﻿114 
  INTRODUCTION 
  TO 
  BOTANY 
  

  

  107. 
  Problems 
  of 
  forestry. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  questions 
  which 
  

  

  tin- 
  practical 
  forester 
  has 
  to 
  consider 
  can 
  be 
  grouped 
  under 
  

   three 
  heads: 
  

  

  1. 
  I 
  low 
  to 
  establish 
  forests 
  on 
  areas 
  naturally 
  treeless 
  or 
  

   on 
  tracts 
  of 
  perfectly 
  cleared 
  land. 
  

  

  2. 
  How 
  to 
  maintain 
  existing 
  forest 
  s 
  for 
  an 
  indefinite 
  period 
  

   in 
  the 
  most 
  productive 
  condition. 
  

  

  3. 
  How 
  to 
  tell 
  timber 
  and 
  remove 
  it 
  with 
  the 
  least 
  possible 
  

   damage 
  to 
  the 
  lives 
  that 
  are 
  left 
  standing. 
  

  

  In 
  a 
  book 
  on 
  general 
  elementary 
  botany 
  only 
  a 
  few 
  hints 
  

   on 
  these 
  most 
  important 
  topics 
  can 
  be 
  given. 
  Every 
  intelli- 
  

   gent 
  citizen, 
  however, 
  should 
  at 
  least 
  know 
  that 
  the 
  conserva- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  our 
  forests 
  is 
  highly 
  essential, 
  and 
  should 
  understand 
  

   the 
  general 
  bearing 
  which 
  it 
  has 
  on 
  our 
  welfare 
  as 
  a 
  nation. 
  

  

  108. 
  Forest 
  plantations 
  on 
  treeless 
  land. 
  In 
  such 
  treeless 
  

   regions 
  as 
  the 
  prairies 
  and 
  the 
  (ireat 
  Plains 
  it 
  is 
  often 
  desir- 
  

   able 
  to 
  establish 
  belts 
  of 
  timber 
  or 
  considerable 
  tracts 
  of 
  wood- 
  

   land. 
  This 
  is 
  done 
  partly 
  for 
  shelter 
  from 
  winds 
  and 
  partly 
  

   for 
  the 
  timber 
  produced 
  for 
  local 
  uses. 
  The 
  seeds 
  may 
  be 
  

   planted 
  where 
  the 
  trees 
  are 
  finally 
  to 
  stand, 
  or 
  young 
  seed- 
  

   lings 
  may 
  be 
  procured 
  from 
  a 
  forest 
  nursery. 
  The 
  latter 
  plan 
  

   is 
  the 
  better, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  well 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  young 
  seedlings 
  trans- 
  

   planted 
  once 
  or 
  twice 
  before 
  their 
  final 
  planting, 
  to 
  avoid 
  the 
  

   formation 
  of 
  long 
  roots, 
  the 
  cutting 
  off 
  of 
  which 
  would 
  check 
  

   the 
  growth 
  of 
  the 
  tree. 
  Both 
  coniferous 
  and 
  dicotyledonous 
  

   trees 
  are 
  much 
  planted. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  generally 
  available 
  

   conifers 
  are 
  the 
  white 
  pine, 
  the 
  Scotch 
  pine, 
  the 
  Austrian 
  pine, 
  

   and 
  several 
  kinds 
  of 
  spruce. 
  Among 
  the 
  desirable 
  dicoty- 
  

   ledons 
  are 
  cottonwood 
  (fig. 
  96), 
  silver 
  (or 
  white) 
  maple, 
  

   green 
  ash, 
  honey 
  locust, 
  hardy 
  catalpa, 
  red 
  oak, 
  and 
  (in 
  the 
  

   warmer 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  country) 
  eucalyptus. 
  In 
  climates 
  such 
  

   as 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  lowlands 
  of 
  California, 
  En<'aliii>tn* 
  I//<>/,H/I<K 
  is 
  

   the 
  most 
  rapid 
  growing 
  of 
  hard 
  woods, 
  reaching 
  a 
  diameter 
  of 
  

   one 
  foot 
  and 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  one 
  hundred 
  twenty-five 
  feet 
  in 
  ten 
  

   years. 
  To 
  reach 
  this 
  diameter 
  the 
  white 
  oak 
  would 
  require 
  

   a 
  hundred 
  years. 
  

  

  