Glossary

Glossary of Forestry Terms

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B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

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L

M

N

O

P

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R

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T

U

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Z

Types of Foresters
Acquisition Forester A forester whose primary responsibility is to locate forestland which can be purchased by the company or organization he represents.
Consulting Forester A self-employed forester, who, for a fee, assists private landowners with forest management practices. Some consultants provide general assistance; others specialize. You can get a directory of consulting foresters from the Texas Forest Service web site.
Extension Forester A Texas A&M University forester who works for the Texas AgriLife Extension Service in developing and providing technical information for state forestry interests. His primary responsibility is group education, including preparing materials for local and regional educational activities. He works through local Extension personnel and uses local facilities.
Forest Ranger A U.S. Forest Service forester in charge of part of a national forest referred to as a district. Forest rangers, or district ranges, supervise the management activities on their districts, including fire control, tree planting, recreational activities, and thinning and harvesting. District rangers do not provide assistance to private landowners.
Industrial Forester A forester employed by a forest-based industry. This individual may manage company-owned woodlands to produce forest products, may work with private landowners to purchase forest products for the company, or may do both. Some industrial foresters work with individual landowners to provide advice and assistance in promoting approved forest management practices.
Procurement Forester An industrial forester who buys timber from private and public landowners.
Professional Forester In the usual context, this term refers to a person who has been graduated from a professionally accepted, 4-year, college forestry curriculum.
Texas Forest Service A forester with the Texas Forest Service responsible for coordinating the agency’s operationsfor a specific area of the state.

Forestry Terms

A
Absentee Landowners Landowners who do not live in the county in which their land is located.
Acid Soils Soils with a pH value below 7.0. Pines grow well in acid soils, but hardwoods do not.
Acre An area of land containing 43,560 square feet or 10 square chains. A square acre would be about 209 feet by 209 feet. A circular acre would have a radius of 117.75 feet.
Ad Valorem Tax Annual taxes assessed on the basis of land value.
Aesthetics The pleasurable sensations, mental and physical, which humans may experience as a result of certain environmental resources.
Artificial Regeneration Establishing a new forest by planting or direct seeding.
Aspect The direction towards which a slope faces. Aspect is important in hilly or mountainous terrain and affects site quality and species composition.

B
Basal Area (a) Of a tree: the cross-sectional area (in square feet) of the trunk at breast height (4 1/2 feet above the ground). For example, the basal area of a tree 14 inches in diameter at breast height is about 1 square foot. Basal area = 0.005454 times diameter squared. (b) Of an acre of forest: the sum of basal areas of the individual trees on the area. For example, a well stocked pine stand might contain 80 to 120 square feet of basal area per acre.
Bedding A raised mound on which seedlings are planted. A site preparation method used in the southeastern U.S. where surface drainage is poor.
Best Management Practices (BMPs) Techniques recommended in the management of timber harvesting and road construction that result in minimal impact on streams, soils, water quality and wildlife.
Board Foot A unit of wood equaling 144 cubic inches. The term is commonly used to measure and express the amount of wood in trees, sawlogs, veneer logs, or lumber. Board feet in a piece of wood is determined by [length in feet x width in inches x thickness in inches] divided by 12.
Buffer A designated zone or strip of land of a specified width along the border of an area. Buffer strips of standing trees may be used to shield an area from view, or buffer strips of felled trees may be used to prevent the spread of forest pests.

C
Cambium Layer A thin layer of cells between the inner bark and the woody part of a tree. The cambium is responsible for diameter growth of trees.
Capital Gains Profit on the sale of an asset such as timber, land, or other property held for one year or longer.
Chip-n-saw (a) A process that makes small logs into cants, converting part of the outside of the log into chips. Cants are then sawed into lumber. (b) small pine logs 7 to 10 inches in dbh to a 5-inch top.
Cleaning Preparing the stand to rake pine straw by removing ground debris (such a limbs, cones, hardwood leaves, and trash) and low hanging limbs that might interfere with mechanical raking and baling.
Clearcut A harvesting and regeneration method which removes all the trees (regardless of size) on an area. Clearcutting is most used with species like pine which require full sunlight to reproduce and grow well. Clearcutting produces an even-aged forest stand.
Climax Forest The final stage of plant succession in which species composition remains relatively stable. The climax forest for most of East Texas would be the oak-hickory forest type. Pine is an intermediate species prior to the climax forest.
Competition The struggle among adjacent trees from growth requirements such as sunlight, nutrients, water and growing space. Competition goes on among both the roots and crowns of trees in the same stand.
Conifer Trees of the pine family with needlelike or scalelike foliage and conelike fruits. They are usually evergreen and often are called softwoods. (Bald cypress is a deciduous conifer).
Conservation The protection, improvement and wise use of natural resources to provide the greatest social and economic value for the present and future.
Cord A stack of round or split wood containing 128 cubic feet including wood, bark, and air space. A standard cord measures 4 feet by 4 feet by 8 feet. A face cord or short cord is 4 feet by 8 feet of any length wood less than 4 feet.
Cost Share A subsidization, by different governmental agencies and some private industries, of site preparation, reforestation, timber stand improvement, wildlife and fisheries management, and water quality expenses.
Crop Tree A tree identified to be grown to maturity and for final harvest cut. It is usually selected on the basis of its location to other trees and its quality and species.
Cubic Foot A wood volume measurement containing 1,728 cubic inches, such as a piece of wood measuring 1 foot on a side. A cubic foot of wood contains about 6 to 10 usable board feet of lumber rather than 12 board feet because some wood is lost as sawdust and shavings during processing.
Cull 1) A seedling with inferior shape, size or health that should be discarded. 2) A tree or log of merchantable size made useless for all but firewood because of shape, disease, insect infestation or injury.
Cutover Land that has previously been logged.

D
DBH Abbreviation for tree diameter at breast height (4 1/2 feet above the ground). DBH is usually measured in inches.
Deciduous Tree A tree which loses all its leaves at some time during the year. These are primarily hardwoods such as oak, hickory, ash, sweetgum, but magnolia and American holly are evergreen hardwoods.
Dendrology The study of the identification, habits and distribution of trees.
Diameter The length of a straight line passing through the center of a tree or a portion of a tree. Tree diameter is usually measured 4 1/2 feet above ground level (see DBH), but log diameter is measured at the small end.
Dibble (bar) Also called a planting bar. A tool for hand planting bare-rooted seedlings. About 4 1/2 feet in length with a 10-inch blade.
Direct Seeding A method of artificial regeneration whereby tree seeds are sown on the surface of a prepared site.

E
Ecosystem Management An approach to foret management that seeks to include economic, ecologic and social components.
Edge The boundary where two or more different types of vegetation or successional stages meet. Edges attract many different wildlife species because of a variety of food, cover and other habitat requirements are arranged close together.
Entomology The science that deals with insects in their relation to forests and forest products.
Environment The existing condition of the surroundings that results from a combination of climate, soil, topography, and other plants and animals. An organism’s environment influences its form and survival.
Even-aged Forest Management Forest management with periodic harvesting of all trees on part of the forest at one time or in several cuttings over a short time to produce stands containing trees all the same or nearly the same age. This type of management is commonly applied to conifers and to some hardwoods.
Evergreen Tree A tree which retains some or all of its leaves throughout the year.

F
Financial Maturity The point in time in which the growth or increase in value of a financial asset (such as a tree) falls below the discount rate.
Financial Rotation The rotation length of tree crops determined solely by financial considerations in order to obtain the highest monetary return over time.
F.L.E.P. (Forest Incentives Program) A federal cost sharing program from the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) which provides payments to landowners who complete certain approved forest management practices such as tree site preparation and planting.
Fire-adapted A plant species or plant community that is adapted to and maintained by periodic fires. For example, shortleaf pine saplings will sprout from the root collar if injured by fire, whereas, loblolly pine saplings are killed.
Firebreak/Fire lane A natural or man-made barrier usually created by the removal of brush, trees, leaves, and other vegetation. Used to prevent the spread of fire.
Fire Danger Rating Numerical classification of the measurement of weather and fuel factors. Result is an indication of how readily a fire will ignite and an indication of fire behavior (spread intensity) after it starts. Classification is from 1 to 5; 1 = low and 5 = high.
Forest A plant community dominated by trees and woody plants. From a management standpoint, a forest is a collection of stands administered as a unit.
Forest Fragmentation “Islands” of forest habitat that are disconnected from other forests by agricultural lands, transmission lines, roads, developments, etc.
Forestland Land which is currently producing (or, in some cases, capable of producing) a forest.
Forest Management (a) Giving the forest proper care so it stays healthy and vigorous and provides the products and values the landowner desires. (b) Technical definition: Applying technical forestry principles and practices and business techniques (such as accounting, benefit-cost analysis, etc.) to forest management.
Forest Management Plan Usually a written document which includes overall guidelines and recommended practices for current and future management to meet the owner’s objectives.
Forest Type Groups of tree species commonly found growing in the same stand because their environmental requirements are similar. Examples of forest types in East Texas are oak-hickory type, longleaf-slash pine type, elm-ash-cottonwood type, and oak-gum-cypress type.
Forestry The science, art and practice of managing and using trees, forests and their associated resources for human benefit.

G
Growing Stock All live trees (except rough and rotten trees) in a forest or stand, including sawtimber, pole timber, saplings and seedlings.

H
Habitat The natural environment of a specific plant or animal. An area containing all the necessary resources for the plant or animal to live, grow and reproduce.
Hardwood A term describing broadleaf, usually deciduous, trees such as oak, maples, ashes, elms, etc. The term does not necessarily refer to the hardness of the wood. Some hardwoods (such as live oak and American holly) are evergreen.
Harvest (a) In general use, removing some or all the trees on an area. (b) Technical definition: Removing trees on an area to 1) obtain income; 2) develop the environment necessary to regenerate the forest; and on occasion, 3) achieve some special objectives such as the development of special wildlife habitat needs.
Herbicides Chemicals which kill plants or inhibit the growth of certain plants.

I
Injection The single stem killing of unwanted trees by application of specific registered herbicides under the bark. The removal of undesirable trees improves the site by reducing competition for light, moisture and nutrients.
Intensive Forest Management Utilization of a wide variety of silvicultural practices, such as planting, thinning, fertilization, release, harvesting, and genetic improvement, to increase the capability of the forest to produce fiber.

J
J-Root An improperly planted seedling that takes a J-shaped configuration in the planting hole. Such seedlings often die prematurely, grow poorly, or are susceptible to windthrow.

L
Log (a) A piece of the woody stem (trunk or limb) of a tree. (b) The trunk portion of a tree. (c) A tree section exactly 16.3 feet in length, including trim allowance.
Logger An individual whose occupation is harvesting timber. He usually is in business for himself, owns his own equipment, and has one or more employees.

M
Mature Tree A tree that has reached the desired size or age for its intended use. Size or age will vary depending on the species and intended use.
Mortality The number of volume of growing stock trees dying from natural causes during a certain period of time.

N
Natural Regeneration The renewal of a forest or stand either by natural seeding or vegetative reproduction (stump or root sprouts) by trees on the site.
Natural Stand A stand of trees resulting from natural seed fall or sprouting.
National Forests Public lands administered and managed by the US Forest Service. These are dedicated to the long-term benefit of present and future generations.
Net Growth The net increase in volume of timber for a certain area of land for a certain period of time. This includes the gross increase in volume of trees from beginning to end of the time period, plus the volume of trees which become merchantable during the period, minus the volume of trees which die or become rough or rotten.
Nonindustrial Private Forestland (NIPF) Forestland owned by a private individual, group or corporation not involved in wood processing.

O
Over Mature The stage of the life cycle of a tree or stand characterized by a decline in vigor, health or growth rate.

P
Pathology The science that deals with diseases of forest trees, stands and products.
Pesticides A collective term meaning chemicals, including herbicides, insecticides, and silvicides, which are used to kill pests such as weeds, insects, unwanted trees, etc.
Pine Straw The fresh undecomposed pine needles that have fallen to the forest floor.
Plantation An artificially forested area established by planting or direct seeding. It is usually made up of a single species.
Prescribed Burn The controlled use of fire to achieve forest management objectives. Prescribed fire can be used to reduce hazardous fuel levels, to control unwanted vegetation, improve visibility, and improve wildlife habitat.
Prescription Usually a document written by a forester prescribing present and future treatments for a forest stand (smallest unit of management) aimed at accomplishing certain forest management objectives and long-term goals.
Preservation (a) As applied to wood, treating wood products with chemicals to prevent damage by insects or decay organisms. (b) With respect to land, maintaining a natural environment undisturbed by human influence or activities.
Pulpwood Wood cut primarily to be converted into wood pulp for the manufacturer of paper, fiberboard, or other wood fiber products. Pulpwood size trees are usually a minimum of 4 inches DBH.

R
Reforestation Reestablishing a forest by planting or seeding an area where forest vegetation has been removed.
Regeneration/Reproduction (a) Young trees which will grow to become the older trees of the future forest. (b) The process of forest replacement or renewal. This may be done artificially by planting seedlings or seed or naturally by sprouting or natural seeding.
Roots That portion of the tree generally underground and which functions in nutrient absorption, anchorage and storage of food and waste products.
Rotation The number of years required to establish and grow trees to a specified size, product, or condition of maturity.

S
Sapling A small tree, usually between 2 and 4 inches DBH.
Sawlog A log large enough to be carved into lumber, usually at least 10 to 12 inches in diameter.
Scarify To disturb the forest floor and topsoil in preparation for natural regeneration, direct seeding or planting.
Section A legal unit of land containing 640 acres; one square mile or 16-forties.
Seedling (a) A tree, usually less than 2 inches in DBH, which has grown from a seed (in contrast to a sprout). (b) A nursery grown tree which has not been lifted and replanted in the nursery (see transplant).
Shade Intolerant A tree relatively incapable of developing and growing normally in the shade of, and in competition with, other trees.
Shade Tolerance A tree’s capacity to develop and grow in the shade of, and in competition with, other trees.
Shrub A low growing perennial plant with a woody stem and a low branching habit.
Silviculture The art, science and practice of establishing, tending and reproducing forest stands of desired characteristics. It is based on knowledge of species characteristics and environmental requirements.
Site (a) A tract of land with reasonably uniform soil and climatic factors. (b) An area with the capacity to produce a particular forest or other vegetation because of biological, climatic and soil factors.
Site Index A measure of forest site quality based on the height (in feet) of the dominant trees at a specified age (usually 50 years for natural stands and 25 for planted stands). A site index of 95 means that the expected height of the dominant trees at an index age of 50 years would be 95 feet on a particular area of land.
Site Preparation Preparing an area of land for planting, direct seeding or natural reproduction by clearing, chemical vegetation control, burning, disking, bedding, windrowing or raking.
Slash Tree tops, branches, bark or other residue left on the ground after logging, pruning, or other forest operations.
Softwoods A tree belonging to the order Coniferales, usually evergreen, cone bearing and with needles or scalelike leaves such as pine, spruces, firs, and cedars; often called “softwoods”. Bald cypress is a deciduous conifer.
Soil Texture The “feel” or composition of a soil based on the proportion of sand, silt and clay in the soil.
Species A group of related organisms having common characteristics; organisms capable of interbreeding and biologically classified into the same category. Loblolly pine and slash pine are the common names of two different species.
Sprout tree growing from the base, stump, or root of another tree.
stocking the number of trees in a forest stand. Often, stocking level is compared to the desirable number of trees for best growth and management, such as partially stocked, well stocked, or overstocked.
Streamside Management Zone (SMZ) a strip of land of varying size and shape maintained for protecting a sensitive area such as a stream.
Stumpage the value or volume of a tree or group of trees as they stand in the woods uncut. (on-the-stump)
Succession the replacement of one plant community by another until ecological stability (climax forest) is achieved. For example, an abandoned farm, if left to nature, would gradually go through different states of vegetative cover and finally reach the climax forest stage after 100 or more years.
Sustained yield management of forestland to produce a relatively constant amount of timber and/or revenue.

T
Tap root 1. the primary plant root developing from the radicle 2. the main descending root of a plant.
Tilth the physical condition of the soil as related to its ease of tillage, fitness as a seedbed, and impedence to seedling emergence and root penetration.
Timber 1. Growing trees capable of being used for wood products.2. A large, dressed piece of lumber used in forming part of a structure such as bridge timber.
Topsoil the layer of soil moved in cultivation, frequently designated as the Ap layer or Ap horizon. (surface soil)
Tract A parcel of land considered separately from adjoining land because of differences in ownership, timber type, management objective, or other characteristics.
Transplant A seedling lifted from the seedbed and replanted at least once in the nursery.
Trench planting the setting out of seedlings in single file aong a continuous shallow trench or slit either in the nursery or in the field. (heeling in)
Tree A woody plant having a well-defined stem, a more or less definitely formed crown, and usually a height of at least 10 feet.
Tree Farm A privately owned forest (woodland) in which producing timber crops is a major management goal. Additionally, it may be recognized as a “Tree Farm” by the American Tree Farm System, an organization sponsored by the American Forest Institute, Washington, DC.
Tree Injectors Tools or equipment specially designed to inject chemicals into a tree trunk. Most common injectors can be hand operated by an individual.
Turgor the status of water content of a plant cell

U
Understory All the plants growing under the main canopy of the pine trees.

W
Watershed The total land area draining into a given stream river, lake or reservoir; also known as a catchment area.
Weed 1. a valueless, troublesome, or noxious plant growing wild, expecialy one growing profusely 2. a plant growing where it is not wanted.
Weevil a beetle of the extensive family Curculionidae, including many species whose adults or larvae are serious forest pests, particularly terminal or shoot weevils in conifers and weevils that attack hardwood seeds.
Wilt a loss of cellular turgidity that causes a plant to droop, usually as a result of water loss or disease
Windrow brushwood, slash, etc., concentrated (usually by machine) along a line, to clear the intervening ground for regeneration.

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