With all of the new subdivisions and shopping centers going up around Newton County, it's hardly a shock that the county doesn't have the large forests it formerly did. What is surprising, however, is many of the new trees planted in the forests' wake will be dead in 10 to 15 years. According to Harold Quigley, chief ranger for the Newton-Rockdale-Dekalb Forestry Unit, though the county had the highest number of new trees planted in the state in the 2006-2007 planting season (45,644), many of these seedlings are only ornamental trees and, as a result, will be dead in a short time.