162 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



May 29, 1909. 



state that they have come to the conclusion that of the 

 waste land existing in the United Kingdom, about 

 9,000,000 acres are suitable for afforestation, and they 

 suggest that about 150,000 acres should be planted up 

 annually. The reiiurn obtained in course of time would 

 be sufficient to repay both capital and interest. 



In countries where the n.-itural \voij(llands have 

 been exploited for timber purposes, and adequate re- 

 planting has not been done, it is easy to recognize the 

 importance of taking measures that shall ensure an 

 increasing supply of home-grown timber, and lessen 

 dependence on declining foreign sources. But v.hen 

 matters have been allowed to'drift for a long period of 

 years, there frequently exist peculiar difficulties in the 

 way of the establishment of systematic timber planting 

 operations. Probably the chief difficulty depends upon 

 the great extent to which the time element enters into 

 the question of the monetary return thnt mny be 

 expected. Re-afforestaiion is a ipiest.ion of national 

 importance in numbers of countries, but it is also an 

 economic question. The great bulk of the waste lands 

 of Great Britain belong to private hind-ouners, who 

 in the present depressed condition of agriculture, may 

 well argue that they cannot afford to enter upon an 

 undertaking which will involve great outlay, and from 

 which no return can be expected for from twenty to 

 eighty years or more, and the benefit of which will be 

 reaped by another generation. 



These considerations, however, should not weio-h 

 with the State, the life of which is continuous, and it 

 is the obvious duty of every (Government to see that 

 all the waste lands in its possession which are not 

 adapted to give an adequate return if utilized for agri- 

 cultural purposes, but which ai-e fitted for growing 

 certain kinds of timber, should he jilanted up with 

 useful species of trees. Such plantations should serve 

 as an object lesson to private estate ov.'ners, and be also 

 useful as Forest Experiment Stations, at which 

 valuable data in regard to the cost of establishing and 

 managing woodlands on the most economical basis 

 could be accumulated. 



It should be remembered, loo, that a poor soil is, 

 in time, vastly improved by bearing a forest crop, if 

 the trees are maintained in a proper condition as 

 regards density, for the spreading roots permeate the 

 subsoil, draw upon its sources of nutrition, and gradu- 

 ally convert it into soil proper. The fall of the leaves 

 too, and their decay, impart a large amount of humus 

 to the soil, keeping it moist and improving its fertility. 

 The relationship between woodlands and water supi)lv 

 was discus.sed in the last issue of this journal. 



Among European countries Germany has long 

 taken the lead in regard to forestry matters. No less 

 than 2(i per cent, of the whole area of that country, or 

 3.5,000,000 acres, are under woodland, and the average 

 timber return obtained has been estimated at about 

 40 cubic feet per acre per annum. By means of 

 University Departments and Forest Academies the 

 German Government has provided excellent facilities 

 for obt.aining instruction in the subject. Much the 

 same state of affairs, though on a lesser scale, exists in 

 France. In the Scandinavian countries, forestry is at 

 once an art, and a yvery paying business. In all those 

 countries, the State forests are making very handsome 

 returns on the capital oull.-i}'. 



But in no country has the subject of forestry 

 increased so much in importance, or received so much 

 attention, as in theUnited .States during the p.ast ton 

 years. It is stated in the Yi'arhonl,- of the U. S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, that since 1^S97 the National Forests 

 have increased from 89 000,000 acres, practically unused 

 and unprotected, to l(i5,000,000 acres, used, guarded, 

 anil improved in productiveness and accessibility. 

 Though the Government forests have not been under 

 expert control for more than a few years, they are al- 

 ready self-supporting, and will no doubt become highly 

 remunerative with the lapse of time. The facilities 

 for forest education have also largely increased, and 

 regular, systematic courses of instruction, extending 

 over two. three, or four years, are given at seven uni- 

 versities, and a large number of forest schools. Ad- 

 vantage is being taken of these facilities, and the 

 number of graduates frov the American forest schools 

 increased from three in 1.S99 to sixty-six in 1907. And 

 yet the article to which allusion has been made calls for 

 more vijrorous action in connexion with the national 

 suppl}' of timber, and points out that in the United 

 States as much timber is now being used in one 3'ear 

 as can be grown in ihreo. 



In the West Indies this matter of re- afforestation 

 has .attracted some small .-imount of attention of late 

 years, although little has been done so far. Large 

 numbers of trees suitable for timber exist in the various 

 islands, and a good de.il of useful information in this 

 connexion is contained in two papers entitled respec- 

 tively, 'The Timbers of Jamaica," and the " Timbers of 

 Dominica,' which appeared in the West IiKlidn linUctin, 

 Vol. IX, No. -i, just issued. Useful efforts might be 

 made in the direction of increasing the supply ol home- 

 grown timber available for employment in these islands, 

 but tlie ability to establish an export trade would appear 

 to be limited to p.irl.icular cisi s in special islands. 



