FOREST PLANTING OX PIKE'S PEAK 



17 



HEAVY FALL OF SNOW ON MAY 14 WHICH TEMPORARILY 



PLANTING WORK. 



STOPPED THE 



ures suffer most from drying winds, 

 then follow the southern, eastern, and 

 northern exposures in the order named. 

 The northern and eastern slopes are the 

 most faovred, for the precipitation is 

 heavier, the drying winds less severe, 

 they are protected from the direct sun 

 and have greater humidity of the lower 

 strata of the air, besides the protective 

 covering of aspen which these slopes 

 usually bear. Planting therefore is 

 best for the less favored slopes. It is 

 more expensive and much slower than 

 seeding, but the results obtained usu- 

 ally prove it to be the most economical 

 in the end. Planted stock does not re- 

 quire so much protective cover, because 

 the roots extend into the soil to such a 

 depth as to render the plant not entirely 

 dependent upon seasonable precipita- 

 tion. It is not affected so much by dry 

 surface, and by placing sticks, sods or 

 stones on the windward side of the 



plant when it is set, as a shelter to ward 

 off the dry winds, much less loss from 

 wind blight occurs among planted stock 

 than seedlings resulting from direct 

 seeding. The extra cost of placing the 

 shelters amounts to very little since 

 sticks or stones are usually within easy 

 reach of the planter as he sets the plant, 

 and especially in the case of Douglas 

 fir, which is most susceptible to wind 

 blight, the saving in planted stock is 

 well worth the additional expenditure of 

 time. 



Direct sowing should be practiced 

 only on the most favorable situations 

 and the work should be done on pre- 

 pared ground in the fall or broadcasted 

 on the snow in the winter over ground 

 which has been previously dragged or 

 raked. 



The following table gives the com- 

 parative cost of establishing successful 

 stands by these three methods in the 



