Soil Survey of Murray and Whitfield Counties, Georgia

142 Soil Survey
Virgin forest once covered most of the county. As settlement progressed in the area,
however, most of the well drained soils on uplands were cleared for cultivation. The
remaining forestland consists primarily of the steeper soils and the soils in flood plains
and depressions. Farming peaked in the early 1900s and then experienced a sharp
decline in the 1920s with what became known as the cotton bust. The trend in land
use during the next several decades was away from cultivated crops and back to
forest and pasture. Since the early 1960s, the rural farm population has decreased
significantly and the shift has been toward an urban and a non-farming, rural
population. The number of farms decreased more than 60 percent from the early
1960s to the late 1990s.
Over 67 percent of the forestland in the survey area is considered to be fully or
moderately stocked, and the remainder of the forestland is considered to be poorly
stocked. Only about 12 percent of the forestland is considered to be even moderately
productive, capable of producing, under average management, about 1 to 1.5 cords
per acre per year (USDA, 1997). Much of the remaining acreage generally produces
less than a cord per acre. Production on much of the existing forestland could be
improved by thinning out mature trees and undesirable species. Protection from
excessive grazing, fire, disease, and insects also could improve the stands. The
Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Georgia Forestry Commission, and the
Cooperative Extension Service can provide additional information about forestland
productivity and management in the survey area.
The tables described in this section can help forest owners or managers plan the
use of soils for wood crops. They show the potential productivity of the soils for wood
crops and rate the soils according to the limitations that affect various aspects of
forestland management.
Forestland Productivity
In the table, “Forestland Productivity,” the potential productivity of merchantable or
common trees on a soil is expressed as a site index and as a volume number. The site
index is the average height, in feet, that dominant and codominant trees of a given
species attain in a specified number of years. The site index applies to fully stocked,
even-aged, unmanaged stands. Commonly grown trees are those that forest
managers generally favor in intermediate or improvement cuttings. They are selected
on the basis of growth rate, quality, value, and marketability. More detailed information
regarding site index is available in the “National Forestry Manual,” which is available in
local offices of the Natural Resources Conservation Service or on the Internet.
The volume of wood fiber, a number, is the yield likely to be produced by the most
important tree species. This number, expressed as cubic feet per acre per year and
calculated at the age of culmination of the mean annual increment (CMAI), indicates
the amount of fiber produced in a fully stocked, even-aged, unmanaged stand.
Trees to manage are those that are preferred for planting, seeding, or natural
regeneration and those that remain in the stand after thinning or partial harvest.
Forestland Management
The titles of the tables described in this section are:
“Log Landings, Hazard of Erosion, and Suitability for Roads on Forestland”
“Forestland Planting and Harvesting”
In these tables, interpretive ratings are given for various aspects of forestland
management. The ratings are both verbal and numerical.
Some rating class terms indicate the degree to which the soils are suited to a
specified aspect of forestland management. Well suited indicates that the soil has