18 



A^IERICAN FORESTRY 



LABORERS PLANTING WESTERN YELLOW PINE BY DEEP HOLE METHOD IN PIKE'S PEAK 



REGION, PIKE NATIONAL EOREST. 



year 1910. It will be noted that sow- 

 ing on prepared soil, which consisted 

 mostly of seedspot sowing, cost nearly 

 aS much as planting, notwithstanding 

 (hat all sowing was done on the most 

 favorable sites : 



Method 



Planting 



Sowing (prepared 



soil) 



Broadcasting on 



snow 



Cost per 

 acre 



$14.20 

 7.29 

 3.05 



Per cent 



01 area 



successful 



100 



46 



77 



Cost of 



restocking 



failed 



Places 



$1.04 

 6.05 



2 47 



Total cost 

 per acre 



$15.24 



13.34 



5.25 



Planting work should be done in the 

 spring and as early in the season as 

 weather conditions permit. In the 

 Pike's Peak region it is usually unwise 

 to plant after May 20. 



Since this region is rather dry, the 

 species used are mostly drought resist- 

 ing. In altitudes of less than 'J,;)UO feet 

 Western yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa) 

 and Douglas fir ( Pscitdotsuga taxi- 

 folia) are best adapted. The Western 

 yellow pine endures dry winds and is 

 therefore used on the northwestern, 

 western and southern exposures. Doug- 



las fir will not endure dry winds and 

 must be used only on the protected 

 northern and eastern exposures. Above 

 9,300 feet Douglas fir can be used on 

 warmer aspects because of the better 

 moisture conditions, and the colder situ- 

 ations are planted to Engelmann spruce 

 {Picea Bngelmanni), Limber pine 

 {Pimis flcxilis), and Bristlecone pine 

 {Pinits aristata). Lodgepole pine 

 {Pinus contorta) takes the place of the 

 Western yellow pine above 9,300 feet. 

 Only stock of the best cjuality should be 

 planted. It costs as much to plant a 

 poor, sickly seedling as it does a vigor- 

 ous, healthy plant, and since the cost of 

 planting is the heaviest item of cost in 

 reforestation work, it is economy to 

 throw away unfit stock. 



The cost of planting operations may 

 \ary between certain wide limits, even 

 when strict economy is practiced. The 

 following is a list of the factors which 

 affect the cost of all planting work : 



1. Method of planting. 



2. Spacing of the plants. 



3. Size of stock. 



4. Soil. 



