RAISING OK KEEPING UP THE FOREST 79 



five dollars per pound ; that of ash, maple, and birch 

 from one dollar to two dollars, and even acorns cost 

 twenty-five cents and more per pound. It pays, there- 

 fore, to gather our own seed ; for, besides being cheaper, 

 the seeds we gather are fresh and, being matured in 

 our own locality, are apt to furnish plants well suited to 

 our climate. 



There are a few kinds like the elms, the willows, the 

 poplars, and also the silver and red maples which ripen 

 their seeds in spring and early summer; but most trees 

 ripen their seed in the fall, the majority in September and 

 October. Some kinds bear seed nearly every year ; most 

 kinds bear every two or three years with a specially good 

 seed year at longer intervals. 



Large seeds, like those of oak, beech, chestnut, hickory, 

 and walnut, can be picked up when they fall, and the 

 same is true of the pods of locusts and catalpa. The seeds 

 of basswood, maple, and ash may be beaten off the tree 

 and caught on a sheet spread out on the ground ; or they 

 can be gathered by cutting the best bearing twigs with 

 shears, either from the ground or from a ladder. 



This way of cutting the twigs or picking off seeds is 

 the best also for elm and for trees where the seeds are 

 in cones or balls, as with the yellow poplar (tulip poplar), 

 sweet gum, sycamore, birches, and conifers. The seed of 

 willows and poplars rarely needs to be gathered, as these 

 trees are easily grown from cuttings. 



