Forest Tree Planting on the Pralines of the Northicest. 191 



turn it to the right at the same time. This process leaves a hole back of the 

 spade large enough to receive the roots. Have the second man carry a suf- 

 ticient number of trees for a given distance, accompany you, and as the. 

 spade is removed from the hole, the man carrying the trees places one in 

 the hole, two or three inches deeper than it grew in the nursery, holding the 

 tree in his hand until you press the dirt solid around the roots with your foot. 



Follow up this method until the entire planting is completed. Two men 

 with a spade will plant in lirst-class condition four thousand trees per day. 



I have tried other methods but found this the best and cheapest. 



We have now reached the place in our work where we must make the 

 selection of the varieties of trees w^e would plant, and as I said in the be- 

 ginning of this paper, this must depend upon the locality, climate and 

 humidity of the atmosphere, etc. 



In a paper of this kind we must of necessity be brief, hence many very 

 important matters of detail must be left to the good judgment of the iDlanters. 



I will divide the territory into three general divisions, all north of the 

 46° parallel and west of the Red river for general planting. I would plant 

 in the order named the following: Box Elder, Western White or Green 

 Ash, English Gray Willow, Yellow Cottonwood, Hackberry, Wild Black 

 Cherry ; and as far west as the James or Dakota river : European Larch. 

 From the 46° to 42°, all of the above, with Soft Maple, Hard Maple, Bed and 

 White Elm, Sycamore, Linden, Red, White and Bur Oak, Black and White 

 Walnut, and Honey Locust; and for east half of Minnesota and Iowa add 

 Scotch, Austrian and White Pines and Red Cedar, also Canoe Birch. 



South of 42° to 38°, in addition to above. Hardy Catalpa, Ailanthus and 

 Shellbark Hickory. 



There is no tree that will pay a better margin than Black Walnut planted 

 on deep, rich bottom land, four feet apart each way and south of 41st par- 

 allel. The hardy or Western Catalpa for all soils is eminently the tree for all 

 purposes. 



South of the 40th parallel we would drop out the European Larch. 



The Box Elder has some very valuable qualities. I have found it grown 

 in Manitoba, as far north as 52°, where the annual rain-fall is less than ten 

 inches, and where the thermometer goes down to — 45°. I have also 

 found it growing and in a healthy condition at Monterey, Mexico, where it 

 is so dry that grain and vegetables will not mature without a system of irri- 

 gation. The trees of this variety I saw in Mexico were four hundred feet 

 above the San Jean river. Any tree that will thrive and flourish at such 

 great extremes is worthy of trial by the arboriculturist before he condemns 

 it as worthless. 



