746 UTILIZATION OF FOREST HERBAGE FOR FODDER. 



SECTION II. GRASS-CUTTING. 



Demands for grass are increasing in all forest districts. 



Localities, which produce large quantities of grass, may be 

 distinguished as permanent, or temporary, grass areas. To 

 the former belong regular forest meadows, which owing to their 

 naturally moist condition are adapted for a prolonged supply 

 of good grass. Temporary grass areas include all those 

 destined for the production of wood, but which, during the 

 young stages of woody growth, are adapted for the production 

 of grass; besides these, all blanks in the forest, such as the 

 sides of ditches, road-sidings, rides, fire-lines and other 

 similar places, may be included here, for unlike permanent 

 meadows they are not kept clear from woody plants expressly 

 for grass-production. 



The permanent grass-areas are lands contained in the 

 forest area, but used for the production of grass : these are 

 lands liable to inundations from rivers and brooks, or near 

 permanent springs, which afford the necessary supplies of 

 subsoil moisture ; lower parts of valleys between mountainous 

 slopes ; Alpine pastures, or similar areas, with rich moist soil 

 in mountainous countries. Wherever there are extensive 

 areas of this nature, and fodder is scarce, every means should 

 be employed that the farmer uses to improve his meadows ; 

 often only a small expenditure is necessary to obtain a better 

 crop of grass, by removing stones and rocks, draining swamps, 

 or planting rows of trees far apart. It is not only the direct 

 utility to the forest that should be considered by the forest 

 manager, but public duty also should impel him to endeavour 

 strenuously to increase the local supply of fodder, especially 

 in essentially forest districts, where the poor peasantry are 

 constantly increasing in numbers and becoming more and 

 more impoverished. 



For a temporary supply of grass the most important 

 places are : felling-areas and plantations with moist grass- 

 producing soil, there, if the grass be cat carefully, this can 

 be done not only without injury to the forest, but in the 

 case of grass that chokes the plants, with most beneficial 

 results. Plantations with plants that are wide apart are most 



