Community Working Plans 469 



established mainly for wood and timber production, although this 

 may come later. 



In regard to a woodlot policy for the individual farmer, he 

 should be made to realize the advantages of a woodlot and why 

 it is an essential part of his farm, so that he will adopt a definite 

 line of treatment for it. The following is a general analysis of the 

 economic reasons for woodlots on the individual farm; these may 

 be classified as direct or indirect : 



1. The one direct, economic reason for occupation of land by 

 woodlot is because it forms the best money crop which can be 

 grown on a particular area. This, of course, is possible, particu- 

 larly for poor and rough classes of land, such as are found in the 

 mountainous sections of the State. 



2. Most frequently woodlot occupation of farm land can only 

 be justified by indirect, economic considerations, as the land is 

 usually intrinsically adaptable to more valuable crops and for 

 this reason it should usually occupy but a small per cent of the 

 total farm area. 



The important indirect reasons, a number of which are usually 

 active in any particular case, are: (1) for convenience of home use, 

 fuel, posts, and other; (2) as a windbreak for buildings or crops; 

 (3) as a shelter for stock; (4) for protection of land from erosion; 

 (5) as a temporary, soil-renewing crop on worn out land; (6) as 

 furnishing work for man and teams during sparetime; (7) for 

 purely esthetic reasons and for recreation purposes, for which 

 reasons alone a farm with a well-located grove of trees, however 

 small, will sell for more than one without; (8) as a temporary 

 crop on intrinsically good agricultural land, which it is wished to 

 hold for future clearing and development. The great reduction 

 in woodlot area, which is continually going on, should be constantly 

 held in check by the following considerations: (a) the possibility 

 of holding timber crops for more favorable market conditions ; (6) 

 the advisabihty of allowing thrifty, immature timber to mature, 

 rather than removing it as a total loss ; (c) and the advisability of 

 working up intensive agriculture on areas already cleared before 

 clearing up additional areas which are in growing woodlot. 



In order to analyze the possible advantages of having a woodlot 

 occupy a particular area or areas of a farm the farmer must be 

 familiar with (1) the above economic reasons which justify woodlot 

 occupation of land ; (2) the possible yields and returns from grow- 

 ing different kinds of timber crops as compared with growing 



