ture must receive assistance, must be supple- 

 mented by human instrumentalities in order to 

 produce the best wood products in the cheapest 

 manner and the shortest time. Proper species 

 must be selected, and this is often determined only 

 by a long series of experiments and observations. 

 Soil and climate conditions, as well as locality, 

 must also be studied to obtain a yield of the most 

 desirable wood crop. Light and shade is another 



the first to be exclusively owned and controlled by 

 the State, were planned. One consisted of four 

 acres located in Ulster County, south of Brown's 

 Station on the Ulster and Delaware R. R.; the oth- 

 er was located in the Adirondacks near Saranac 

 Inn Station. The Catskill nursery was designed 

 to propagate hardwood species principally. This 

 pioneer nursery, however, was not advisedly lo- 

 cated. The site was unfavorable on account of 



Tree Nursery at Lake Clear, N. Y., showing boxes and beds with 2,500,000 seedlings, one year old. 



important factor in the success of growing young 

 trees. 



With the establishment of the Forest Commis- 

 sion in 1885 activity by the state of New York 

 in forestry matters received its first practical im- 

 petus. The law itself contemplated not only the 

 preservation of grown timber but the planting and 

 raising of young trees. There were, however, so 

 many matters of importance concerning our wood- 

 lands, more tangible and better appreciated at that 

 time than the propagation of trees,, that this 

 branch of forestry was entirely neglected until 

 thirteen years later. 



The reports of the Superintendent of Forests in 

 1898 contained the first recommendation for the 

 reforestation of denuded land, but it was not until 

 1901 that any reforesting work was done. The 

 first nursery with which the state had any connec- 

 tion was provided by Chapter 122, Laws of 1898. 

 This act established the College of Forestry of 

 Cornell University, and it authorized it to plant, 

 raise, cut and sell timber. It was under this act 

 that the nursery at Axton and the one at Wau- 

 beek were established in 1899. They were located 

 on the 30,000-acre tract in Franklin County set 

 aside by the legislature for the purpose of teach- 

 ing and demonstrating practical forest manage- 

 ment. This was the 'beginning of the first endur- 

 ing movement in tree propagation in this country. 

 The state obtained trees from the Axton nursery 

 to carry on its earliest reforesting work hi 1901. 

 That year the Assistant Superintendent of For- 

 ests, accompanied by Foresters Bryant and Knech- 

 tel, with a representative of the New York State 

 College of Forestry, made a plantation in the 

 Catskills; the trees were donated, there being no 

 available appropriation. The work was done early 

 \n May at times when the men could be spared 

 From their regular duties. This planting was lo- 

 cated on what is known as Simpson's Plateau, a 

 spur of the Wittenburg Mountains. 



First Nurseries Owned by State. 



Denudation was progressing rapidly, and the ne- 

 cessity for immediate planting on an extensive 

 scale became so urgent that in 1901 two nurseries, 



its being on a side hill and the gravelly condition 

 of the soil made its operation difficult and expen- 

 sive. It was abandoned with the idea of selecting 

 a more adaptable place somewhere in the fertile 

 bottom land of the Bsopus Valley. The commis- 

 sion, however, has been unsuccessful in obtaining 

 sufficient funds to re-establish a tree nursery ill 

 the Catskills, although there is great need for one 

 in that locality. 



The first nursery permanently established by the 

 state was the Saranac Inn nursery in the heart of 

 the Adirondacks. It comprised about two and one- 

 half acres. The work has been attended with 

 highly satisfactory results, and its present condi- 

 tion is all that any forester could desire. The 

 beds are in most excellent shape, and show a 

 maximum density of growth. The transplant beds 

 are filled with a fine, thrifty stock. This nursery 

 has a complete system of water pipes and hy- 

 drants for sprinkling plants in times of drought. 

 The supply is obtained from a tank kept full by 

 an automatic hydraulic ram placed in the outlet of 

 Little Clear Pond, not far removed from the 

 nursery. There is also located on the site a tool 

 house and the forester's office. This parcel oi 

 ground was selected because of the transportation 

 facilities afforded by the Mohawk and Malone R 

 R. station, only a few rods distant. The site is in 

 the center of a large area of waste land which is 

 now in the process of reforestation. Soil here it 

 very sandy, therefore favorable for the growth oi 

 pine trees; it lacked, however, the fertility re 

 quired for general nursery purposes, and a large 

 amount of fertilizer had to be supplied. The ques 

 tion of fertilizers is tangled in the technical laby 

 rinths of scientific terms, and would not mak( 

 interesting reading for the general public. 



A great many experiments have been tried anc 

 advanced ideas as well as beneficial results ob 

 tained. Our researches have led to discoveries o 

 incalculable benefit to the art of tree raising, anc 

 have been adopted by all forestry schools in this 

 country. From the time when frosts, grass-hop 

 pers, birds and squirrels depleted the first seec 

 beds at Axton and almost baffled the foresters 

 initial attempts at tree propagation, down to 1910 



