200 SEEDING AND PLANTING 



and planting. It is reasonably certain that similar tools must be 

 used more and more in the United States in preparing adverse 

 sites for artificial regeneration. 



16. DEEP TILLAGE 



Deep tillage can be attained only by use of the plow, spade, or 

 grub hoe. The use of the ordinary plow is restricted to compara- 

 tively level areas, fairly free from stones, large roots, and other 

 obstructions. Forest plows are usually fitted with heavy wheels, 

 by means of which they can be lifted over obstructions of various 

 sorts. Plows of this construction are illustrated in Alemann's 

 forest plow and Eckert's forest plow, 1 both of European origin. 

 Weinkauff 2 has recently designed a forest plow with a roller which 

 lifts it over roots, stones, and other obstructions. 



Because of the expense involved, plowing the entire area should 

 not be attempted except under conditions which make regenera- 

 tion uncertain or difficult without it. Such conditions are present 

 usually only on sites where the herbaceous vegetation forms a continu- 

 ous turf, as in prairie regions and old pastures. 



Seeding and planting should never be undertaken in prairie 

 regions without thoroughly breaking up the sod some time in ad- 

 vance of the forestation. A year or two of cultivation prior to 

 the seeding or planting is preferable. On such sites planting is far 

 more successful than direct seeding. 



The advisability of plowing old pastures and other sod-covered 

 areas in naturally forested regions depends upon: 



a. The cost involved and the thoroughness with which the work 

 can be done. 



b. The species to be used in the regeneration. 



c. The quality of the site, particularly in reference to surface 

 soil moisture. 



d. The character of the regeneration, i.e., whether direct seed- 

 ing or planting. 



A part of the cost of plowing is balanced by the less labor involved 

 in the seeding or planting. Its necessity decreases with the size of 

 the stock used in planting, its hardiness, rapidity of growth, and 



1 Heyer, Carl: Der Waldbau oder die Forstproduktenzucht. 5. Aufl., I. Bd., 

 S. 118, 119. Leipzig, 1906. 



2 Weinkauff, Forstmeister: Neue Bodenbearbeitungsmethoden und Zu- 

 kunfts-werkzeuge. (Forstw. Centralblatt, S. 46-48. 1910.) 



