PART VIII 



Bulletins and Papers on Miscellaneous Topics 



EVERGREEN TREES FOR IOWA. 



BY G. B. MACDONALD. 



Bulletin No. 170, Iowa State Colleg-e of Agriculture. 



Evergreens, or coniferous trees, are of great importance in Iowa for 

 shelterbelts and windbreaks, to say nothing of their value for ornamental 

 planting. Although only a few evergreens are native to Iowa, a large 

 number have been successfully introduced into the state, including sev- 

 eral from Europe. The most desirable of these are listed in this bulle- 

 tin with brief descriptions of their characteristics, their value for vari- 

 ous purposes and methods of planting and growing. 



A shelterbelt is essential on every farm in Iowa to protect the home 

 buildings and the feed lots. If it is not provided by natural timber, 

 then a shelterbelt should be planted. Likewise, the windbreak, con- 

 sisting of a single row of trees for the protection of farm crops from, 

 the drying winds, is of value in Iowa, particularly in the northwestern 

 part of the state. The evergreen lends itself excellently to both uses — 

 much better than trees which shed their leaves in winter time when 

 shelter-belt protection is especially needed. Evergreens may also be 

 used for the planting of waste areas of sandy, rocky or wet lands to 

 produce posts, poles or lumber. They may also be used effectively on 

 lands which are too steep for cultivation to protect them against 

 erosion. 



TREES FOR PLANTING.. 



As a rule, evergreen trees make a very slow growth during the first 

 few years, and stock suitable for field planting is generally from three 

 to six years old. The average planter does not care to wait this long 

 to grow his own trees, consequently he must purchase from a commer- 

 cial nurseryman. Evergreens are also much more diffcult to grow than 

 the broadleaf trees and it is generally preferable to purchase trees of 

 the proper age, size and quality from a nurseryman of good standing 

 who will . guarantee the trees to be the species and grade specified. 



Evergreen seedlings (i. e., small trees which have never been movea 

 from the seed bed) may be purchased for considerably less money than 

 "transplants" of the same age and variety. The additional labor in- 

 volved in transplanting or replanting the young trees one or more times 

 naturally increases the cost of producing stock of this grade. As a rule, 

 however, transplanted evergreen trees, although more expensive at the 

 start, are more economical in the end, due to the fact that a greater 

 per cent of the trees live after the final planting. This is especially true 



