Life Sciences Commons^™

Pb1465 Tree Crops For Marginal Farmland - Paulownia, The University Of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Forestry, Trees, and Timber

Paulownia is native to the Orient. It is also called the Chinese Empress tree, the Princess tree or the Kiri tree. Paulownia is known for its extremely fast growth, clusters of showy and fragrant lavender flowers, elephant-ear-sized leaves and extraordinary cash value. The major commercial market is with Japan. Paulownia is used to make furniture, gift boxes, bowls, toys, clogs, handicrafts and musical instruments. The wood is also used for traditional products such as construction lumber, plywood and veneer.

Athough many species of Paulownia exist in Asia, many are considered subtropical and will not become marketable trees in the southern …

Pb1463 Tree Crops For Marginal Farmland - Christmas Trees, The University Of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Forestry, Trees, and Timber

Growing Christmas trees can be a profitable use for marginally productive farmland. Though more labor-intensive than other tree crops, a Christmas tree crop can return a profit in as little as five to seven years. In addition, Christmas tree production requires little up-front capital investment. Most production operations require only hand tools or common farm machinery.

Most industry experts predict that Christmas tree markets will remain stable. However, there is a surplus of Christmas trees in many regions of the United States. To be competitive, growers must efficiently produce high-quality trees of the species that consumers demand.

Artificial Christmas trees …

Pb1462 Tree Crops For Marginal Farmland - White Pine, The University Of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Forestry, Trees, and Timber

White pine has flexible, blue-green needles that are grouped in fascicles of five. Each year, branches originate from the terminal growing tip (whorled pattern) giving the tree a distinctive appearance of layers of branches. The distance between successive whorls represents one year of growth. In forested settings, white pine grows rapidly on good sites, exceeding 100 feet in height and averaging 2 to 3 feet in diameter. The trunk is usually straight with a pyramidal crown. White pine is capable of attaining ages of 200 years.

White pine was extensively used in construction when old-growth white pine forests were abundant. …

Pb1466 Tree Crops For Marginal Farmland - Loblolly Pine, The University Of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Forestry, Trees, and Timber

Throughout the South the amount of timberland — about 182 million acres — exceeds the amount of cropland and pasture combined. Approximately one-third of all land in the South is covered with pine trees. Loblolly pine is by far the most abundant pine species. Its natural range in cludes the 12 southern states from Texas to Virginia, as well as Maryland and Delaware.

Loblolly pine has spread remarkably in the South east, growing quickly and forming pure stands in aban doned agricultural fields. For this reason, it is also known as “old field pine.”

The early colonists called a moist …