200 Repoet of Faemeks' Institutes 



REFORESTATION OF HILLS AND FARMED-OUT LANDS 



B. H. Paul 



This topic contains two ideas, namely, the reforesting of de- 

 nuded hill lands, which have never been used for agricultural 

 purposes, and the reforesting of lands which have been farmed 

 until they will no longer produce agricultural crops. For the 

 purpose of this discussion, let us consider these two ideas under 

 the general head of " Reforesting Non- Agricultural Lands." In 

 this connection let us consider reforesting and the practice of 

 forestry as methods of producing a crop on soils too poor for 

 agriculture, or on lands which, because of the nature of their to- 

 pography or situation, are unsuited for cultivation or use for agri- 

 cultural purposes. 



The reason for the existence of the so-called farmed-out lands 

 is mainly that the supply of organic materials or humus of the 

 soil has become entirely exhausted as a result of continuous crop- 

 ping and insufficient fertilizing of the soil. These lands were 

 once covered with a forest growth, which for many years kept the 

 soil well supplied with humus by dropping a layer of leaves each 

 year. These leaves slowly decomposed and became mixed with 

 the upper layers of soil, adding fertility and providing a spongy 

 forest floor capable of absorbing and holding large quantities of 

 water. After the removal of the forest cover, the leaves remain- 

 ing on the surface of the ground were either dried up and blown 

 away by the wind or were barned by fires used in clearing the 

 land. The organic matter remaining in the soil was soon used 

 up by continuous cropping, or else washed down the slopes hy 

 heavy rains. Such soils now contain little available organic ma- 

 terial and the cost of restoring them to their original fertility by 

 artificial methods is so great that in most cases it is entirely un- 

 profitable to do so. The only practical remedy remaining in such 

 cases is the reforesting of the land and letting nature once more 

 restore the fertility of the soil by a slow but certain process. 



The benefit of a forest cover in building up worn-out soils is 

 well worth consideration. Other reasons for reforesting include 

 protection of soil from erosion ; consen^ation of moisture in the 



