352 The Ruffed Grouse 



be well used by grouse. Fortunately, most plantings will not ex- 

 ceed this size, the exceptions being mainly on public lands. 



In planning the coniferous plantings, as well as others, it must 

 be remembered that a mixture of species is desirable. Single-species 

 plantings of any great size are an immense hazard. Just one bad 

 insect infestation and the whole thing may be lost. It's a good exam- 

 ple of the old adage of not putting all one's eggs in a single basket. 

 Don't base the future of your plantation on a single species. 



The selection of species will be based mainly on the wood prod- 

 ucts desired. Not only is it a good idea to mix several kinds of 

 conifers in the planting, but it is also good for grouse to have some 

 clumps of hardwoods in the conifer cover. This may be achieved by 

 not planting spots aheady seeded to hardwoods, by leaving the 

 fail spots that are likely to occur on poor land (seventy per cent 

 survival may be considered a satisfactory establishment if quite 

 evenly distributed), by planting them in scattered clumps of ten 

 to one hundred each, or by leaving such spots unplanted and trust- 

 ing to natural seeding in places where desirable seed trees are 

 nearby. 



Species of conifers best for grouse shelter are hemlock, white 

 pine, red, white, and Norway spruce, red pine, and arborvitae. All 

 are practicable to grow for this use or are purchasable at reasonable 

 prices. Other species may be used to give variety. Where enough 

 of those recommended are not adapted to the conditions, scotch, 

 pitch, jack, and Virginia pine, any of the other spruces, and firs, are 

 suitable. 



The Hardwood Plantings. We have suggested that the best ar- 

 rangement for the planting of hardwoods is in a band between the 

 conifers and the shrub border. This is ideal from the point of view 

 of cover type arrangement, but is, of course, not essential. In large 

 plantings it may be more expedient to plant hardwoods in alternat- 

 ing bands with conifers (see Plate 50). The width of the band, what- 

 ever its arrangement with respect to the conifers, should be a hun- 

 dred feet or more in extensive reforestation work. In that arrange- 

 ment it will act as a break for crown fires. In small farm plantings 

 of only a few acres, it may be necessary to reduce this dimension 

 to fifty feet or even less, or handle the whole tree arrangement in 

 clumps. In a small planting there may be set out three or more rows 



