Dawn on a mild spring morning: the colors of the sky change from dark blue to an orange-and-purple hue. Dew covers the grass and turns into layers of fog as the temperature rises. Turkeys are flying down from their overnight roosts in mature trees. Pine warblers and brown-headed nuthatches trill their songs, and the distinctive whistle of a bobwhite quail echoes through the pine forest.
This scene can be found across South Carolina, a state a little bit smaller than Maine. Just shy of two-thirds of South Carolina is covered in forest; about half the forest is pine-dominated. Whereas eastern white pine, Scots pine, and red pine are the common pine species in the Northeast, here in the Southeast, it’s loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata), longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), and slash pine (Pinus elliottii) that are the most economically important pine species. However, other pine species grow in South Carolina, including some eastern white pine in the more mountainous region of the state.
The hardwood forests in South Carolina also differ from those in New England. While sugar maple, American beech, white ash, and yellow birch dominate typical northern hardwood forests, in South Carolina, you’re most likely to see a mix of oaks, hickories, yellow-poplar, black cherry, black gum, and American beech. However, in the northern and more mountainous part of the state, some of the common northern hardwood species are also present. And many other hardwood and softwood species do grow in the state – more than 100 species, all told, and more than half of them have commercial value.
As in many communities in rural New England, the forest industry plays a vital role for many people in South Carolina. Records indicate that pine trees were sawn into lumber as early as 1670. Pine tar, derived from the sap or pitch of pine trees, soon became a major product of the coastal pinelands in the state; primarily it was used as a preservative for wood in nautical applications. A second product commonly derived from pine trees was turpentine. Raw turpentine was produced historically by gashing a tree, creating a box in the trunk where sap could collect, then spooning the sap into a bucket before distilling it. Today, these products are most often a byproduct of the pulp and papermaking process.
The pine lumber industry thrived after the Civil War, when large sawmill operations moved into the state. By the 1930s, the virgin timber resources of the state were depleted, and the forest industry seemed destined to vanish. However, an interest in timber management and sustainable yield, coupled with technological advancements, led to a resurgence. Today, South Carolina’s $21-billion-dollar forest products industry is healthy and growing. New forest product mills are being built in the state. Southern yellow pine – a term used generically to cover longleaf, shortleaf, loblolly, and slash pine – provides a major source of raw material for these mills. Even though the state has slightly more hardwood forest by area, softwoods represent more than half of the standing timber volume, with the majority of the softwood being in loblolly pine stands.
In contrast to New England, where forest managers rely heavily on natural regeneration for their forest management practices, plantations make up approximately one-quarter of the forest in South Carolina. Between 1928 and 2012, forest managers and landowners in South Carolina planted between 20 million and 180 million seedlings annually. Since the early 2000s, this number has been somewhat steady at around 50 million seedlings per year. Given this volume, pine plantations have a major impact on the state’s economy as they provide more than half of the softwood timber harvested in the state. Thus, it is not surprising to see some very intensive forest management activities.
Perhaps the best example, and a common sight in pine forests here, is management by fire. Luckily, most of these fires are not wildfires as we see in California and other states out west; they are prescribed fires on comparatively small acreages that are monitored and controlled by forestry professionals. Living in New England, seeing any fire in the forest is a rather rare thing. But in South Carolina, slow-moving, low-intensity, prescribed fires are a common way of removing the litter layer on the forest floor.
There are several benefits of a prescribed fire. Burning some of the litter layer results in a release of nutrients into the soil, which benefits tree growth. Prescribed fire also reduces the risk of uncontrolled wildfire by reducing available fuel. The burning of some understory vegetation reduces competition so the crop trees can grow faster. It also opens up the understory, creating a park-like appearance and promoting the growth of different grasses that benefit wildlife like the bobwhite quail.
Frequent burning also aids in the production of pine straw, a forest product not known to most New Englanders but one that is commonly used as a form of mulch in landscaping applications in the Southeast. Longleaf pine produces needles that are 8 to 20 inches long; they are raked and bundled every other year. The use of these needles as mulch around trees and flower beds provides an aesthetically pleasing look, and a forest owner can make between $100 and $300 per acre selling pine straw.
Tree harvesting in South Carolina is done with slightly different equipment than what you would see in New England. While feller-bunchers up north are tracked machines, in South Carolina, most of the timber cutting is done by rubber-tired felling machines. The reason wheeled feller-bunchers are not often seen in New England is that they do not operate efficiently on steep, rocky, snow-covered ground; in South Carolina, the coastal plain is mostly flat with a high clay and sand component. In the northern and more mountainous parts of the state, these wheeled feller-bunchers are not as efficient and sometimes are replaced by hand-felling crews and, on steeper ground, cable systems.
For those who have never visited, the warm weather and the magnitude of biodiversity in South Carolina create a pleasing experience. Only a little over 1,000 miles south of Vermont, this state offers new experiences for outdoor enthusiasts and those interested in forestry and proves that we do not have to go to another continent to experience a vastly different ecosystem and culture.