RAILROAD FORESTRY WORK 



How the Pennsylvania System Is Planning for a Permanent 



Timber Supply of Its Own 



IN CONTINUANCE of its plans to The Pennsylvania Railroad this 



provide for some of its future re- spring imported 209,000 seedlings, 



quirements in timber and cross-ties, made up of 150,000 Scotch pine, 25,000 



the Pennsylvania Railroad Company European larch, 25,000 Norway spruce, 



has recently completed its spring for- 5,000 white pine, and 1,000 each of Se- 



estry planting for this year. Including quoia, Japanese larch, scarlet oak and 



the permanent planting and the stock- Douglas fir. Some of these are not large 



ing of the nursery, there was handled enough to be planted in their permanent 



this spring a total of 625,000 young sites, and have been set out in transplant 



trees. These make, up to the present rows in the new forest nursery estab- 



time, 2,425,000 trees which have been lished this year by the company at Mor- 



set out by the Pennsylvania Railroad risville. Pa., just across the Delaware 



since it undertook tree-planting upon a River from Trenton. Twelve acres 



scientific and comprehensive scale — have been carefully laid out there as 



this constituting the largest forestry seed beds, transplant beds, and nursery 



plan undertaken as yet by any corpora- plots. Already the last-named contains 



tion. 1,500000 red-oak seedlings, which have 



About 460,000 of the seedlings put come up from acorns put into the 

 out this year were conifers, such as ground about April i. In addition to 

 Scotch pine, white pine, and Norway the oaks, there are, in the nursery plots, 

 spruce, and 168,000 were hardwoods, thrifty seedlings growing up from five 

 principally red oak. Nearly 75,000 of bushels of black walnut, ten bushels of 

 the total were grown or handled in the chestnut, and 100 pounds of hickory 

 company nursery at HoUidaysburg. nuts, which were sowed there. The 

 The seed sown comprised 250 bushels seed beds have had sowed in them 

 of acorns and nuts, 370 pounds of other twenty-six pounds of Scotch pine, four- 

 hardwood seeds, and seventy-five teen pounds of loblolly pine, five pounds 

 pounds of conifer seeds. Three hun- of red pine, twenty pounds of European 

 dred thousand seedlings were perma- larch, 250 pounds of black locust, and 

 nently planted in land belonging to the smaller quantities of other seed, such as 

 company. Norway spruce, yellow poplar, hardy 



Economically to prosecute tree- catalpa, and basswood. Three hundred 



planting operations on so large a scale fifteen thousand little trees are in the 



necessitates at present the importation transplant rows, where they will receive 



of part of the plant material, because careful attention until large enough to 



European foresters, on account of the be planted out in their final site, 



degree of perfection to which they have The few trees mentioned above, 



brought their work, and the cheapness which are not primarily suitable for 



of labor, are able to supply certain for- timber production, are part of the stock 



est trees for less than the}- can be pur- in the nursery being grown for purposes 



chased at in America. This applies not of landscaping. The company has this 



only to native European species, such as year begun the propagation of ornamen- 



Scotch pine and European larch, but tal trees and plants for beautifying its 



also to our own trees, particularly property, and intends to develop a large 



white pine and Douglas fir. amount of shrubbery and hedges for the 

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