Information and Education Chief of the Louisiana Forestry Corrmission will explain ''Assembling and Distribution of Exhibit Ideas." Other speeches for the day will include ''How Newspapers Are Used to Inform'' by Walter Amman of the Knoxville Journal, and ''Taking Outdoor Pictures'' by J. C. Fitzpatrick of Frye's Photo Shop, Atlanta. ''The S. P. C. A. Sampling Procedure for Determining Forestry Practices on Private Lands' ' will be the subject of a panel discussion, with H. M. Roller, International Paper Company, as moderator. On Wednesday, Malsberger will address the group and present the Annual Report of Association Activities. Following will be the President's Report by C. H. Niederoof, West Virginia Pulp and Paper Corrpany. Other presentations will include ''What Is Public Relations'' by Karl Denditson; ''The Attitude of Pulp and Paper Industry Toward Its Conservation Program'' by W. J. Bailey of the West Virg1ma Pulp and Paper Company; ' 'Is the Association Reaching the Right People'' by I. F. Eldredge, Consultant Fares ter, New Or leans; ' 'The Carre lation of S. P. C. A. and Public Forestry Programs'' by C. H. Coulter, and ''The Forestry Program of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association'' by Gle n (Continued on Page 10) G Philip Morga n, 62, Forestry Leader, Dies G. Philip Morgan G. Ph i lip Morgan , 62, chairman of the Board of Commi ss ioners, Georgia For es try Commis s ion, and often referred to as ''the fa- ther of Georgia's for e stry program'' died December 19 a t hi s home in Savannah. Sam H. Morgan, of Savannah, brother of the f ormer board c hairman, has been appointed by Gove rnor Tal madge as his suc ces sor on t he Boa rd o f Commiss i one rs. ''Mr . Morgan,'' the state forester dec l ared, ''can tru ly be ca ll ed t he father of Georgia's mode m -day fares t r y pr;ogram. His unwavering vision 1n t he potentialities of the future and his un yielding determi na t1on to b rin g about a realization of t hose potentialities is directl y responsible f or Geo r gia ' s status in the fares try world of today . " Amoo g th ose expressing s orrow at Mr. Mo rga n's death were Governor IIerman E. Tal madge and St a t e Far es t er Guyton DeLoach. ' ' He was,'' s ai d the Governor, ' ' an especia lly warm, personal f r iend of mine and an able, concientious and far-sighted public servant. The state has lost a distinguished public servant, and I have lost a warm, personal f r iend.'' Mr. Morgan also was vice chair man of the Coastal Highway Commission and an admiral on Governor Tal madge's staff. He was c hai nnan of the board of Morgan's I nc., a Savannah fann and machinery equipment firm. Burial was 1n the family plot at Guyton. 1. Row after row of millions of seedlings lies ready for lifting in the fields of Davisboro Nursery. Months of meticulous care have cone into the production of these heal thy plants. 2. 'Die tractor-powered seedling lifter, driven by Davisboro Nursery Superintendent Mack Neal, breaks ground under the seedlings, leaving them ready for quick hand gathering. 13. Crews gather seedlings for rapid transfer to the grading "Pine Tree Factoryn shed. 4. After the seedlings have been gathered, they are iolaedi- ately delivered to the grading shed on the tractor trailer. 100,000 New Forest Acres For Georgia 7. When the seedlings reach the end of the grading tables, workers pack damp moss around roots, wrap orders in burlap, Nearly 35 million of an es- powered lifter has broken ground bind them togethB", and label them for shipment. timated 100 mill ion seedlings under the small trees, the seed- have already been shipped to lings are lifted from the earth Georgia landowners this season. by hand and transported to the The nurseries are operating nursery sheds, where an assem- 1 1 full swing' ' to fill orders bly line of workers inspect, 5,6. Assembly line methods are used it inspecting and counting the seed- as rapidly as possible, with grade, count and bundle the lings. As the seedlings on the gradia: belt move down tbe line of workers, daily shipments exceeding two seedlings for shipment . As the each plant is carefully examined for lhaged or poor grade trees. million. seedlings reach the shed, they are placed on a grading belt, moved down the line of workers The four nurseries are producing almost equal shares of the largest seedling crop ever grown in . Georgia. Davisboro Nursery leads with an expected and inspected for broken, dam- aged, or poor grade trees. On- ly vigorous, disease- free seed- lings are left to be counted and tied into bundles. production of 30 million seed- lings. Horseshoe Bend is second with an anticipated output of 25 million, and production is expected to reach 24 mill ion at Herty, and 21 million at Hightower. Bundles are collected to fill each order, and the assembly 1 ine of workers pack damp moss around the roots of the plants and wrap the orders in burlap. All bundles are periodically dampened to prevent the roots from drying out before delivery. Months of meticulous care go into the growing crop of seed1 ings and many long hours of rigorous labor are required to lift, inspect, grade, pack, label, and deliver the seedlings. After the blade of the tractor- Lifting operations began in November at the four nurseries and will continue through March. By that time 100,000 acres of formerly idle Georgia will blossom with new stands of seedlings. \.._ 1 ~ 1 \ I I WOODSMEN OF 111E WORLD ANNUAL AWARD IS PRESENTED to Guyton DeLoach , Georgia Forest ry Commission Di r ecto1, for outstanding service in the building of state forest ry. Lt. Governor Marvin Griffin makes the presentation wh ile Dr . H. B. Kennedy, WOW leader of Omaha, Neb., left, and Col. H. C. Fabi an, WOW State Manager, right, look on. ''You Can Help Prevent Forest Fires in Your Community'' will be the 1954 theme of Keep Georgia Green week, proclaimed by Governor Herman E. Talmadge as February 15-21. Officials of state and private forestry organizations reported this month demand has already begun from civic clubs and schools for materials for special Keep Green week programs t o mark the seven-day forestry observance. !50 Attend Elbert Demonstration More than 250 persons recent! y try Coomission personnel act1ng a t tended a for e s t conser vation ou t , s tep by step, the part t hat de mons tration in Elber t County c ounty for estry units play in con- sponsored by the Keep Georg i a t r oll i ng f orest fires. Green Conrni ttee o f t he Elbert on Ro t ary Club . Af t e r fores t f ire towermen, by use of two-way r adio, r eported the I:Mpl i c a t e demonstration sess i ons, one i n t he mo r n ing for FFA boys and another i n the af ter noon for adul ts , we re h e l d. The J. J. l\k Lan ah a n f ar m was the d e monst r ation si t e. Incl uded in the progr am we r e demons trations of cut ting and sale of pulpwood , t hinni ng, p lanti ng , hardwood control , fire control, and forest conserva tion payments. s imu lat ed fire t o Distri c t Foreste r Jame s C. Turne r, o f Washington, he est ablished the location of t he fir e on hi s dispa tche r' s map. Mr . Turner radioed Hank S lentz , Georgia Forestry Commission pi lot, and instructed him to fly to t hat area to determine the nature of the f i re . \\'hen the pilot reported that t he fire was unc ontroll e d, Mr. Turner alerted County Range r ! l ber t Mooney of Elberton. Range r One of t he outstandi ng por tions of the program was a fire control Moone y and his for es try unit c rew sped t o the scene of the'' fire'' demonstration with Georgia Fo r es - (Continued on Page 10) DEMONSTRATION SCENES--J. C. Turner, Tenth Di s trict Forester, left photo, stands a top an Elbert County Forestry Uni t truck as he explains the use of airplanes in fighting forest fires. Below, Rep., PaulS. Brown, of Georgi~ s Tenth District, right, looks on as pulpwood is measured at the Elbert County Demonstration . Guyton DeLoach, director, Ge?rgia Forestry Commission, sa1d rangers, in each of the 132 counties under protection of the Georgia Forestry Conrnissionwill cooperate in organizing or presenting materials for Keep Georgia GreQil programs. (Con ti nued on page 10) Arbor Day Set For February 19 Georgians who next month will celebrate t he sixty-third anniversary of Arbor Day in the state will observe the day with a variety of special programs highlighting the everyday wonder s which are performed by trees. Arbor Day, to be observed February 19 this year, will be marked in most Georgia's schools by tree plantings and tree planting ceremonies. The Georgia ForestryConrnission this month was working up special Arbor Day aids for schools to be distributed by the organization's County Rangers and district office personnel to all school teachers, principals, and superintendents requesting Arbor Day program material. Ran~rs also will offer their serVl. Ces to the s c hools in presentl.ng tree planting demonstrations and showing pupils other demonstra tions highl i ghting good forest man a gement. -- Rangers In The News Crisp County Ranger Bill Tvedt reports that manualtraining students and 4-H clubs are cooperatinl? with his forestry unit in sett1ng up 12 fire tool sheds in his county's woodlands this winter. Crisp schools have offered to build the sheds, which will be set up throughout the county. The small sheds will each contain a fire rake, a fire flap, and a back pump. They are for the use of any persons who spot small fires in the woods, so the fires can be put out without de- lay, Mr. Tvedt said. 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