FOREST RESOURCES 

of the 

NORTH ARKANSAS DELTA 

A Progress Report 

by 

THE SOUTHERN FOREST SURVEY 

I. F. Eldredge 

Regional Survey Director 

FOREST SURVEY RELEASE NO. 32 APRIL 16, 1938 

SOUTHERN FOFSST EXPERIP4EBT STATION 

E. L. Demmon, Director 

New Orleans, La. 
The nation-wide Forest Survey, being made by the United 

States Forest Service, was authorized by the McSweeney-PlcNary 

Forest Research Act of 1928. Its five-fold object is: (1) to 

make an inventory of the present supply of timber and other 

forest products, (2) to ascertain the rate at which this supply is being increased through growth, (3) to determine the 

rate at which this supply is being diminished through industrial and local use, windfall, fire, and disease, (4) to determine the present requirement and the probable future trend 

in the requirement for timber and other forest products, and 

(5) to correlate these findings with existing and anticipated 

economic conditions, in order that policies can be fornulated 

for the effective use of land suitable for forest productlon, 

In the South, the Forest Survey functions as an activity 

of the Southern Forest Experiment Station with headquarters at 

New Orleans, La. 

This release, which should be regarded only as a progress 

report, is based on a field survey made during November and 

December 1934 and January 1935. It contains Forest Survey data 

that will be included in complete reports to be published later, 

and that, although considered reliable, are subject to correction or amplification as the work of computation proceeds; 

while item 4 above, which is being studied on a national basis, 

is not discussed In this report, 

In the presentation of these survey data, it is to be 

noted that owing to the sampling method used in collecting them, 

the greater the number of samples in any given classification 

the more accurate are the data for that classification. Hence 

classes that are of infrequent occurrence and relatively small 

in quantity generally cannot be determined with as high a degree 

of accuracy as classes that occur nore frequently and in substantially greater quantities. Small tabular items are to be 

taken as showing, not the exact magnitude of the classes involved, but their relative magnitude in comparison w2th those of 

.other classes. 

Staff kssipnment 

Preparation of Repor; -- R. K. Winters, Forester 

In Charge of Field Work - J. A, Putnam, Associate Forest Economist 

In Charge of Computations -- P. R, Wheeler, Associate Forest Economist 
FOREST ElESOURCES OF THE NORTH ARKANSAS DELTA 

Location and General Description 

The North Arkansas Delta survey unit includes the flood plains of the 

i Mississippi River and its principal tributaries between Helena, Arkansas, 

and Cape Girardeau, r4issouri, with boundaries as shown in figure 1. Although chiefly in Arkansas, it includes portions of Missouri, Tennessee, and 

Kentucky. A conspicuous topographic feature is Crowley's Ridge, a narrow 

elevation rising some 200 feet above the general level of the surrounding 

plain and extending about 180 miles from Helena, Ark., to the vicinity of 

Advance, No. Elsewhere the relief is remarkably uniform, seldom varying 

locally more than 20 feet, with drainage generally to the southward. 

The soils are in general of alluvial origin and when cleared and 

drained are often of high agricultural worth. Practically the entire land 

area supported originally a stand of hardwood timber, although nearly 60 

percent of the land area is now in some form of agricul?,ual use. Cotton 

is the principal crop in the Arkansas portion of the unit, but farther 

north it gradually gives way to more diversified farm crops. The area is 

largely peopled by rural dwellers; while small villages abound, only two 

tg~nls, Blyiheville and Jonesboro, Ark., have populations of more than 

10,000 persons. The negro population, which is largest in the counties 

adjacent to the Mississippi River, diminishes rapidly from east to west 

and gradually northward, 

Table 1 shows the relative importance of the principal kinds of 

land use in the unit. 

Table 1. - Land area classified according to major uses, 1935 

Forest 

Land use 

Acres Percent 

To-tal land area 

Agricultural : 

In cultivation: 

Old cropland 3,394,100 

New cropland 164,900 

Out of cultivation: 

Idle 134,900 

Abandoned 67,000 

Improved pasture 185,400 

Total agricultural 3,946,300 

( Other: Marsh, waterways, 

t0~TlS and villages, roads, 

railroads, etc. 

Total land area 6,715,700 100.0 
Land taxes are generally high. In addition to a high ad-valorem tax, 

caused by a relatively high valuation of agricultural land, many areas bear 

an additional tax to pay for drainage improvements. In 1933 when approximately 2.7 million acres of land in the unit were in organized drainage 

districts, an average drainage tax of 58$ per acre was assessed against the 

land in this area. Since then many drainage districts have been refinanced 

with loans from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, with a resulting 

reduction in the current drainage tax, An additional area in organized 

drainage districts in the Miss~uri portion of the unit bears a sinilar tax. 

Furthermore, some portions bear an annual levee tax as great as 259 per 

acre. In certain extreme instances the total tax, including state and 

county taxes, may be more than $2 per acre per year. Forest land in many 

parts of this unit has a relatively high value because of its speculative 

worth as agricultural land. On account of this high value and high annual 

tax, cut-over forest land is used for agriculture if its quality permits 

and if economic conditions justify its use for this purpose. 

Forest Description 

Although most of this area was originally covered with a dense virgin hardwood forest, its proxirLty to the northern markets consuming hardwoods and its excellent timber stand made it one of the first areas of the 

Nississippi River Delta to be logged commercially. This cutting, begun 

certainly prior to 1880, carried on over a relatively long period, and 

followed as it often was by agricultural development, has resulted in a 

relatively small residual forest area. On the front lands along the 

Mississippi River in Arkansas, and in the Missouri portion of the unit, 

extensive areas occur in which the forest occupies no more than 10 to 15 

percent of the land area, Certain areas less suited for agriculture, 

such as Crowleyts Ridge and areas of very poor drainage, are now largely 

forested and can be expected to remain so. A considerable part of the 

present forest area, however, is potential 2gricultural land, and may becone so if economic conditions warrant its use for this purpose. The 

situation in regard to the forest area is shown in greater detail in table 

2, where this area is classified into 9 forest types on the basis of the 

species found there and into 5 forest conditions on the basis of the character of the timber stand. The general distribution of the forest types is 

also shown in figure 1, although the types shown here zre somewhat more 

generalized than those given in table 2. The red gum-water oak, overcup 

oak-bitter pecan, cottonwood-willow, and hackberry-elm-ash types of table 

2 have been combined in figure 1 into the red gum-mixed hardwood type, 

which, like the cypress-tupelo gum type, is commonly found on the bottoms. 

The mixed oak-mixed hardwood and the scrub oak-scrub hardwood types, 

characteristic of the terraces, have been combined in figure 1 to give the 

oak-mixed hardwood type. The water oak type of table 2, which occurs on 

both b~ttoms and terraces, has been included in figure 1 with the red gummixed hardwoods when it occurs on the bottoms, and with the oak-mixed hardwoods when it occurs on the terraces. The upland hardwood type is found 

on Crowley's Ridge and on the Commerce Hills south of Cape Girardeau, 740. 
FOREST TYPES 

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AREAS CHARACTER1 ZED BY THE 

MAJOR FOREST TYPES IN THE 

NORTH ARKANSAS DELTA 

PREPARED BY FOREST SURVEY 

SOUTHERN FOREST EXPERIMENT STATION 
Table 2. - Distribution of total forest area in the various forest types and forest conditions, 1m 

Red gum-water oak 

Hackberry-elm-ash 

Overcup oak-bitter pecan 

Cottonwood-willow 

Cypress-tupelo gum 

, Water oak 

;lixed oak-mixed 11 

, Upland l-iardwood - 2TdW00d 

Scrub oak-scrub hardwood 

Total all types 70,200 212,200 530,100 553 700 1,247,000 2,613,200 100.0 

--- - 

Forest type 

Percent of total 2.7 8.1 20.3 21.2 947.7 100.0 

- 1/ Although the Survey data show an area in this type and condition, it is too small to indicate accurately even the 

relative magnitude of the individual item. The area estimated, however, is carried in the total for the type and 

condition. 

y$-% + ,A/ 4 - 0Z4-(' ,- 

Includes a small area of pine-hardwood type. . /-I . . /)4,)~(~+,~ b:cJ lLbtY 7 ,o J+*/*h.f , tfi - * -&/- 

Old growth Second-growth 

sawlog size 

- 3/ Of this total area, only about 2 percent can be classed as llclear-cut.ll 4: F -> ,,; / 3 i 

p 0 6,< -> 

Second-growth 

under sawlog 

size, reproduction, and 

clear-cut Uncut Uncut 

- 

All conditions 

Partly cut Partly cut 
The total forest area has been further subdivided into commercial 

and noncommercial areas. By a I1commerciall1 forest area is meant one that 

supports a stand of adequate quality and volume per acre to warrant operation under normal conditions for such high-grade products as industrial 

lumber, cooperage stock, or veneer. Since practically all of the forest 

area in this unit is accessible for truck logging during some season of 

the year, industrial operators generally find it feasible to log areas 

bearing 1,000 board feet or more per acre of high-grade material; throughout this report such forest areas are considered to be commercial. I1Nonc~innercial~~ areas include all forest lands that do not meet these qualifications. These areas frequently bear stands suitable for cross ties, 

structural timbers, and lumber for domestic use. 

High-grade material is contained specifically in (1) lumber-mill 

and veneer-mill logs and (2) other high-quality logs suitable chiefly for 

the manufacture of cooperage and small-dimension stock. Lumber-mill logs 

are those at least 14 inches (12 inches in ash, yellow poplar, and black 

walnut) in diameter that can be expected to yield 30 percent or more of 

their lumber volume in grades No. 1 common and better. Logs in this class 

average about 60 percent of their volume in these grades of lumber. Cooperage and small-dimension logs are at least 10 inches in diameter and of 

the same general quality as lumber-mill logs, but they cannot be so classified because of their small diameter or excessive sweep. These small, 

high-grade logs are suitable for industrial uses that require bolts or 

blocks rather than logs. High-grade material in cypress and pine includes 

the contents of all individual trees which will cut a minimum of 80 to 90 

percent of their lumber volume in grades No. 2 common cud better, and which, 

in addition, will produce more than 5 percent in firsts and seconds or B 

and better. Low-grade logs of all species are those that do not meet the 

above qualifications. In all partly cut sawlog-size forest conditions, the 

high-grade volume is largely made up either of species that did not at the 

time of the last cutting have a well-established market, or of small logs 

suitable only for cooperage and small-dimension stock. 

Of the total forest area, only 200,000 acres, or less than 10 percent, supports sufficient high-quality timber (1,000 board feet or more per 

acre) to be classified as commercial. Of this commercial area, approximately 27 percent is in the old-growth uncut condition, 2L percent in the 

old-growth partly cut condition, 32 percent in the second-growth sawlogsize uncut condition, and 17 percent in the second-growth saalog-size partly 

cut condition. Approximately one-third of the comqercial forest area was in 

the red gum-water oak type. 

limber Inventory 

The volume estimate has been broken down lnto sawtimber volume (expressed in board feet, Doyle log scale) and into cordwood volume. The 

sawtimber volume includes the net volume of all usable logs in good trees 

of sawlog size, regardless of log grades, Such trees are at least 13.0 
inches d.b.h.L1 (9.0 inches in pine) and contain at least one 12-foot usable 

log (lee., one 10 inches or more in diameter at the small end in hardv:ood, 

and 6 lnches or more in pine); and at least 50 percent of their voluae Ln 

material suitable for the manufacture of lunber of comercial grade, lowgrade structural material, low-grade box material, or railroad cross ties. 

The sawtimber volume, however, tncludes nelther the volume of sound cull 

and rotten cull trees, nor the cull volume in good trees. 

The cordwood volume of trees under sawlog size (5.0 - 12.9 inches 

d.b.h. in hardwood and cypress, and 5.0 - 8.9 Fn pine) includes the wood 

and bark of the main stem to a usable top, the minimum allowable top being 

never less than 4 inches and seldom nore than 8. The cordwood volume Is 

also net, that is, the volume of cull material that normally would be left 

in the woods as waste has not been included. 

Board-foot volume 

The total net board-foot volume, as shown in section A of table 3, 

is 3.0 billion board feet, according to the Doyle log rule. Of this total, 

approximately 21 percent is in old-growth uncut stands; 20 percent is in 

the old-growth partly cut; 32 percent in the second-growth sawlog-size uncut; 22 percent in second-growth sawlog-size partly cut stands, and 5 percent on the remaining second-growth and clear-cut areas. Considering the 

total board-foot volume from another point of view, 41 percent (or 1.2 

billion board feet) is on connercial areas; approximately half of this is 

high-grade mterial suitable for industrial lumber, veneers, and cooperage. 

On noncommercial forest areas approxi~ately 12 percent of the total boardfoot volune is high-grade material. 

Although these are the total voluines, a sharper picture of :.he timber 

stands in the unit perhaps can be obtained best from a statement of the 

total stand per everage acre, high-grade and low-grade material coinbined, in 

the various forest condiilons. 

Average nunber of board 

Forest condj tion feet per acre 

(Doyle log scale) 

Old growth: 

Uncut 

Partly cut 

Second growth: 

Sawlog size: 

Uncut 

Partly cut 

Under sawlog size, 

reproductton, and 

clear-cut areas 

- hreighted averape, all conditions 1,153 

- 1/ "d.b.h.I1 is the abbreviation for "diameter at breast height," whcch is the 

tree diameter at 4* feet above ground. The Survey uses 2-lnch diameierclasses; thus for example, the lower and upper limits of ihe 1.4-Lnch dianeterclass are 13.0 and 14.9 inches, respectively. 
Table 3,- Total net volume of ~ood trees on forest areas, classified according to forest condition 

and species-group. 1935 

A. BY FOREST CONDITION 

Forest condition an species-group 

Old growth: 

Uncut 

Partly cut 

Second growth: 

Sawlog size: 

Uncut 

Partly cut 

Under sawlog size 

Reproduction 

Clear-cut 

Total 

Red gum 

Water oaks 

Red oaks 

White oaks 

Overcup oa$/ 

Ash 

Oottonwood 

wul?/, ~lm$ 

Tupelo gd 

Cypress 

Bitter ecan 

IIickoryj/ 

Hackberry 

~iscellaneoug 

Volume on commercial areas 

I 

B. BY SPECIES-GROUP 

I/ Cordwood yolume of trees under sawlog size including the wood and bark of the main stem to a usable top, 

the minimum allowable top never being less than 4 inches and seldom more than 8. Cordwood volume was ca1.c~- 

la~ed on a basis of 80 cubic feet per cord for hardwood species and 90 cubic feet for pine and cypress. 

Only woods cull was deducted from the cordwood volume. 

Volume on noncommercial areas 

I 

Sawtimber (Doyle) 

Approximately 32 percent of this volume is "hilln post oak. 

Total volume 

.- 

Cordwoo& 

In highgrade logs 

2/ Approximately 80 percent of this volume is white elm. 

In lowgrade logs 

+&/ Approximately 2 percent of this volume is black gum. 

51 Approximately LO percent of this volume is sweet pecan. 

Sawtimber (Doyle) 

6/ - Includes a small volume of pine (approximately 11 million board feet and 17,000 cords). 

Cordwoocfl/ 

In highgrade logs 

Sawtimber 

(Doyle) In lowgrade logs 
Thus it is seen ihat the under-sawlog-size, reproduction, and clearcut conditions, which make up nearly 48 percent of the forest area (see 

table 2), support an average stand of only 112 board feet per acre, and the 

weighted average for the total forest area is only 1,153 board feet per 

acre. It is apparent that in general the forests of this unit are understocked in irees of sawlog size. In addition to this board-foot voluxe, 

the average acre bears approximately 3.8 cords of stem wood in trees under 

sawlog size. Converting the board-foot voluze of sawlog-size trees to cords 

for purposes of comparison, we get 4.0 cords of sav:timber on the average 

acre. Almost half the volume j.n stems of good trees, expressed in cords, 

is therefore in trees under saalog size. 

Although the Doyle log rule Is the legal rule of Arkansas and is :n 

general use for tllnber estimates in the South, its application to stands 

made up mainly of small trees results in a conslderable understatement of 

the actual volume recoverable in lumber. The board-foot voluze in this 

sl;rvey unit, according to the International +-inch log rule, which closely 

approximates green lumber tally, is 4.1 billlon board feet; and according 

to the Scribner log rule, the official log rule of the U. S. Forest Service, 

it is 3.7 billion board feet. The average stznd per acre, using the International $-inch rule, Is 1,577 board feet instead of the 1,153 feet found with 

the Doyle rule. 

Cordwood volume 

In addition to the sawtimber volune, and the volume in sound 

under sawlog size, already shown in table 3, there is, as determined by a 

very rough estimate, 11.7 million standard (4 x 4 x 8 feet) cords of sound 

wood, including bark, which is classified as follows: 

Cords 

Tops and limbs of good trees of sawlog sFze -- 6,001,500 

Sound wood from stems, tops, and limbs of 

In sawlog-slze trees, this cordwood volume includes ihat portion of 

the sain stem above the usable sawlog linit and also lncludes the volume 

of all hardwood and .cypress llnbwood over L inches in diameter. In cull 

trees, the volume includes the sound voluxe of all stemwood in trees at 

least 5.0 inches d.b.h., together with limbwood in sawlog-slze trees. 

Cubic-foot volume 

The cubic-foot equivalent of the total sawtimber voluie Fs 728 million 

cubic feet inside bark. The cublc volume of good trees under sawlog size but 

over 5 inches is 635 mFllIon cuSic feet excluding bark. The total cubic volume, excluding cull trees and LOPS, is therefo~e l.L billion cubic feet 

(1935) 0 
Timber Increment 

Annual increment on an area is considered to be the difference between the net volume of live, good trees standing on the area at the beginning of any year and the corresponding volume at the end of the same year, 

assuming that no volume is removed by cutting in the meantime. It is, 

therefore, the increase over and above the volume lost through natural 

mortality, and is equivalent to the cut that can be made that year without 

reducing the volume of the original growing stock. 

Board-foot increment is made up of (1) the growth on trees already 

sawlog size and (2) the total board-foot volume of trees becoming sawlog 

size during the year. This increment is expressed in net log scale, and 

is based on good trees only, from which all cull material is excluded. 

Similarly, cubic-foot increment represents (1) the growth on sound stemwood 

in good trees at least 5.0 inches in diameter,plus (2) the total volume of 

small trees growing up to, or exceeding, this diameter during the year. 

Table 4 shows the annual increment per acre in the various forest 

conditions in terms of board feet and cubic feet, excluding bark. In these 

increments, deductions for natural mortality have been made; no deductions 

have been made, however, for material removed in timber-cutting operations. 

Increment in board-foot material is expressed in lumber tally as measured by 

the International $-inch rule. Cubic-foot increment includes material in 

trees of both sawlog and under sawlog sizes. 

Table 4. - Annual 1/ increment- on the a%-erage acre of commercial and 

noncommercial forest, by forest conditions, 1935 

Coinmercial area: 

Old growth, uncut 

Old growth, partly cut 

Second growth, sawlog size 

Noncommercial area: 

Old growth, uncut 

Old growth, partly cut 

Second growth, sawlog size 

Second growth, under sawlog 

Clear-cut and, reproduction 

Forest condition 

Board feet Cubic feet (i.b.) 

(Int. $-inch rule) 

Annual increment 

size 48 

2/ -7 

All conditions 8 5 2 5 

- 1/ Figures in this table do not include increment resulting from the change of 

noncommercial areas to commercial areas (see footnote 3, table 5). 

- 2/ Negative increments occur when the volume lost to the stand through natural 

mortality of residual trees is greater than the increase in volume in good 

trees. 
Table 5 shows the total net volume of wood added to the Lnventory of 

good trees on the whole forest area during 1935, expressed in board feet 

(International *-inch rule) for sawlog-size material and in standard cords 

of 4 x 4 x 8 feet for material under sawlog size. In arriving at these 

estimates, deductions were made for natural mortality but not for cuttings. 

The total increment for all conditions ks about 223 million board feet of 

sawtimber material and 574,000 cords in the stems of good trees under sawlog 

size. Conversion of the board-foot increnent to cords, on the basis of 2 

cords per thousand board feet, gives nearly 450,000 cords. Considerably 

more than half the increment, therefore, is on trees under sawlog size. Of 

the board-foot increment, nearly two-thirds is in trees below the 20-lnch 

diameter-class. Also, employing the same conversion factor as before 

(2 cords per M bd. ft.) we find (from table 5) that nearly 75 percent of 

the total increment expressed in cords is on noncomnercial areas, Thus we 

see that the increment Is predoxinately in trees below the 20-i~ch diameterclass and on nonconnercial areas, and consequently of lor1 inmediate value 

from the viewpoint of the industrial lumber operator. Because the increment 

is largely on the smaller trees and in understocked stands, however, one 

should not conclude that the increment per acre is necessarily small. Converting the board-foot increment to cordwood volume (including bcrk), the 

total annual increment per acre i.n the second-growth sawlog-size and undersawlog-size cond5tions,which make up 57 percent of the forest area,is between 0.4 and 0.5 cord. 
Table 5 .-- ma1 annual increment ,y classified according to forest condition. 1935 

Forest condition 

Commercial Noncommer- Colnmercial Nonconuner- Commercial Noncommer- Commercj.al Noncommer- Tohl area 2/ cia1 area area 2/ cia1 area area 2/ cia1 area area J/ cia1 area 'Tot,al 

Incrementg in trees under 

sawlog size 

I - - - - - - - Cords - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - M board feet (Int. &inch rule) - - - - - - - - - - - 

Old growth: I I 

Increment in sawlog-size tress 

Uncut 900 4,3001 600 300 5,000 1,200 5,600 1,500 7,100 

Diameter-classes 

I 1L - 18 inches 

Partly cut 

28,600 1 1,700 5,900 3,600 6,900 5,300 12,800 16,100 

Diameter-classes 

I Second growth: 

i 

I-' Sawlog size 

20 inches and over 

I 

Under sawlog size 1 7,000 414,700 421,7001 100 53,700 1,300 2/-2,700 1,400 51,000 52,400 

All sawlog-sj ze trees 

Total all conditions 1 111,L+00 462,500 573,900 1 26,200 117,900 53,300 25,500 79,500 143,400 222,900 

Reproduction and clear-cut I - 

4'-5, 700 4/-5, 700 

Increment figures are based on the assumption that no cutting takes place. 

- 2/1,100 - 100 - ~1,000 2C1,ooo 

g This increment includes the annual growth on trees at least 5.0 inches d.b.h. that remain under sawlog size throughout the year, plus 

the volume in trees that during the year move in-to the 6-inch diameter-class. 

31 The annual increment on commercial forest areas includes not only the increment on areas that were commercial forest at the beginning 

of the year, but also the total timber volume added through movement of sreas from the noncomme~~cial to the commercial class as a result 

of one year's growth. Negative board-foot increment on noncommercial forest areas indicates (1) that the volumes on areas moving from 

the noncommercial to the commercial class were greater than the increment on areas remaining in the noncommercial class, and (2) that the 

mortality in residual stands is heavy. 

&/ Negative annual increments of trees under sawlog size means that. the voiume of trees changing from under sawlog size to sawlog size 

is greater than the increment of the trees that were under sawlog size at the end of the year (see footnote 2). 
Forest-Products Industries 

In 1936, the North Arkansas Delta (whj-ch, as previously stated, includes portions of Missouri, Tennessee, and ~entucky) supported within its 

boundaries 273 primary wood-using plants (figure 2) , of which 237 were sawmills and 36 were nonlumber plants. 

Lunber industry 

The sawmills of this unlt are of two distinct classes: (1) J~hose 

that, cut 5ndustrial lwnber of standard grades, used largely in the nsnufacture of furniture, fixtures, vehicles, flooring, mill work, and inplements; and (2) those thzt produce (a) heavy structural material for such 

uses as cross ties, car stock, dock and bridge material, and (b) light 

structural material for local building. Industrial lumber mills in general 

have a daily capacity of at least 20,000 board feet. Usually Sand nills, 

equipped to cut well-manufactured, alr--dried, rowh lwnber for factory consumption, they require a large proporilon of high-grade logs. Hardwood nills 

producing structural material usually are small mills, often with a circular 

saw and lacking facilities for the proper edgLng, trimming, and yarding of 

their output. They can operate generally on a lower average qualLty of 

timber than can the industrial lumber nills. 

Table 6 shows that 122 million board feet of lumber was manufactured 

in the sarmllls of the wit in 1936+ From this table it can be seen also 

that although the sawmill industry ts characterized by small nills, which 

chiefly cut heavy structural material and material for local building ;' &hese 

small mills produced only about 39percent, of the lumber cut in this nit. 

Furthermore, although the mills in the unit produced 122 million board feet 

of lumber, 168 million baud feet. was cut from the sinnds of the unit, ind-lcsting that a considerable volume in sawlogs was shipped out to mills locat.- 

ed elsewhere. A large part of this volume was shipped to Xenphis, Tennessee, 

an important hardwood industrial center just across the Mississippi River 

from this unit. 

Table 6. - Production and employnent data i-n the lumber industry, 193611 

?.I bd.ft. Number Y.1 bd.ft. Lian-days 74 bd.ft. Flan-days 

Under 10 200 25,500 34,400 25,300 35,400 

10 - 19 2 5 22,100 32,900 24,000 27,300 

20 - 39 7 22,900 52,300 r+8 , 500 88, %OO 

40 - 79 3 25,900 60,800 59,900 81,500 

80 and over 2 25,700 35,900 10,500 13,600 

Daily mill 

capacity 

Total 23 7 122,100 216,300 168,200 246 ?6 00 

Xi11 

employment 

1 - 1/ i3ased on a 10-hour operaticg day a.nd net. log scale (International ,-Fnch 

log rule) . 

illills 

Produced by 

nills in 

the unit, 

Produced 

from forests 

of the mit 

Woods 

employment 
FOREST INDUSTRIES 

LOCA~~ON OF ALL FORCST INDUSTHICS WITHIN 

COUNTIES. APRROXIMATE ONLY 

FOREST INDUSTRIES 

IN THE 

NORTH ARKANSAS DELTA 

PREPARED BY FOREST SURVEY 

SOUTHERN FOREST EXPERIMENT STATION 

Figure 2. 
Nonllmber industries 

In general the nanufacture of veneer, tight and slack cooperage stock, 

poles and piles, and such xiscellaneous products as small dimension stock, 

handles, and vehicle stock, requires a large proportjon of high-grade logs 

or bolts. These nonlumber inaustries, however, can draw ordinarily on the 

hFgh-grade material in the second-growth stands and partly cut stands left 

after logging for industrial lumber mills. The industries producing cross 

ties, shingles, and chemical wood, which do not require high-grade material, 

can operate effectively on the kind of timber most abun6ant in partly cut 

and second-growth stands. 

Table 7 shows the 36 nonlumber wood-using plants in the unit. These 

plants, together with the many small sawmills cutting structural material., 

play an important put in the utilization of the forest and have to a considerable extent adjusted themselves to a forest growing st.ock characterized 

by low average volumes per acre and a relatively small proportion of highgrade tlmber. 

Table 7. Production and emplojrnent data 1/ in the nonlumber industries, 1936 - 

Number Cords idan-days Cords ?elan-day s 

c o;r,rriobi iy 

Tight coope5ye 

rnaterlal - 3 11,600 42,000 11,800 12,000 

Slack cooper 

material - 3ye 6 21,000 30,500 28,000 29,100 

Chemical wood - - - 4,100 5,200 

Hancllcs 4 4,300 12,000 8,400 16,000 

Veneer 5 11, 900 27,900 29,600 47,300 

Shingles 15 1,500 4,200 1,500 4,200 

Small dimension 

stock 3 400 2,300 2,600 8,500 

Plants in 

unit 

Pieces Pieces 

Cross ties -. - 319,000 32,200 

Poles and piles - - - 19,000 5,200 

Produced by 

plants in 

the unit 

Total 36 - 118,900 - 159,700 

- 1/ Cordwood volume is expressed in standard (4 x 4 x 8 feet) cords, inclu6ing 

bark. Board-foot volunes are in teras of the International &inch log rule. 

Man-days are based on a 10-hour day. 

employment 

- 2/ Both staves and heading. 

- 3/ Only staves. 

Produced 

fromforests 

of the unit 

Woods 

employnent 
Empl ogment 

The total forest industrial employment in the unit in 1936 was 741,500 

man-days (see tables 6 and 7), of which 462,900, or 62 percent, were expended 

in the sawmill industry and the remainder in the nonlumber industries. In 

addition, it is probable that the labor involved in cutting about a million 

cords of fuelwood and miscellaneous material used on farms, as well as the 

5,750,000 fence posts used in the unit, amounted to approximately 1,300,000 

man-aays. Although only a small portion of this employment - probably no 

more than 10 percent - was for cash wages, it represents an important employment item in the life of the people. The material thus produced, without 

cash outlay and usually without interference in normal gainful employment, is 

a substitute for material that would otherwise have to be purchased. 

Forest Drain 

The total volume of wood removed from the good trees of the unit in 

1936 for use in industry and for domestic purposes has been expressed in 

table 8, in terms of drain against the growing stock of good trees. As 

used here, forest drain means the total volume of usable material removed 

from the stands by cutting, including the full volume of the trees felled; 

it does not include losses due to mortality, which are taken into account in 

calculating the increment. Neither does it include material cut from cull 

and dead trees or from limbs. Thus, drain in board feet in the first column 

of figures in table 8 includes the volume actually used (from tables 6 and 

7), plus the volume left in the woods as waste because, although it met the 

Survey specifications for usable logs, it did not meet the requirements of 

the particular user. Drain in the last column of table 8 includes the cubicfoot contents of the sawlog portion of sawlog-size trees,plus the cubic-foot 

contents of the main stem of good trees at least 5.0 inches d.b.h. but under 

stiivlog size. 
Table 8. - &i; volume of timber drain from good trees, 1136 

Lumber 

Veneer 

Tight cooperage material 

Slack cooperage material 

Handles 

Shingles 

Small dimension stock 

Poles and piles 

Cross ties 

Material cut in clearing land 

Chemical wood 

Material cut for fuelwood, farm fence 

and other domestic uses 

- 

Comodi ty 

189 , 100 28,860 

33,400 4,810 

8,400 1,230 

18,200 2 940 

3,900 1,000 

1,600 330 

3,000 5 70 

2 , 000 3'70 

19,200 2,940 

19, 400 8, S40 

100 280 

posts, 

80,600 27,170 

Total 21378,900 4/79,340 

n bd.ft.21 M cu.ft.- 2/ 

From sawlogsize trees 

- 1/ According to the International .$-inch log rule. 

Fron all trees 

5 inches d.b.h. 

and larger 

- 2/ Inside bark. . 

- 3/ 5,200,000 board feet, or approximately 1.4 percent, is pine; t.he rexainder 

is hardwood and cypress. 

4/ 940,000 cubic feet, or approximately 1.2 percenJ~ 5s pine; the reminder is 

hardwood and cypress. 

The total 1936 drain fron sawlog-size trees was 373.9 mLllion board 

feet, of which 5.2 million is pine; in 1935 the drain from sawlog-size trees 

was 354.5 rnlllion board feet. Approximately half of this drain cones from 

conxercial areas, which furnish a high proportion of the cut for lumber, 

veneer, and cooperage material. Noncommercial areas, on the other hand, 

furnS.sh the greater part of tlie board-foot drain occasioned by land clearing, 

for fuelwood, and for other domestic use, since the sarllog material cut for 

these purposes Is usually unsuited for hj.gh-grade industrial uses. 

Comparison of Increment and Drain 

The total net growing stock in the forests of the unit on January 1, 

1935, was 4,122 milllon board feet, green lumber tally. The board-foot 

drain In that.year exceeded the increment on noncom~ercial areas as well as 

on commercial. Furthermore, the total cubic-foot drain exceeded the total 

cubic-foot Increment. It is evident that the sarmills and nonlumber industrial plants and other cutting operations are depleting their forest czpltal. 

At the end of 1935, the growing stock had been reduced to 3,974 million board 
feet, a net reduction of forest capital of 148 million board feet. In 1936 

the drain increased over that of 1935, resulting in a further reduction in 

growing stock. The comparison of growth and drain and the state of the 

growing stock for 1936 are shown in table 9. 

These facts indicate that this unit is suffering from a chronic case 

of over-cutting, It is close to the agricultural and industrial centers of 

the Midwest, to which freight rates on industrial lumber from the unit are 

generally favorable. Furthermore, local markets are available for the relatively low grades of lumber and other wood products. Because of these advantages over competing hardwood-producing regions more distent from the 

principal consuming centers, it is to be expected that commercial cuttings 

in the Arkansas Delta are feasible on areas that would be impracticable to 

log in the hardwood regions farther south. Furthermore, during recent years 

relatively large areas of cut-over forest land have been cleared for agricultural uses. This trend in land clearing probably will continue, thus 

reducing the forest acreage still further and possibly resulting in still 

greater excesses of drain over growth. In addition, the rural population 

within the unit is increasing, and there is a corresponding increme in its 

wood-utilization requirements. 

Table 9. - Comparison of increment with drain, 1936 

I Total forest area 

I tern 

Net growing stoc , Jan. 1, 1936 / 34 

3,974,300 1,350,970 

Increment, 1930- 202,500 63,090 

Utilization drain, 1936 373,900 79,340 

Net change in growing stock, 1936 -176, LOO -16,250 

Net growing stock, Jan. 1, 1937 3,797,900 1,334,720 

- 1/ According to the International $-inch rule. 

- 2/ Exclusive of bark. 

- 3/ Increment figures are based on the assumption that cutting took place. 

Outlook for the Future 

In general, this unit is an agricultural region and can be expected 

to become even more so. The area east of Crowley's RiQe, especially in the 

northern portion of the unit is now very largely agricultural, riith forest 

areas restricted to small scattered blocks of woodland evidently unable to 

meet adequately the domestic needs of the present farming population. Here 

the primary function of the forest area is to supply the needs of an agricultural people for fuelwood, fence posts, other domestic uses, and forest 

pasture. In much of the remainder of the unit, the forest is also an adjunct 

to farming, but the supply of wood is in excess of that needed for domestic 

use. Here farmers can expect t~ increase their cash income through the production of' logs for sawmills and other primary forest industries. A relatively 

small percentage of the forest area is ov;nefL by industrial timber operators, 
who are, in general, selling their cut-over lands to farmers as rapldly as 

possible. Certaln areas, however, principally on the "batture" (i .e., the 

land between the levee and the river), probably v~lll continue to be held for 

-Limber production by industrial operators. 

It is therefore apparent that this unit is primarily not an industrial. 

timber-growing region, and that the timber that Is produced for industrial 

use can be expected to come in large part from farm woodlands and batt~rre 

land. Furthermore, the woodland area is steadily decreasing through con-rersion to cultivated land. The present excess of drain over increment, Qccasioned by the increasing demand for wood and the shrinkage in forest area, 

can be expected to continue for some time; but with the application of the 

few relatively simple forest-management practFces mentioned below, the 

forest growing stock can in time be built up to produce a much greater increment of a higher quality than that now being obtained. The ovner of 

permanent forest land should consequently wish to improve the quality of his 

forest increment so that he m.y be able to supplement his cash farm income 

by the sale of industrial wood products in addition to producing wood for 

his domestic needs. 

In general, the forests of this unit are at present badly run down; 

both the average volume per acre and the relative proportion of high-grade 

material suitable for industrial use are low. As can be seen from a comparison of figures 3A and 3B, there is on the average forest acre a dearth 

in the proportion of trees in the larger diameter-classes (12 inches and 

over). In t e actual forest, the 12-inch diameter-class shows the largest 

basal area,- 27 whereas in a well-managed forest, designed to give optimum 

continuous productlon, the maximum basal area is in the 18- and 20- inch 

diameter-classes. In the noncorimerctal forest areas (more than 90 percent 

of the whole) the prevailing cutting practices are tending to increase the 

present maladjustment of size-classes; the general lack of larger trees 

is forcing the cutting of mediur-sized trees, which should be left to grow 

into the larger size-classes. 

Unless remedial measures are adopted, it is very apparent. that sooner 

or later the production of the more valuable forest products from this area 

will be reduced materially because of a lack of suitable standing timber of 

the proper kind and quality. In other words, the present tendency is inevitably towards progressively confining the future output of the forests to 

smaller trees of low value. To increase the value of the forest growth, 

larger trees of hi.gher quality nust be grown. This will requlre the general 

adoption of a longer rotation, that Is, trees that are to constitute the 

final harvest must be l e f t t o grow until they are 20 lnches in dianeter or 

larger. At the same tine the forest growing stock nust be built up; in 

general, the present run-down stands average only one-fourth to one-third 

of the board-foot volume the sites are capable of sustaining. It is 

obvious tha-t stands cannot be built up as long as the annual drain from 

individual areas, and also from the untt as a whole, is greater than the 

annual increment. During the several decades needed to rehabilitate the 

forest stands, a reduction in the cut of industrial timber would be necessary. 

- 2/ The basal area 5s the sum of the areas of the cross sections of the trees 

at breast height. 
A-BASAL-AREA DISTRIBUTION ON THE AVERAGE ACRE OF THE ENTIRE FOREST 

5 [7 UNDER SAWLOG-SIZE TREES 23.1 

" 10.0 

4 

3 

2 

I 

': O 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 + '4 DIAMETER-CLASS (INCHES) 

b 

k 

B-ATTAINABLE OPTIMUM BASAL- AREA DISTRIBUTION FOR THE AVERAGE 

b ACRE OF FOREST 

Y 

.9 u UNDER SAWLOG-SIZE TREES 1 7.9 

D " 2 3. 7 w 8 'I 35.3 

2 

L 6 

5 

'u 

P 4 

'4 

Y 3 

2 

I 

'? 

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 3A 36 38 

DIAME TER-CLASS (INCHES) 

Y 

C- BASrrL-AREA DISTRIBUTION ON THE AVERAGE ACRE OF COMMERCIAL FOREST P 

8 0 UNDER SAWLOG-SIZE TREES 20 I -1 4 " . 22.0 

7 .. 7 ." 8, 30.2 

6 T 

Q 5 

4 

3 

2 

I 

0 

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 33 32 34 36 38 40+ DIAMETER - CLASS (INCHES) 
Growth possibilities in this unit are inherently great. In spite of 

tlie present understocked condition of the second-growth stands, the annual 

increment is between 0.4 and 0.5 of a cord per acre on 87 percent of the 

total forest area, This increment could be increased substantially through 

the application of the following basic measures of timberland management: 

(1) increasing the timber volume on the average acre by cutting less than 

the annual increment and encouraging an increase in the number of stems, 

since it is obvious that a forest with a stand of 2,500 board feet per acre 

will lay on more wood per annum at a given increment rate than will a stand 

of only 1,500 board feet; (2) retaining in the stand for a few more years 

the most rapidly growing trees (i.e., trees 16 to 20 inches d.b.h.) instead 

of cutting them while they are still growing at their most rapid rate, thus 

tending to increase the volume per acre and to take full advantage of the 

rapld-growth period of the individual trees; (3) removing the relatively 

slow-growing and low-quality trees for fuelwood and other domestic uses, 

thus releasing the rapid-growing young trees from competition; and (4) reducing to a practicable minimum the timber loss through natural causes, by 

effectively preventing forest fires and removing cull trees and trees 

destined to die before they reach maturity. 

Although these simple measures can be applied by almost anyone interested in making his woodland contribute most to his needs, there is 

need for extension workers to "sell ihe ideal1 of "timber culture11 to an 

agricultural people and to denonstrate that in this area there is a definite 

place for both "timber culture11 and agriculture. Because of the pecullar 

soil and drainage conditions found here, there is a considerable area of 

land that will remain forested for many years to come. Timber cropping on 

this land should be a desirable adjunct to agriculture,since it provides 

both material for domestic use and off-season woods employment io farm 

labor, and also adds to the farm or plantation income through the sale of 

wood products. 

Because an intimate relationship exists between farm and forest, because markets for high-grade lumber in industrial and agricultural centers 

are relatively near, and because there is already a local demand for lowquality material, it is to be expected that most of the woodlands in this 

unit will continue in private ovmershlp. On the other hand, high land taxes, 

especially within the boundaries of organized drainage districts, are (and 

will continue to be) a handicap to private timber growing. Wherever practicable, areas of low agricultural value should be given preferential treatment in the drainage tax schedule and should be dedicated to tlmber production. Also efforts should be made to establish a reasonable, unliorm, 

and stable taxing policy for lands suitable chiefly for timber production, 

since such a policy would greatly stimulate the continuous use of this land 

for this purpose. 
Summary and conclusions 

In brief, the outlook for the future in this unit comprises (a) a 

shrinking forest area as a result of conversion to agriculture, (b) a continuing excess of forest drain over increment, and (c) a decrease in the 

/ volume of production of high-grade industrial forest commodities. This 1 paints a depressing picture for forestry, but the superior claim of agriculture to the fertile soils of this favorably located section of the 

Delta must be recognized. Nevertheless, successful agriculture here will 

always need woodlots and their products. Furthermore, there are certain 

areas of high forest values in all parts of the unit that will be neither 

readily converted nor soon needed for agricultural crops. On some of these 

areas, notably on batture land and on Crowleyts Ridge, the growing of timber as an activity in itself may be feasible. Owners of such lands should 

be aided through tax relief, extension work in forestry, and cooperative 

fire-protection service, to develop the forest possibilities of these areas 

to the full capacity of their sites. In this way will these forest lands 

best serve their owners and the communities in which they occur.