S

SALE, LUMP SUM (BOUNDARY) - The sale of specified timber on a specified area. The volume may or may not be estimated and published. The buyer is responsible for determining correct volume. The seller guarantees ownership and boundaries.

SALE UNIT - A timber sales arrangement in which the buyer pays for forest products removed in units (measured in cords, MBF, or units of weight). Determination of units removed from the area is verified by mill tally, scale tickets, and buyer's or seller's tally.

SALVAGE CUT - The harvesting of dead or damaged trees or of trees in danger of being killed by insects, disease, flooding, or other factors in order to save their economic value.

SAPLING - A small tree, usually between 2 and 4 inches diameter at breast height.

SAWLOG or SAWTIMBER - A log or tree that is large enough (usually 10 to 12 inches in diameter) to be sawed into lumber. Minimum log length is typically 8 feet.

SCARIFYING - For soil: The removal of the top litter layer of an area (usually in strips) for site preparation. For seed: The abrasion or weakening of the seed coat to encourage germination.

SEDIMENTATION - The deposition or settling of soil particles suspended in water.

SEEDLING - (a) A tree, usually less than 2 inches diameter at breast height, that has grown from a seed rather than from a sprout. (b) A nursery-grown tree that has not been transplanted in the nursery.

SEED TREE CUT - A harvesting method in which a few scattered trees are left in the area to provide seed for a new forest stand. Selection of seed trees should be based upon growth rate, form, seeding ability, wind firmness, and future marketability. This harvesting method produces an even-aged forest.

SEED YEAR - A year in which a given species produces a large seed crop over a sizable area. Some species of trees produce seeds irregularly.

SELECTIVE CUTTING - The periodic removal of individual trees or groups of trees to improve or regenerate a stand.

SHADE-INTOLERANT TREES - Trees that cannot thrive in the shade of larger trees.

SHEARING - Slicing or cutting trees or stumps at the ground line. Shearing may be done at harvest or with a KG blade during site preparation.

SHELTERWOOD CUT - Removing trees on the harvest area in a series of two or more cuttings so new seedlings can grow from the seed of older trees. This method produces an even-aged forest.

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.

STEWARDSHIP INCENTIVE PROGRAM (SIP) - A cost-sharing program available to forest landowners who have a multiresource forest stewardship plan. Practices include cost-sharing assistance for the enhancement of forest recreation, fisheries, wildlife, and timber production and the protection of soil and water, wetlands, riparian zones, and rare and endangered species.

SITE INDEX - A relative measure of forest site quality based on the height (in feet) of the dominant trees at a specific age (usually 25 or 50 years, depending on rotation length). Site index information helps estimate future returns and land productivity for timber and wildlife.

SITE PREPARATION - Preparing an area of land for planting, direct seeding, or natural reproduction by burning, chemical vegetation control, or by mechanical operations such as disking, bedding, scarifying, windrowing, or raking.

SLASH - (a) Tree tops, branches, bark, or other residue left on the ground after logging or other forestry operations. (b) Tree debris left after a natural catastrophe.

SOFTWOOD (CONIFER) - A tree belonging to the order Coniferales. Softwood trees are usually evergreen, bear cones, and have needles or scalelike leaves. They include pine, spruces, firs, and cedars.

SOIL TEXTURE - The feel or composition of the soil (sand, silt, or clay) as determined by the size of the soil particles.

SOIL TYPE - Soils that are alike in all characteristics, including texture of the topsoil. Soil maps and information on site index, erodibility, and other limiting properties are available from your county Soil Conservation Service offices.

SPECIES - A group of related organisms having common characteristics capable of interbreeding. Loblolly and Virginia pine are common species that can be interbred.

STAND - An easily defined area of the forest that is relatively uniform in species composition or age and can be managed as a single unit.

STEWARDSHIP FOREST - A privately owned forest tract that exhibits integrated forest management to protect and enhance wildlife, timber, recreation, natural beauty, and soil and water quality.

STOCKING - A description of the number of trees, basal area, or volume per acre in a forest stand compared with a desired level for balanced health and growth. Most often used in comparative expressions, such as well-stocked, poorly stocked, or overstocked.

STREAMSIDE MANAGEMENT ZONE (SMZ) - An area adjacent to a stream in which vegetation is maintained or managed to protect water quality. The width depends on slope, but 50 feet is the normal minimum. Trees may be removed from SMZs as long as the stream bed is not disrupted and sufficient vegetation is left to protect water quality.

STUMPAGE - The value or volume of a tree or group of trees as they stand uncut in the woods (on the stump).

SUCCESSION - The natural sequence of plant community replacement beginning with bare ground and resulting in a final, stable community in which a climax forest is reached. Foresters, wildlife biologists, and farmers constantly battle ecological succession to try to maintain a particular vegetative cover.

SUCCESSIONAL DISKING or MOWING - A wildlife enhancement practice in which a disk harrow or rotary mower is used to knock down existing vegetation every 1 to 3 years to promote the regrowth of annuals, legumes, forbes, and perennials.

SUSTAINED YIELD - Management of forestland to produce a relatively constant amount of wood products, revenue, or wildlife.

Return to Table of Contents