GEORGIA FORESTRY E d i t o ri a l Tempting Fate W ith Matches t From the Cobb Councy Times) \\hile the Jrouth has brought many losses and numerous headaches to Cobb County farmers, it has posed more serious threats in the wooded areas of the county. Forest fires have been raking through Georgia at the rate of some 100 per day in the last few weeks. So far, Cobb County has been fairly lucky. But unless our luck holds in the dry days yet ahead, we may fall prey to that costly and deadly destroyer--the forest fire. Our County Forestry unit has only so much equipment and so many men. When a rash of fire~ breaks out, they simply cannot handle every one immediately. Fire breeds on time, and a few minutes may mean thousands of dollars lost in timberland or homes. . Think before you strike a match, and try to avoid starting fires during this dry season. L~ U4 (from the Gainesville Daily Times) The beauty of North Georgia's countryside and much of its wealth in timber and forest products remain for our enj oy~n t and prosperity and are we lucky! Or maybe we're just becoming more careful. With the forests as dry as they are, a small blaze could easily get out of hand. With evecy twig in the woods like a tinder, a cigaret careless! y thrown, a hiker's rmtch or even a spa'rk from a train could set off a frightful conflagration. In addition to luck, we have better organized forest fire protection than ever and county units ready to go at a moment's notice have nipped in the bud fires that without irruredia te attention might have devastated hundreds of acres. Day by day the fire danger becomes higher, and the critical fire season is still before us. Vol. 7 GEORGIA FORESTRY December, 1954 Published Monthly by the GEORGIA FORESTRY COMMISSION, State Capitol, Atlanta, Georgia Guyton DeLoach, Director No. 12 Members, Board of Commissioners: K. S. Varn, Chairman -----. .............. ___ _________________ _____ ..Waycross Sam H. Morgan _________ Savannah C. M. Jordan, Jr.. _______________Alamo John M. McElrath .. ________ Macon H. 0. Cummings .....Donalsonville Georgia Forestry is entered as second class matter at the Post Office under the Act of August 24, 1912. Member of the Georgia Press Association. EDITOR . _ * * *_. __ ___ __. ______ Richard E. Davis ASSOCIATE EDITORS___ ........... Robert Rutherford, Catherine Dismuke * * * DISTRICT OFFICES, GEORGIA FORESTRY COMM ISSION: DI STRICT 1-Route 2, Statesboro DISTRICT VI-P. 0. Box 505, Milledgeville DIST RICT 11-P. 0. Box 26, Camilla DISTRICT VII-Route 1, Rome DISTRI CT III- P. 0. Box 169, Americus DISTRICT VIII-P. 0. Box 811, Waycross DISTRICT IV-P. 0. Box 333, Newnan DISTRICT IX- P. 0. Box 416, Gainesville DISTRICT V-P. 0. Box 328, McRae DISTRICT X-P. 0. Box 302, Washington ./li.J !Jn :h~oMik High prai-?e to (>orgia' s news- P?P~rs, rad~o stations, and tele- VIsion stations for the cooper- ation shown during the recent devastating_ drouth came this month from Guyton DeLoach, Di- r~ctor, Georgia Forestry Commis- Sion. "Georgians can consider them- selves rector , I ortuna "that tetn1 " e said the Diforest fire losses recorded during those long, dry months were no ~orse. A large amount of credit for keeping the fire losses down goes to the radio and television stations and to the press of the state." Mr. DeLoach explained that the moment the drouth became serious enough to be a menace to Georgi~ s woodland areas the three communications mediums began an intensive drive to acquaint the public with the dangers of carelessness with match., cigaret, .a~ d.brush and trash Durning activities. Radio and television stations, in addition to presenting reg- ularly public service programs scheduled for Rangers and other Commission personnel, gave additional time to these men for special appeals. ~ews progr~ms and telecasts carried latest In- formation on forest fire damages, and forest fire ~anger spot announcements were Interspersed throughout theprogramingday. We~ly and daily newspapers devoted many news colwm~- to re- porting the forest fire situ- ation and many editorial pages carried force fu 1 ap_pe al s for wildfire prevention. C..:redit to the Atlanta Constitution and to its fine staff artist, Cliff Baldowski, for the excellent forest fire prevention cartoon which was reprinted in the November issue of Georgia Forestry was inadvertantly omitted from that issue. Special thanks is due both Mr. Baldowsk i and his newspaper for the fine cooperation they have shown the Georgia Fo restry Commission and the Commission's forest fire prevention program. A smiling lassie and a gay holiday wreath t ypify the Yuletide s pirit o n our Oe c embe r co ver as Geor g ia Fore st ry Com mission p e r so nn e l j oi n i n wi s hin g yo u t h e me rr ies t o f Chris t mases. DECEMBER, 1954 2,240,ooo,ooo Bo.aJui IJ)eet Georgia landowners in mid November began receiving their firs t shipments of an estimated 122 ,000,000 seedlings that are being lifted and shipped to every county in the state by the Georgia Forestry Commission's four nurseries. Lifting operations began last month at Hightower, Davisboro, Herty and Horseshoe Bend nurseries and seedlings are being removed from beds as rapidly as orders can be assembled and s hip- ped. Davisboro Nursery, the Commis- sion's largest, again is expected to lead in seedling production with approximately 40,510,789 seedlings. Anticipated production for Herty Nursery is 25,726, 120; Hightower Nursery, 22,415, 265; and Horseshoe Bend Nursery, 32,652,848. Species and anticipated production of trees are as follows: Slash Pin e ,_9l,497,952; Loblolly, 27,749,576; Longleaf, 719,451; Shortleaf, 840,000; Black Locust, 104, 305; Red Cedar, 165,986; Arizona Cypress, 196, 452, Yellow Poplar, 131,300 and several thousand White Pine. Some species of nursery stock no longer are available, due to a heavy influx of early orders. tbwever, Slash, Loblolly, Shortl eaf and Black Locust still are available. The cost on Slash, Loblolly, and Shortleaf species is $3 per thousand F.O.B. nursery and Black Locust is $2 per thousand. A 25 cents per thousand transportation charge is added when seedlings are shipped to a central point in the county from which they are ordered. Persoos wanting the remaining species should order early to insure their receiving their s upply. Order blanks may be obtained from Georgia Forestry Commission personnel, County Agents, Soil Conservation Service Tec hnicians, Vocational Agnculture Teachers, or by writing directly to the Georgia Forestry Commission, Atlanta, Georgia Leads South In Lumber Production Georgia's 1953 lurrber production led the entire South, according to a report issued this mooth by the llireau of the Census, U.S. llipartment of Coorrerce. C':.eorgia' s production totalled 2,240,000,000 board feet, an increase of 159,000,000 board feet over the previru~ year, 1952 The The 1952 production was 2,081,000, 000 ooard feet. Georgia's 1umber production for 1951 was 2,177,000, 000 board feet. The greatest percentage of the state's lumber production was in softwoods, 1, 917,000,000 board feet, a gai n over 1952 of 176,000,000 board feet. The state's s oftwooo product ion in 1951 was 1,730,000,000 board feet. Hardwood producti on in Georgia, however, decreased slightly 1n 1953. During that year, 323, 000,000 board feet, ofhardwood were produced. During the previous year the hardwood total was 340,000,000 board feet. Georgia's ne i ghboring state, Al abarna, produced 1 , 48 5, 000, 000 board feet of lumber in 1953 1,052,000,000 board feet, of that total in softwoods and 433,000,000 board feet in hardwoods. Some of the areas reporting to the U.S. Cepar tment of Commerce sent in their figures on a regional basis; therefore individual statewide figures were not available for all states. Arkansas and Oklahoma, for example, reported as one unit, as did California and Nevada. ' 'Our state's incre asing 1umber production and its current status in nationwide production,' ' declared Guyton DeLoach, Director, Georgia Fares try Commiss ion, ''typify the opportunities which 1ie ahead for the Georgia farmer or landowne r in the field of tree farming. Georgia citizens setting out seedli ngs today may, in many areas, be ass ured of a sawlog crop within twenty years: These logs (left photo), part of a crop from a Georgia f1ee Farm, are sprayed with strong jets of water to remove dirt ana impurities from the bark before they enter the mill. Stacks of 1 umber like this (right photo), a familiar sight in all parts of Georgia, form a graphic reminder of Georgia's leadership in the Southern lumber field. -L---~r+-- - ~ ::.~~ PULPWOOD MART--An attractive sign, ( top photo) , imprinted ~ith the familiar "Keep Georgia Green" message points out the Mooradian yard to \\est Georgia farmers and landowners. Stacked bol tsof pulpwood, (center photo), await loading on railroad cars. Note load ing machine on other side of car. A loading machine, (bottom photo), removes wood from a farmer' s truck for loading onto a flatcar. "Buite~t'n trr;" MaMud dJ.~cl Jn Pulpwoo.J 'lfa~~,J&. Pulpwood concentration yards, at one time found only occas ionally throughout the state, today not only are becoming a cOOlillon sight throughout Georgia, but are providing the state's small landowner with a ' ' butter'n egg'' type market for his pulpwood products. These yards have fast proved a boon, especially to the small tree farmer who previously was unable to find a market for the cord or two of wood from an improvement thinning on a srrn.ll woodlot. Just as farmer's markets today provide a ready market for truck garden products and produce and - equally as important - a source of immediate cash for the seller, so do the modern-day pulpwood concentration yards provide the tree farme r a cash market for his pulpwood products. No longer does the farmer have to wait until he has accumulated a railway carload of wood, haul the wood to a rail s iding, unload it on a flatcar, and await the mai 1s for a check in payment of his wood. Today' s al terna ti ve operation in selling pulpwood is typified by a Woodbury, Ga., independent dealer, William Mooradian, who buys for the &>waters Southern Paper Corporation in Tennessee. Mr. ~loorad ian us es 300 cords weekly, most of it t a ken from a 20 mile area. Although some o f Georgia's pulpwood dealers operate cutt in g crews of their own, the Woodbury deal er confines his operations to purchasing wood from local farmers as they bring in one or severa l cords. ''~1uch of the wood we take in here,'' he decla r ed, ''couldn't be sold otherwise because of the small quantity in which it's delivered. Our farmers cut their own wood, and most of them bring it in here in their own trucks. We pay $12 a cord, and the farmer walks out of the woodyard with the check in his hand.'' DECEMBER, 1954 Forestry Research Center Dedication Scheduled lnterna tional Paper Company's newest educational comic booklet has been released for distribution to sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students throughaut the South. This year's bookie t, sixth to date in the series, is titled ' 'Who Lives on the Fares t Farm: ' Previous editions have been' 'How Money Goes Up in Smoke, ' ' ' ' How Money Grows on Trees,' ' ' 'Th e crop That Did Not Fail,'' ''The Little Trees That went to School,'' and ' 'How Does the Tree Crop Grow.'' Attractivley presented in multicolor, the booklet tells the story of damage caused by a farest fire, not only to the trees and seedlings that it devours, but to soil and wildlife as well. It stresses how an unburned farest gives nourishment and protection to fish and wildlife. In addition, it tells of Tree Farming in all i tsirrportant phases from planting to harvesting. Distribution of the booklets in Georgia is being made bycoun- ty Rangers in counties operating forestry units, while in unprotected counties county school superintende nts are making the deliveries. llidicatim ceremonies for the newly established Georgia Forestry Center, which will serve as headquarters for a large percentage of all forest research activities J:eing carried on throughout the state, wi 11 be held llicember 20 at dw Macm Sl~p and Warehouse. Hundreds are expected to participate in the activities, which will include an open house and an address by Governor Herman Talmadge, talks by other notables, and a barbecue dinner. 1he Farmers Club of the Macon Cllarnbe r of Carrrerce is sponsoring the dedicatim and barbecue. Forestry leaders, legislators, and civic leaders from throughout Georgia and the South have been invited to attend. A feature of the day's actlv1t1es will be an ''open house'' at which visitors will be given an opportunity to view the many activities carried on at the Center. ~se activities include not only research work, but the Corrrnission's varied s hop, and warehouse p roj ec~c;, a s outhwide seed- tes tin g cente r, am a complete erne processing pl ant. The research cente r, which was opened two months ago, char acterizes one of the key paints in thts t ate' s ' 'new look'' in the fores t resea rch field--cooperative effort. The center represents combined efforts and work on the rart of soch organizatims as the Georgia Forest 1~ search Cotmcil, the Georgia &hool of Fares try, the U.S. Fares t Service, private industry ard the Georgia Forestry Commiss im. The Center actually hoo its beginning last fall following an act of the Georgia Legislature, which established the Georgia fusearch Council to coordinate d~ research functims of forestry agenc1es. Since establishrrent of the Counc il, four research projects have been placed in opera tim in Georgia. Trey are i"l.Sects and diseases, genetics, hardwood control, and seed orchards. GAINESVILLE HEADQUARTERS--Newest of the Georgia Forestry Commission district headquarters buildings is this structure south of Gainesville on the Atlanta highway. The headquarters contains offices for the District Forester, Assistant District Foresters, Radio Technician and Law Enforcement officer, as well as storage and garage space. " ' \ ... ll I ' I ~' ' I' \I I ' I~ I I II\ GEORGIA FORESTRY 1teeu. etuteeta ()' 7au4t ?lt44~t U4ed '7~t &~~at 7tPte4l~ Stetetie4 A new, hi gh l y realisti c c once pt o f forest mana gement by sma ll owners char ac terizes the studies being made on the 4 , 000 acre Geor ge Walton Experimental Fores t in Sou the as t Dooly County. The for es t is the field labora tory of the Corde le Re s earch Center, U. S . For es t Service. Much fares try research a nd the subsequent f indings and r ecommendati ons a r e based on the as sumptions that the smal~ own~rs will do the ir own ma rking, 1mpr oveme nt c u tting, ha rves tin g and eve n sawmilling and other wo od work during slack pe riods. Here at the George Walton Fores t, however, the emphasis is on the owne r as a bus iness man or professional man and essen tially onl y a manager or administrat<:>r of hi s woodlands who se ll s h1s timbe r as stumpage to sawm ille rs, pulpwood cont ractor s , o r oth~r forest pr oducts deal e rs . Th1s concept has an inc reasingly practical basis as indus try and public age ncies offe r constantly broadened forest management se rvices to landowners. The expressed p urpose of ope ration of the 4000-acre Geor ge Walton Experimental Forest in Southeast Doo l y County is to do r esearch in forest manageme nt with the objective of obtaining the greatest net income per acre from timber management. But this model expe rimental forest in Ge or gia's middle Coastal Plain seems to have far exceeded even this ambitious objective in the extent of its operations . 1n the e ntire South. Twenty year s ago, as the headlines sc r eamed of business co ll apse and agriculture fe ll victim t o the dep res s ion, Wa lton pushed ahead with his pr actice of buy ing depl eted cropland, _pl anting with wi l dl ing Slash Pme seed lings , and fight in g fire wi ~h the rud i me ntary means a t h1s command . Today his woodlands sta nd as a green a nd gTowin g monument to one man's faith and action while others surre ndered to despair. The George Walton Forest i s n amed after Georgi a's early three- times Colonial Gove rnor and signe r of the Decla r ation of Independence. Thou gh the tie - in is natural, Holt Walton claims no re l at ion to the colonial l eade r. The specter of wi ldfire loomed large as the fi r st pr obl em tha t confronted Norman Hawle y, Officer -in-Char ge, and Frank Benne tt, when they started work on the forest immediate l y after the Southeastern Forest Experiment Station s igned a 50- year contract wi th Wa 1ton. Under terms of the agreement, Walton provides the entire tract r e nt-free , and a l so contributes some labor and equipmen t. He plows a ll firebreaks on the area a nd carries on hardw ood control with his naval stores crews. Hawley and Frank Bennett, Hesearch Forester , t:ons ul t and cooperate closely with Wal_ton in all projects and ope r a t10ns on the forest. 1. SUP ERIOR TRE~- Frank Bennett, Re- search Forester, left, and Holt Walton, owner of the experimental forest, right, look at one of the superior Slash Pine that have been selected aspart of the genetics study. 2. FARM WOODLOT--This farm woodlot is sup- plying in formation usuabl e by farmers of the Middle Coastal Plain. 3. PINE SPACING STUDY- - Sixteen plantings of different spacings are designed to give much-needed information on best spacings _ .. for production of various products. 4. SAWMILL--Timber sales and sawmill oper- ations on George Walton FOrest. 5. EXPERIMENTAL PLOTS--Unique arrangement provides for convenient comparison of re- sults on plots of pilot plant. 6. CLEARCUT AREA OF PLANTATION MANAGEMENT STUDY- -Th is 19-ye ar-old pulpwood rotation bl~~~~~~~~~~.~~~~~~ plot wa~ clearcut this year . Four rotations of 19, 25, 35, and 50 years ~~~;a being used. 7. FIREBREAK PASTURES--Norman Hawley, Of- f icer-in-Charge, and Holt Wa lton inspect one o f the wide firebreaks that also serve as pastureland. 8. Holt Walton, left, and Norman Hawley, r ight, stand beside the George Walton E~erimental FOrest sign. The George Walton Fore st was estab lished in 1947 on a cooper - at ive agreement with Hoi t Wal - ton, a leading landowner of the area and rremrer of ing 'family of the saenc_ toiuot~s,ta.nadnd- one whose fores ight, 1ntu1t10n, aggressiveness and first - h~nd know l edge of timber produc t1on have carried him to the owner- ship of some of the. most pro- due tive and valuable t1mber 1and Seve n years were yet to pass before Dooly County was to start organized forest fire pro tect1 on, and Haw ley, Wa 1ton and company were c omp l etely on their own in fire pro tection. Our ing the first year a power wagon was equipped with a purrp and 200-gallon tan!<, fire tool caches were placed m the woods, and a fire lookout (Conti nued on Page 10) ! ' T t \. ] ... j ;. I " ) ".,i'~ ,\ \ - -....."."'! ,~ ' I ' - ., _----_ ,. ..,_.~ ~c.!.=-;;;;;' .f".: ..-.= :u';\....,;----.....,;rAt.?~ . . - --- ~..:'~/ I ..,_ _.,. . - "~ - . , ~ , -~ ' " _., _.. ;-~~ I I I ..: . : ... ~ :~.. ~ ' ... REFORESTATION WINNERS- -Henry Inglet (photo a t le ft), young 4-H Club boy from Columbia County, r eceives congratulat ions for winning top honors in in photo at right, joins Richmond County Ranger T. M. Strickland in inspecting a fast growing pine on his Gracewood tree farm. James Rabun, of Jeff- a reforestation contest sponsored by the Georgia Railroad Bank and Trust Company, in cooperation wi t h the Georgia Agricultural Extension Service. The group includes, I ef t to right, W. R. Tye, erson County, wm third prize. First, second and third place county winners in the seven Central Savru1nah River Area counties participating were as follows: Burke-- Benj ie Anderson, Earl Lively, Columbia County Agent; Chari es B. Presley, of th e Georgia Railroad Bank and Trust Company, Henry In~et , and w. A. Sutton, Extension Service Asso- Harry Coursey Jr. Columbia- -Henry Ingl et, Jack Willis, Daniel Marshall. Glascock--Bernard Todd, Calvin McCoy, Linder Walden. Jefferson--James ciated Direct or. Henry received $25 asarea winner a nd an additional $10 as the leading project par- Rabun, Lucius Miller, Billy Lamb. Lincoln--G crdon H. McGee Jr., George Dunaway, Garry Ward. Mc- ticipant in his home county. Second place winner Duffie--Tommy Cofer, Jimmy Harrison. Richmond-- was Bill Loflin, ofRichmond County. Young Loflin, Billy Loflin, Julius Whisnant, Danford.Luke . Dernonstration Held In Gainesville Cloudy skies and f re quent outbursts of r ain failed to dampen enthus i asm o f more t han 150 Northeast Ge org i a citizens attending a forestry de monstrat ion last month on the proper t y of the Hall County Board of Education four miles south of Gainesville. Sponsors were the Geor gia For- est ry Commission, the Soil:- Conservation Association, Sandvik Saw Company, Rome Kraft Company, and Georgia Extension Service. Those at tending included FFA a nd 4-H boys from many Northeast Georgi a communities, in~ludiPg Lul a, Flowery Branch, and Oakwood . B. H. Kinney, Hall County SCS t echnician, opened the demonst ra t i on with a description o f the region's forest resources a nd the potent1alities which are offered through prope r utiliz t on of those resources. J..ll :-;;osbe, Rome Kra ft Company Ar. l tvhnage r ,. de scribed thinning Of"ratt"'lns, and J. Howard Doyle, PLANTIN' IN TilE RAIN--A planting demonstration is c ? rried on unde r rainy s kies in Hall County. The group includes, l e ft to righ t, C. A. Ro dgers, of Rome, Assistant Woods Manage r, Rome Kraft Company ; C. T. Can t r e ll Jr., Hall-Banks County Ran ge r ; Mrs. Ella Mae Colli n s, o f Ga i n esvi ll e ; Sam Martin, Farm Fore s ter, - Geor g ia Fo r est ry Comm ission; o. C. Burt z , Ninth Di s trict Foreste r, Georgia Fo rest ry Comm ission, and ~!iss Eula Mae Dunnagan, of Gainesville. +inued on Page 9 ) DECEMB ER, 1954 Rangers In The News The cl ass i f i e d columns o f the Corde l e Di spa t ch a r e p l ay in g a n i mporta nt pa rt in r e minding t he c iti ze ns of crisp County o f t he 9ange r s o f fore st fires, accor d In g to Ran ge r Willi am Tvedt. As a pa rt of tha t news paper' s e xce llen t coope ration with t he c ormunity' s Kee p Georg i a Gr ee n contest carmittee, ''want ads '' a re fr e qu ently inters pe rsed in the columns of the clas sified section. A typic a l ad r ea ds, '' Wa nted : No more forest fire s until May }st. It hurts the chance s of the county winning the ' Keep Georgia Green' contest. Ciisp County Fores try Unit.'' \ \ P ul as ki County Range r J ohn Dick i nson, who l eads on e o f t he county' s most r e cen tl y or ganized units , re cently utili zed a new app roach to brin g a ttention to the dange rous f orest f ire s itua tion in his a r ea . Ca ll i ng on the te chniques o f the c om me r ci al s f r equently hea r d over r adio and t e l e vision progr ams, he aske d i n t he pages o f t he Haw ki nsvi ll e Cis pa tch , ' ' Do you fee 1 out o f s or ts, heada chey , run down? ''We ll ,'' he conti nued, ''the Pu l ask i County Forestry Tln i t fee l s r un down t oo from running down so many fires. S i nce the Uni t was activated, we have had 16 fi r es. Some of the people who started these fires kn ow they did it. Those are the ones I want to con tact. You know what destruction fires can cause. Please be more careful next time.'' \ .. ,. CHURCH GROUP AT FORESTRY SESSION--Jackson Coun t y Ranger Jam e s McElhannon, right, was host to a district mee t in g of the Methodis t You til Fellowship at the Jackson tower recentl) . Following a picnic supper at the tower site, the group was shown the tower operations and a film, "bich He Hath Planted." A seedling was given each of the more than 100 young people attending. He r e Ra nge r Mc Elhannon presents copies of "Forest, Flame and the Bibl e" to group leade rs for distribution to their organizations. Forestr y mes sage hi ghw ay signs in Distri ct Seve n r ap idl y are t aking on a ''new loo k,'' thanks t o t he wcrk of t hat District's I n vestigator, Bob Gore, who has se t up a highwa y sign repair s hop at district he adquarters. Ran ge r s of the Di strict's 16 c ounties bring the ir highway signs i n to the Investi g ator, who adds n ew mciulding and other rep airs and applies , whenever necessary, a touch of oaint at the proper spots. A r e gular sc hedule has been se t up, and the Rangers repor t the r enova ted signs are being turned out ' 'on an assembly line basis. '' Ranger Harry Sweat, of Treut1en County, r ecently de vi sed an effective weapon to halt ca reless brush burning during periods of hi gh for est fire danger. Th e Ranger wrote out the rules and precautions regarding brush burning and had them printed in a small leaflet. He distributed the leafl ets by placing them in parked automobil es in Soperton. "Th e plan worked well," the Ranger reported, "especially durin g the r ece nt drouth~ an~ l andowners have been much more cooperat~ve in notifying us of brush burning and holding off on burning brush and trash during periods of high fire danger. n Harper To Head Sixth Disrict NEW FARMERS OF MlERICAProf. Geo rge Uall , of Todd-Grant lligh School, Da r ien, wo rk s wi th some of the 78-member chapter of the New ~armers of Ameri c a i n de ve l oping a demonstra tion forest. John Mci ve r , In ternatio nal Pap er Compan y District Forester, and Joe Ga rri son , Conse rvation FOrester o f the sam e organi za tion, will gi ve technical advi ce. FAMILIAR SCENE--The giant, tractor-powered blade breaking ground under the small seedlings to re