196 BOAKD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Some account of the different materials used in the making of, 

 with notices of the various kinds of fences most generally built, 

 together with one or two suggestions, and I will close the present 

 chapter. 



White cedar {Thuya Occidentalis) is the most durable and valua- 

 ble wood for the purpose of fencing, which we have. In the cen- 

 tral part of Somerset county, this tree is not so common as form- 

 erly, for it has been extensively cut off for fencing and building ; 

 yet, upon many farms in this section, there is much cedar fence 

 built of posts and rails which have been standing for a number of 

 years, and is now in good repair. Throughout the eastern and 

 northern towns in the county, cedar grows in swamps and low 

 runs between higher ridges, and also upon the margins of ponds, 

 where it reaches a considerable larger growth ; and besides being 

 used for fencing, it is employed for making shingles, &c. 



Next to cedar, for durability and strength, is the white ash, 

 {Fraxinus Americana,) and the only objection urged against it, is 

 that it is much heavier to handle, not only when first cut, but after 

 it has been seasoned. In towns where the former timber is not 

 generally found, white ash is largely used for the purpose of build- 

 ing fence. It is not, however, made into rails and set in posts, 

 but is usually set in stakes and bunks, or built in a crooked, zig- 

 zag manner, sometimes called Virginia fence, with cross-stakes and 

 riders. 



Fences are often constructed of the white maple, and as the 

 wood is durable it answers a good purpose, where cedar or ash 

 cannot be obtained. 



Many of the farmers in the county have recently been using 



considerable quantities of black poplar, [Poindus Bahaimfera,) 



perhaps on account of the scarcity of better and more durable 



material. If the wood is cut in December and the bark taken off, 



and put into fence the following spring, it will last fifteen years. 



Sometimes it is cut in June, as the bark starts more readily at that 



season ; but if put into fence immediately, it is apt to crack in 



seasoning, and the water lodging in the season cracks soon causes 



it to decay. Tliis is not so liable to be the case if the rails are cut 



in December. Tliere arc two varieties of the poplar common in 



our forests, the difference in which appears to be cliiofiy in tlio 



color of the leaves, and in the texture of the wood. The black 



poplar, just mentioned, has a leaf of a dark green color, with 



a greyish white bark, the grain of the wood being free and open. 



