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THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



December, 



Next to the Aspens and White Birch are other 

 kinds of trees and shrubs, such as have seeds 

 that are blown to great distances, or such as 

 remain for long periods in the ground or are 

 carried by birds. 



Where the oak and pine forests are contigu- 

 ous, the oaks will be found gaining on the pine 

 lands. This may easily be accounted for as the 

 oaks renew themselves from the roots, or rather 

 from the stumps, while the pines never do. 

 Besides this, acorns may be buried by squirrels, 

 Ac. ; at all events the oaks are encroaching on 

 the burnt pine lands, where they stood adjoining 

 and partially intermixed — as they always are — 

 before the fire. 



A few oaks, and now and then a few black 

 cherry, are the only valuable trees to be found 

 on the millions on millions of acres of burnt 

 forest lands. It is certainly time that some 

 method should be adopted to prevent the fre- 

 quency and extent of these lamentable fires ; 

 no one, who has not travelled over the forest 

 regions, can form a correct idea of their extent. 

 In most Ciises they are the result of careless- 

 ness, and even recklessness, by which millions 

 of acres that would reproduce valuable timber, 

 merchantable during the next generation, and 

 the next, will be found by our descendants 

 grown up to worthless trash compared to the 

 noble forests of valuable timber we have had in 

 our day. 



I have given you the facts as they are. Indi- 

 viduals, like myself, can only deplore, but are 

 powerless to prevent such wanton recklessness. 

 Editors of journals like yours, and the public 

 press generally, should arouse the people, the 

 State governments, or whoever the duty de- 

 volves on, to see that some plan is adopted to 

 check this terrible waste. 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



Succession of Forests. — Just now the most 

 exciting topic in European forestry circles is 

 whether a natural succession is more profitable 

 than to wholly plant a new one. So far as we 

 have followed the discussion, the artificials have 

 the best of the argument. The discussion has 

 great interest to Americans, where the forest 

 succession is an important matter. 



Tree Planting in China.— Six hundred acres 

 were to be planted in Hong Kong last year. 

 Pinus sinensis is the species employed. 



Tree Planting in Kansas.— The six hundred 

 acres of forests planted by Messrs. Douglas <fe 

 Son, near Fort Scott, have proved to be a com- 

 plete success, and they are now planting five 

 hundred acres more. They will have 1,360,000 

 trees planted before April 1, 1883. 



Ailanthus Silk Worms. — We have heard it 

 stated that silk worms fed on osage orange 

 leaves soon get sick ; but Professor Riley says 

 that he has fed them for eleven years success- 

 ively, and kept them in good health. 



Californian Chestnut Oak for Leather. — 

 The Lumber World says this is the most popular 

 tree in California for tan bark. 



Tree Planting in Canada.— Some of those 

 who took an active part in the Montreal Forestry 

 Congress have a practical knowledge of tree 

 planting. Hon. M. Jolyhas set out 10,000 black 

 walnut trees. 



Tree Planting in Nebraska. — Last spring saw 

 many thousands of trees set out in Nebraska. 

 Mr. Charles S. Perry set out 12.000, about three 

 miles from Lincoln, Nebraska, all of which went 

 through the summer superbly. 



Insects on Timber Trees.— It is well known 

 that some insects prefer to feed on rotten or de- 

 caying wood, but it seems strange in these days 

 that any should contend that all trees are dis- 

 eased before an insect will attack them. Yet 

 there were arguments on both sides at the 

 Forestry Congress at Montreal. 



A Year's Tree planting in Great Britain. — 

 Those who regard with dismay the cutting-down 

 of trees, and believe that the area of woodland 

 in this country is gradually disappearing, may 

 take comfort from some of the figures stated in 

 the return we publish elsewhere as to the prices 

 for British timber realized during the season 

 1881-82. From those figures it will be seen that 

 throughout England, Scotland, Ireland and 

 Wales there were planted on various estates 

 during the period under review no less than 

 3,156,826 trees. Of these, 2,175,826 were planted 

 in Scotland, 646,200 in England, 294,800 in 

 Ireland, and 40,000 in Wales. It is, of course, 

 not easy to get absolutely complete returns, but 

 those we give are well within the mark and 

 prove that there is at least some set-off against 

 tree-felling and the gradual increase of bricks 

 and mortar in these islands. — Journal of For- 

 estry. 



