392 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1950 



The relative abundance of these economic lichens would be best 

 stated as "generally common," for solid areas of any one species is 

 the exception rather than the rule. Cetraria islandica Ach. in average 

 areas yields about 700 kilo of air-dried "moss'' per square kilometer. 

 CI. aljiestris gives higher yields, and selected areas in northern Nor- 

 way have produced 1,400 to 1,500 kilo per 1,000 square meters. 



Harvesting is performed by hand or hand implements ; this is for 

 the use of domestic animals only, for even the Lapps keep goats or 

 a cow in addition to their reindeer. Among the Lapps the work is 

 performed by the women and by hand, a method considered conserv- 

 ing and cheap, since only a quarter of the quantity growing is thus 

 garnered, leaving enough for regeneration. The Norwegian method, 

 using rakes with 15-centimeter teeth, takes up to two-thirds of the 

 amount available. Sticks are shaken out, and the adhering soil may 

 be separated by water. Dry "moss" is brittle and to avoid large losses 

 is most economically harvested when having a water content of 40 to 70 

 percent by weight. As the plant is gathered it is piled into small heaps 

 (40 to 50 centimeters high) with a branch of birch in the center for a 

 handle. These small heaps are brought together to form large bundles. 

 They are moved around in the field on sunny days when the water 

 content may go down from 60 to 30 percent, and are then placed in 

 straw-covered shelters. In winter they are taken to a drying house 

 in sledge loads of from 300 to 600 kilos. The crop may be further 

 dried in a warm ventilated room and stored when the water content has 

 gone down to 14 percent of the dried weight. Hand presses are un- 

 popular because of their cost and weight. Transportation costs for 

 this type of forage is considered expensive, and the forage is never 

 transported far. 



One cause for occasional friction between the Lapps and the Scandi- 

 navians in these northern areas is the more thorough harvesting 

 methods of the latter which have caused the Lapps to complain of 

 loss of grazing areas. Reindeer crop the lichen close but leave enough 

 of the thallus for future growth and the possibility that the area can 

 be pastured again within 4 years. Hand harvesting or implement har- 

 vesting uproots the lichen thallus, and it may take ten or more years 

 for regeneration and growth. This situation has been alleviated by 

 regulations imposed by the local governments. Lichens on trees may 

 be scraped away and gathered in sacks by non-Lapps. 



A farmer having 10 cows and some sheep and goats uses yearly 60 

 sledge loads of lichens for his stock. This implies a need of 4,800 

 to 18,000 square meters of well-covered lichen fields per year. Since 

 these plants may require up to 30 years to regenerate a marketable 

 stand, a farmer must have access to 150,000 to 560,000 square meters 

 of land. This land must be preferably mountain or heath land, since 

 forest areas contain objectionable pine needles and sticks. However, 



