254 Forestry Quarterly. 



rapidly growing species will yield profits as well as ordinary in- 

 terest. Questions as to the practicability of artificial plantations 

 on open lands are answered by the publication of these State 

 Foresters. The question which the present article discusses is 

 whether — granting the feasibility of planting on open lands — is 

 it feasible to make plantations where species of little value now 

 growing would choke the planted trees ? Does the added expense 

 of clearing away reproduction of inferior species make the plan- 

 tation impractical? On the other hand, this article does not dis- 

 cuss the treatment of pastures very long abandoned on which 

 valuable species, like Oak, Hickory, Chestnut, White Pine, are 

 well represented and have supplanted the earlier growth. Such 

 pastures have passed into the category of the established forest, 

 although extreme need of improvement and reproduction thin- 

 nings may veil the fact that simply the usual silvicultural methods 

 of treatment of wood-lots in Southern New England should be 

 followed. 



White Pine is most commonly used for plantations in New 

 England. However, in the northern portion of the region 

 especially, Norway Spruce is more suited by its requirements to 

 certain situations — ^as loamy soils, on which White Pine, with its 

 predilection for sand, is sometimes not vigorous ; and Norway 

 Spruce is probably of as rapid growth as White Pine. In Con- 

 necticut, Chestnut is a thrifty, rapid growing species. It is easily 

 reproduced by coppice, and a fire, which would cause total loss in 

 a plantation of White Pine, would leave chestnut stools capable of 

 reproduction. Its stumpage value is, however, not yet as high as 

 that of White Pine, and the occurrence of the Chestnut disease 

 also makes its use temporarily undesirable. 



A study of the publications of the State Foresters leads to the 

 following general conclusions : That at the end of a forty or 

 fifty year rotation, a plantation of White Pine in Southern New 

 England, should yield from 25 to 50 M. feet, B. M., per acre; 

 worth from $6.00 to $12.00 per thousand at present stumpage 

 prices, and that such a plantation should yield, after the cost of 

 planting, protection and taxes is subtracted, compound interest at 

 4%, and also net profits up to about $300.00, and averaging about 

 $150.00, depending upon the quality of the locality and the near- 

 ness to market. The estimated amount of the net profits on the 

 better situations should be noted. It will be referred to later. 



