FOREST C05IMISSI0XKR*S REi'ORT. 65 



There are thousands of acres of pitch pine now growing in the 

 pure sea sand of Cape Cod, the seed having been sown in furrows 

 six or eight feet apart. A large amount of fuel is obtained by 

 thinning, as the trees increase in size and become too thick to ad- 

 mit of full development. The planter is thus early getting a re- 

 turn for the trifling expense of seed and sowing, with a prospect of 

 reaping a more valuable harvest of lumber in the future. 



PREPARING A SEED-BLD. 



The seeds of the conifers are small, and should be sown in drills 

 a foot apart, and be covered from one-fourth to one- half an inch 

 deep, and the soil over them should be made quite firm. A plot 

 where no water will stand on or near the surface, and still not lia- 

 ble to be washed by heavy rains, must be selected. A sand}' loam, 

 with a mixture of well decomposed muck, leaf mold, or peat, with 

 a little of old manure added, and the whole worked firm, will be 

 favorable for the germination of seeds and the growth of the 

 plants. 



The common cold frame used by market gardeners — six feet- 

 wide, and as long as may be desired — will be found convenient^ 

 and all that- is needed to give protection in winter or summer. 

 When the seeds are sown in autumn, sash or shutters are to be 

 placed over the frames and tilted when the weather is warm, so as. 

 to give air, and avoid too great an accumulation of heat. 



As spring approaches, the seeds will germinate, and the young' 

 seedlings begin to push above the ground. They will require 

 watching daily, to prevent their becoming dry, or burning by too 

 high a temperature. Light watering must be given from time to 

 time, so as to preserve a humid air inside of the frame. Shading 

 the beds by lath screens, as e'sewhere suggested, is always safe 

 until the plants have become well established. 



Mr. Meehan, editor of the Gardiner's Monthly, recommends the 

 following metliod : "A common board frame is placed over a care- 

 fully prepared bed of light mold, and covered with shaded hot-bed 

 sash. Under each corner of the frame is placed a prop, raising 

 the bottom about three inches above the surface of the ground. 

 The advantages of this contrivance will be ai)preciated, when we 

 consider that the most essential conditions, in raising evergreen- 

 seedlings, are to obtain a moist atmosphere, protection Irora the 



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