ESTABLISHING FORESTS BY PLANTING 



419 



ing. It has been successfully practiced by the author for a num- 

 ber of years in planting 2-year white pine seedlings under an 

 overwood. 



The trencher method 

 of planting, as devel- 

 oped in the progress 

 of forestation in the 

 sand hill regions of 

 Nebraska and Kan- 

 sas, 1 has proved more 

 successful in that 

 locality than other 

 methods when cost is 

 taken into considera- 

 tion. It has been 

 developed since 1909 

 and, consequently, has 

 not been sufficiently 

 tested to warrant a 

 specific statement as 

 to the range of condi- 

 tions under which it 

 can be successfully 

 used. It is best adapt- 

 ed, however, for loose, 

 sandy soils free from 

 stones and roots. 



In planting by this 

 method, the area is 

 first gone over with an 

 ordinary breaking 

 plough or a side-hill 

 plow and furrows made 

 at intervals of 4, 5, 

 or 6 feet as desired. 

 The furrow is usually shallow, varying from 2 to 4 inches in depth. 

 The trencher is run in the bottom of the furrow. It makes a contin- 

 uous V-shaped slit approximately 4^ inches wide at the top and 



1 Bates, C. G. and Pierce, R. G.: Reforestation of the sand hills of Ne- 

 braska and Kansas. (U. S. Forest Service, Bui. 121, p. 41. 1913.) 



Photograph by U. S. Forest Service 



FIG. 126. Planting yellow pine by the trencher 

 method. The first team is the plow team. 

 The second is the trencher team. The men 

 are planting in the V-shaped slit in the bottom 

 of the furrow. Near Halsey, Nebraska. 



