NOTES AND QUERIES. 6 1 



forests, the lodgepole pine seed is said to be the most difficult to 

 extract. Unhke the yellow pine, Douglas fir, and Engelmann 

 spruce cones, which under favourable weather conditions may 

 be opened by spreading them on large canvas sheets in the 

 sun, the lodgepole pine cone, because of its small size and other 

 characteristics, may be opened to advantage only by artificial 

 heat. Therefore the plant at Idlewild, located in a great lodge- 

 pole forest, is used almost exclusively for extracting the seed of 

 the lodgepole pine. 



" This plant consists of a large storehouse, a furnace room, and 

 an extracting and cleaning room. The storehouse is a series of 

 large bins in which the "green" cones are stored while awaiting 

 seed extraction. 



" In order to prevent mould and mildew from injuring the cones 

 the house is built of slatting so arranged as to keep out rain and 

 snow, and at the same time permit of maximum ventilation. 

 Auxiliary pipes are also run through each bin to increase the 

 circulation of air. The furnace supplies the necessary heat for 

 opening the cones. 



" Unquestionably the most interesting feature of the plant is 

 the extracting and cleaning room, which is located above the 

 furnace and contains a large drying kiln, a cylinder shaker or 

 drum, a wing crusher and a fanning mill. In the process of 

 extracting the seed the "green" cones are spread in thin layers 

 on tiers of screen-bottomed trays. These trays, loaded on a 

 movable platform, are slid into the kiln, which is heated to a 

 uniform temperature of about 140 degrees Fahrenheit. The 

 cones are left in this heat for six to eight hours. On removal 

 the cones will be sufficiently open for the extraction of the seed. 

 They are placed in the drum, which is covered with a close- 

 meshed screen, and by rapid revolutions the seed is shaken free 

 from the cones and drops through the meshes on to a canvas 

 sheet spread beneath, while the empty cones are forced through 

 the lower end of the slightly inclined drum and fall into the 

 furnace room below, where they furnish practically enough fuel 

 to operate the plant. 



The seed is next run through a mechanical cleaner or crusher, 

 which removes the wings characteristic of the seed of nearly all 

 the coniferous species. This crusher is a circular table rotating 

 under several stiff brushes that separate the wings from the seed. 



" Up to this stage the seed has been mixed with broken cone 



