HOW FASCINES ARE MADE. 

 By S. B. Detwiler. 



The improvement of our rivers for navigation affords an 

 excellent, thoug-h very limited opportunity for forest manage- 

 ment. The dams and shore protections which confine the currents 

 and keep the channel scoured, are constructed of bundles of 

 brush (fascines) weighted with rock. Along rivers where 

 improvements are being carried on, the forester can make the 

 cleaning and thinning of young stands profitable. Since this is 

 usually difficult to accomplish, a description of fascine making on 

 the upper Mississippi river may be of interest. 



The brush used on the upper river (St. Paul to mouth of 

 Missouri river) from the beginning of improvement work in 1878, 

 to June 30, 1910, totals slightly over 8,000,000 cubic yards, about 

 one-fifth being used in shore protections, one-twentieth in repairs, 

 and the remainder in constructing dams. About four and one- 

 third cubic yards of brush are required per lineal foot of dam. 

 Approximately 200 miles of shore protections and 225 miles of 

 dams have been built on the upper river. 



The specifications of the U. S. Engineer's office for brush are 

 as follows : "Fascines shall be made of live brush, sufficiently 

 trimmed and choked to form a compact mass, 20 feet long and 12 

 to 15 inches in diameter, and tied with bands of lath yarn or wire 

 not more than 4 feet apart." Bundles down to 10 inches in 

 diameter are usually accepted but they must hold out in length, 

 although any length in excess of 20 feet is not paid for. Brush 

 cut for fascines may be 4 inches in diameter at the butt, although 

 3 inches is usually the limit. The species are seldom named, 

 although the willow is preferred because the bundles pack better. 

 In constructing the dams the fascines are closely packed into 

 mats, 12 feet or over in length, held together by three or more 

 pairs of binding poles which are secured by ties of lath yarn or 

 wire. Poles must be 20 feet long, 3 inches or over at the butt, and 

 are piled and paid for the same as brush. The mats are loaded 

 with rock according to specifications, and sunk, the butts of the 

 bundles being down stream. The shore revetments ("rip-rap") 



