Close Planting and its Effect; 



185. Number of Trees required to Plant an Acre of Land in Squares, 

 or in Rows at Right Angles, and at equal Distances apart both ways. 



TJie Necessity of Close Planting. 



186. As a general rule, all trees growing in an open space have a 

 tendency to spread out laterally, and not to grow as high as where 

 they are surrounded by other trees. This tendency to branch from 

 near the ground is greater in a dry climate and in places exposed to 

 strong winds. It is therefore a common practice among skilled for- 

 esters to plant the trees much nearer together than they could stand 

 when mature, and thin them out as they become larger. 



187. We see this thinning-out process going on naturally in the 

 native woods, where the stronger shade out and kill off the feebler, so 

 that but a few of the many that started as seedlings come to matur- 

 ity. It is best to do this at proper times, without waiting for this 

 dying, and, as a general rule, it should be done at stated times and 

 throughout a given piece of woodland at about the same time. If 

 delayed too long, the stems of the trees will be slender and feeble. 

 If done too soon, the effect of shade in carrying up the tree is lost. 

 No fixed rules can be given for thinning, and the judgment of the 

 forester with the conditions before him should be the principal guide. 

 As a general fact, the conifers require less space than deciduous 

 trees. 



188. It is an excellent practice in the planting of valuable kinds, 

 that we wish to have grow straight and high, to place them in al- 

 ternate rows, and in alternate places in the rows, with other trees 

 of more rapid growth, but it may be of less value. The latter may 

 be taken out when their shelter and protection are no longer needed, 



