20 



Where hardwoods as White Ash, Ehn, Maple, Oak and Chestnut are being 

 planted upon cultivated soil and where the planting material is cheap and the 

 operation can be done at a low cost, it will pay to plant even as close as 4 x 4 

 feet apart each way, so that soil protection may be obtained as early as possible. 



N"uniber of plants required to plant an acre in squares : — 



3 ft. X 3 ft 4,840 plants. 



4 ft. X 4 ft 2,722 " 



5 ft. X 5 ft 1,742 " 



6 ft. X 6 ft 1,210 " 



The area may be planted in regular lines if the roughness of the site does not 

 prevent it, but if the land is broken by stumps, rocks, etc., it will be necessary to 

 distribute the plants wherever possible. 



The more regularly the planting is done the easier it will be to find and pro- 

 tect the plant and to replace dead plants if necessary. The following diagrams 

 illustrate two methods of regular distribution over an area, although in ordinary 

 planting the spacing must be carried out in a rough manner. Alternate distribu- 

 tion takes more plants for an acre, but gives the individual plant more growing 

 space. 



Fig. 15. — Two methods of spacing plants — alternate and opposite. 

 Pkepaeation of Soil and Methods op Planting. 



In Ontario, forest planting will usually be done on soils unfit for agriculture, 

 where it will be impossible to cultivate. Forest planting on large areas as a purely 

 commercial proposition would likely preclude cultivation, even if possible, as the 

 initial expenditures in this work must be kept as low as possible. 



Occasions may arise when cultivation of the soil will be advisable where finan- 

 cial investment is not the chief consideration, and where the equipment and work 

 •tan be obtained as on the average farm. Where cultivation is advisable the land 

 should be fallowed and the planting may be done similar to that described in the 

 following pages. 



Planting may be done by running furrows in which the plants should be 

 placed before the soil has time to become dry. If the soil is so loose that it will 

 not "hold up" in the furrow, allowing the roots to be properly placed, then the 

 planting may be done as in Fig. 31. 



In most cases cultivation for one or two years will give the trees such a start 

 that the grass and weeds will not afterwards interfere with tlieir development. 

 Some slow growing trees may need cultivation a little longer, but this question 

 must, in the end, be judged on the spot. 



