MANUAL INDIAN FOREST BOTANY. N. L. Bor. pp. 441. Oxford University Press. Oxford. 1953. Rs. 26.
A knowledge of forest botany is indispensable for the forest officer in order that he may be able to identify not only the trees of commercial value, but also the less important species and subordinate vegetation. For it is often the ease that treatment of the latter determines success or failure of the dominant species.
This manual provides a useful guide to the diagnostic features of trees and other woody vegetation - branching, stems, roots, buttresses; spines; bark, the blaze or cut - the color and nature of the sap, latex or juice; leaves; fruits in their many forms, flowers.
Although much progress has been made in the systematic of botany, the last word in classifications has not yet been said. The author follows Hutchinson in the order of listing groups.
PRINCIPLES OF FOREST FIRE MANAGEMENT. C. R. Clar and L. R. Chatten. pp. 200. California Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry, Sacramento. 1954.
This training textbook, written for the employees of the Division of Forestry of the California Department of Natural Resources, deals with principles of the job of fire-manager.
There is a certain amount of repetition and unequal emphasis on some individual elements but, according to the foreword, this is intentional. The book is divided into three parts dealing with
1. fire behavior;
2. techniques of fire control;
3. organization and management of forest fire control.
The language is clear and simple and the text could be readily adapted for training purposes in other countries to meet local conditions.
THE PRACTICE OF SILVICULTURE
R. C. Hawley and D. M. Smith. - pp. 525. John Wiley and Sons.
New York. 1954. U.S.$7.50.
This edition, the sixth since this textbook was first published in 1921, lays emphasis on the biological laws and economic objectives which underlie the principles of silviculture and determine their application. The authors indicate that the eight years since the preceding edition in 1946 "have been marked by a development of the practical application of silviculture unparalleled in the history of American forestry."
The first chapter "The Place of Silviculture in Forestry" introduces the detailed presentation which follows on reproduction methods, individual methods of cutting, artificial reproduction by seeding and planting, slash disposal and prescribed burning, intermediate cuttings such as thinnings, improvement and salvage, and priming. There is also a chapter on methods of controlling cuttings. In each ease the methods are described in their relation to principles and objectives so as to provide the forester with the necessary background against which to make his own decision as to time, place, and method of application. The final chapter makes the point that silviculture is not the hard and fast application of recipes as in a cook-book, but requires sound individual judgment in regard to each separate forest stand.
THE STORY OF THE KAURI. A. H. Reed. pp. 439. A. H. and A. W. Reed, Wellington, New Zealand. 1953. £2. 7s. 6d.
The Kauri, famous New Zealand giant, has in the space of a century shrunk to about one-tenth of the three million acres (1.2 million ha.) it covered when the pioneers first discovered its value, particularly for shipbuilding. Before the advent of the Maori in the fourteenth century, the Kauri had an even greater range, as the early gum hunters learned, who found the gum in many areas far from existing forests. How and why this retreat came about is not certain. Fires caused by volcanic action and lightning, great hurricanes which leveled whole forests, perhaps the advancing cold of the last age of ice, are possible explanations.
This is a non-technical book, written by a man who in his youth was a gum hunter in the nineties of the last century, and finely illustrated. It tells the often adventurous story of the exploitation of the great forests from the early days of hand labor and animal power, the problem of transporting the logs, the construction of dams without the aid of civil engineers - in feet a story of great resourcefulness in the opening-up of a new country.
AMERICAN FOREST MANAGEMENT.
(American Forestry Series). K. P. Davis. pp. 482. MacGraw-Hill Book Co. Inc. New York. 1954.
U.S.$7.50
The job of managing a forest for continuous production of timber is the central theme of this book. Other purposes - watershed, recreation, wildlife, grazing - which may also require the manager's attention are discussed in more general terms.
Effective management is the integration of technological and economic factors: on the one hand, the forest status and its potential yield, and on the other hand, the economic appraisal of the land, the timber stand, stumpage and individual trees.
To apply, singly and in combination, the methods best suited to a particular forest and to the purpose of its ower is the crux of the manager's task, and a clear understanding of the principles of management will enable him to reach sound decisions.
American forest management began, necessarily, with an attempt to apply European methods to forests having a wholly coincidental similarity to the forests for which the methods were originally devised. Apparent over-abundance of virgin timber inspired little interest in management plans until recently. Thus forest management, particularly on private lands, developed slowly. But today the many plans in operation on both public and private forests have enabled the author to discuss American experience, to the extent that it may find application in other countries where forest management is in the developmental stage.
PLANTING THE SOUTHERN PINES. Agricultural Monograph No. 18. P. C. Wakeley. pp. 233. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington D. C. 1964. U.S.$2.75.
This publication is an excellent handbook, not only for foresters responsible for planting southern pines in the south of the United States, but for foresters concerned with tree planting in all parts of the world. The logical arrangement of the information sets a pattern which could well be followed in other works in this field.
A section on planting policy - choice of species, geographic source of seed, planting versus direct seeding, spacing, definition of plantable land, costs, yields, and records - lays the foundation for the planting practices described in detail later. Particular attention is given to the use of insecticides, fungicides, baits, and repellents; and practical information is given on seed extraction, sampling, testing, preparing of seedbeds in the nursery, making seedling inventories, storing and baling, and planting tools.
Of special interest is a chart of the normal development of seedlings in the nursery which serves as a basis for choosing the methods to be followed according to the stage of growth of the four principal species of southern pines. Foresters engaged in this field of activity may well consider the desirability of formulating similar charts as a guide to practices for the important tree species with which they are concerned.
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FAO STATISTICAL YEARBOOKS |
YEARBOOK OF FOREST PRODUCTS STATISTICS 1954
This yearbook, the eighth in the series, contains official information from more than 100 countries and territories on production and trade for roundwood, processed wood, wood pulp, newsprint, paper and paperboard, and fiberboards, as well as a summary of world trade
Price $2 50 or 12s. 6d.
YEARBOOK OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS 1954
Part I - Production
Provides basic statistics on world agricultural production. It gives authoritative information on land use, agricultural population, crops, livestock numbers and products, food supplies and their utilization, and on commercial fertilizers, pesticides, and agricultural machinery. It also includes the more important series of agricultural commodity prices in many countries as well as index numbers of prices received and paid by farmers, and of agricultural production.
To be issued in mid-1966.
Part II - Trade
A basic reference work on world trade in agricultural products giving statistics of the imports and exports of the major agricultural commodities. It includes regional and world totals, computed from official and unofficial information. For some major commodities data are given by trade season as well as by calendar year.
Price: Each part $3.50 or 1 7s. 6d.
YEARBOOK OF FISHERY STATISTICS 1952/53
Part I - Production and Craft
The fourth Fisheries Yearbook amplifies the part on production and gives more detailed data on craft than in earlier issues. It has therefore been found necessary to publish it in two volumes. Part I also contains a historical section on catch from 1910 to 1963 broken down by species and countries.
Part II - Trade
The statistical tables give the same data as in previous years, but have been re-arranged following the Standard International Trade Classification..
Part II will be issued in the later part of 1966.
Price: Each part $3.00 or 15s.
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OTHER FAO PUBLICATIONS OF WORLD-WIDE INTEREST |
REPORT ON THE 1950 WORLD CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE
FAO has published the first of a series of three volumes which will make up a comprehensive survey of the world's agricultural resources. The world census covers 63.6 percent of the total land area of the globe - it excludes the U.S.S.R. and China - and includes countries and territories with two-thirds of the world's population. The census is intended to give an over-all inventory of the world's agricultural resources. It will show how the world's land is apportioned between various forms of agricultural production, it will give some indication of the social forms under which the world's farmers are exploiting their land, and it will provide basic information for planning what should be done, and where, to raise world production and to improve the agrarian structure.
The publication of the report starts with Part I CENSUS RESULTS BY COUNTRIES - which has been designed as a loose-leaf book to which additions will be made as further results become available.
The first installment includes the census results of 32 countries and territories; the complete publication will contain the census results of about 100 countries in a Compact-and as far as possible unified form.
REPORT ON THE 1960 WORLD CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE - Part I has appeared in English, French, and Spanish editions.
Price: $2.00 or 10s.
MULTILINGUAL VOCABULARY OF SOIL SCIENCE
English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, and Swedish are the eight languages used in this multilingual vocabulary, recently published by FAO. It has been edited by G.V. Jacks in collaboration with soil scientists in all parts of the world. Designed to meet the needs of agricultural workers in the various countries of the world it is already in great demand by government offices and scientific institutions.
Price: $4.00 or 20s
COMMODITY BULLETINS AND REPORTS
Brief appraisals of the current situation in individual commodities together with some indications of likely trends in the near future. All the main groups of agricultural commodities are represented: e.g. grains, fats and oils, livestock products, sugar and beverages, tobaceo, fruits and fibers. Complete list of bulletins and reports issued so far will be sent on request.
CATALOGUE OF PUBLICATIONS 1945-1954
FAO Documents Service and Sales Agents in all parts of the world are stocked with this new catalogue and bulletins describing new titles. These will be sent on receipt of a postcard indicating your particular interests.
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NEW FORESTRY PUBLICATIONS World Forest Resources $2.50, 12s. 6d. Trilingual edition (English, French and Spanish) The results of the enquiry into world forest resources undertaken by FAO in 1953; covers over 190 countries and territories. World Pulp and Paper Resources and Prospects 1954 $1.25, 6s. 3d. Available in English, French and Spanish. A broad survey of trends in production and consumption and a review of manufacturing prospects throughout the world Eucalypts for Planting Forestry and Forest Products Study No. 11. Available in French. English edition in preparation. A summary of available material on botanical and silvical characteristics, nursery and planting methods, and technological properties and uses. Handling Forest Tree Seed Forestry Development Paper No. 1. Available in English. French edition in preparation. The problems of seed procurement, collection extraction, storage, and shipment: includes also an abstract of international rules for testing forest tree seeds. Tree Seed Notes: I Arid Areas - II Humid Tropics Forestry Development Paper No. 5 Available in English. A companion volume to Forestry Development Paper No. 4, these provisional seed notes on species currently used or under study have been compiled for experimental field trials in (a) arid and semi-arid zones (b) hot and humid zones. Tree Planting Practices for Arid Areas Forestry Development Paper No. 6. Available in English. This paper deals with seed, nursery and planting practices for arid and semi-arid zones in the Near East, but has application to many other similar climatic zones of the world. Report of the Third Conference on Wood Technology Forestry Development Paper No. 7. Trilingual edition (English, French and Spanish). Report of the third in the series of conferences on wood technology organized by FAO. Gives recommended methods for testing plywood and veneers, and solid timber. Reports progress on test methods for fiberboards, for fire proofing of materials, and for structural grading. * * * Forestry Studies in preparation (provisional titles) |
