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AMERICAN FORESTRY 



California 



A newspaper report says : A considerable 

 fortune is being spent by wealthy Califor- 

 nians in an effort to save groves on beautiful 

 estates near this city from a blight that has 

 recently attacked most of the trees. Tree 

 surgeons are gathering here from various 

 parts of the country and are working hard 

 under offers of large rewards if they can 

 stop the destruction. Should they fail, it is 

 probable that foresters will be brought from 

 Europe. 



The blight is in the form of a fungus 

 known as the volsairia bacteria. After it has 

 taken hold on a tree thousands of worms 

 develop. They are much like the carpenter 

 borer. These pierce the bark through and 

 through, and sometimes make large holes. 

 Their ravages were not detected until many 

 of the fine shade trees wilted this season 

 and were threatened with quick death. Tree 

 authorities of Stanford University were 

 called in and found that the blight extended 

 among the estates in beautiful Menlo Park. 

 They also discovered that the disease was 

 spreading rapidly to the north. 



New Jersey 



The report of the New Jersey Forest Com- 

 mission for 1911 is being distributed. This 



shows that -the chief effort of the Commis- 

 sion is to give value to the forests through 

 fire control. The State owns and can own 

 no important part of the forests within her 

 borders, but by encouraging and helping 

 those who do own them a better order will 

 be established. 



In New Jersey most forest fires occur in 

 the spring, and the spring of 1911 was so 

 exceptionally dry that the fire hazard was 

 greatly increased. Nevertheless, the fire 

 service which has been developed during six 

 years succeeded in lessening the number of 

 fires by 13 per cent., and in reducing total 

 damage by 32 per cent, over what was suf- 

 fered the previous year. In neighboring 

 States under similar conditions the fire loss 

 was from two to five times as great as that 

 of the preceding season. The report points 

 out that most of the railroads are doing 

 their utmost to prevent fires. Their em- 

 ployees and the firewardens succeeded so 

 well in meeting the situation that of 200 fires 

 started only 17 burned as much as ten acres. 

 A strong indication of the railroads' inter- 

 est is found in the statement that they have 

 built 235 miles of fire lines, practically vol- 

 untarily, and at their own cost. Of the 64 

 fires due to brush burning some were serious, 

 though what might have happened is sug- 

 gested by the showing that upwards of 2,400 

 brush burning permits were issued. 



PRESERVATION OF MINE TIMBERS 



The Forest Service has issued Bulletin 107, treating of the "Preservation of Mine 

 Timbers." Practical methods of increasing the durability of timber are given. First, 

 peeling is advised, by which simple and inexpensive treatment the life of timber is increased 

 from 10 to 15 per cent. Seasoned timber, it is claimed, will last 25 per cent longer in a 

 mine than green timber and hence it is advised that the timber be seasoned in the woods 

 before shipping. 



INVENTORY OF FOREST LANDS 



In accordance with the requirement that it investigate phases of forestry of value to 

 all the people of the State, the new State College of Forestry at Syracuse University is. 

 taking an inventory of New York's forest lands. Although New York no longer ranks' 

 as one of the big lumber producing States, it is not without resources in its forests. Dean 

 Baker of the College of Forestry believes that scientific management would make them 

 vastly greater and an important benefit. 



