SIXTY-FIVE PER CENT AGRICULTURAL SOIL 

 -WHAT OF THE BALANCE? 



By Thos. B. Wyman 

 Secretary-Forester, Munising, Mich. 



TATE GEOLOGIST R. C. 

 ALLEN, after wide investiga- 

 tion, makes the statement that of 

 the entire Upper Peninsula acreage the 

 soil of sixty-five per cent is suitable for 

 agriculture. 



In round numbers there are ten mil- 

 lions of acres in this peninsula and Mr. 

 Allen's figures, therefore, show six 

 million five hundred thousand acres of 

 land upon which agricultural crops 

 can be successfully grown. 



We are all interested in the develop- 

 ment and settlement of this great area, 

 which, each possessing a farm of a 

 quarter section, would permit 40,6?5 

 farmers to permanently locate among 

 us and create that unchanging popu- 

 lace that brings prosperity to every 

 community possessing it. But, while we 

 all possess the spirit to assist in this 

 agricultural development work, there 

 is a progressive association, the Upper 

 Peninsula Development Bureau, which 

 already has this matter well in hand, 

 and to this association we ofifer our as- 

 sistance in so far as it may be of serv- 

 ice. 



But that which concerns us more 

 particularly at this time is the unmen- 

 tioned balance — the worthless third — 

 the thirty-five per cent or 3,500,000 

 acres not fit for the plow and harrow. 



In the study of forestry, we learn 

 that there are two general classifica- 

 tions of soil — agricultural and forest. 

 The agricultural soil has already been 

 mentioned and the second classification 

 or forest soil covers that acreage with 

 which we as timbermen have most to 

 do. 



We learn, further, that every acre 

 should be devoted to that crop which 

 will pay best and since we have been 

 forced to eliminate agricultural crops, 

 crops of timber alone cen be consid- 

 ered. 



The agricultural presents to the tim- 

 berman the very poorest soil. He takes 

 the best to himself ; but after all, this 

 is a fair proposition for the farmer 

 growing his tender succulent crops^ 

 must produce them quickly, must har- 

 vest them before frost, must possess a 

 soil rich in surface nourishment, while 

 the hardy timber crops can grow slow- 

 ly; is practically free from winter-kill 

 and takes its nourishment from deeper 

 soil strata. Again the most valuable 

 timber species are often the least ex- 

 acting in their soil requirements as is 

 evidenced by the magnificent and high- 

 ly valuable stands of white and Norway 

 pines stocking our otherwise valueless 

 sandy lands. 



Further, extremely rough, hilly land 

 of high fertility which, if cleared and 

 cropped would sufi:'er materially from 

 hasty run-ofif, through gulleying and 

 erosion can be cropped in timber to the 

 advantage of all. 



However, an unfortunate condition 

 Dbtains ; the great areas of level land 

 formerly producing pine have been 

 clear cut. No provisions were made 

 for succeeding crops. No protection 

 has been ofifered the regeneration which 

 sprung up from the seed scattered be- 

 tween a few unsound and undersized 

 trees which were not thought worthy 

 of the ax. Fires have crept in through 

 carelessness of fishermen and hunters 

 and through the design of the berry 

 picker. Natural re^neration has been 

 swept away, the seed trees successively 

 damaged until their crops of seed have 

 become too small and too infrequent to 

 restock the area. These pine lands are, 

 therefore, largely pine plains unproduc- 

 tive, uninviting, and existing as a 

 standing argument for a higher, more 

 highly defined and perfected system of 

 forest utilization and management. 



Let the farmer produce single crop 



404 



