1196 A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



organized fire associations of private owners who contribute approxi- 

 mately $15,000 a year, and assessments amounting to about $4,000 

 a year are collected and turned into the State forestry department for 

 fire-protection work. Active efforts to enforce the West Virginia 

 compulsory patrol law on a State-wide basis are not deemed advisable. 

 Most private owners now cooperating in the two associations were 

 voluntarily doing so before enactment of the law, and the law itself 

 has not greatly increased the extent of fire-protected areas. The 

 counties aid materially in paying for fire suppression. 



Planting. During the calendar year 1931 all the Central States 

 except Illinois cooperated with the Federal Government in forest 

 planting and nursery work and spent $73,628 of State money. Ohio, 

 the leader in this project, individually spent $36,999 in raising and 

 distributing 3} million trees, about two thirds of which were planted 

 on private lands and one third on State lands. Tennessee gives 

 private owners State reforestation aid by advice and help in preparing 

 badly eroded land for planting and by furnishing planting stock, 

 chiefly black locust, at nominal cost. 



During the period 1926-31 these eight States have distributed over 

 23 million trees to private forest owners, approximately three fourths 

 going to farmers and one fourth to others. State expenditures for 

 planting activities constitute 33 per cent of the total for all forestry 

 activities in the group. 



Extension. With the exception of Kentucky and Kansas, all the 

 Central States extend aid to private owners in forestry extension 

 through the activities of extension foresters. For the fiscal year 1931 

 the States themselves spent for this work $15,883 which was 7.1 per- 

 cent of their expenditure for all State aid in forestry work. 



Research. Indiana is the only State in this group engaged in 

 specific forest research activities. It is estimated that the Depart- 

 ment of Conservation spends approximately $4,000 a year of State 

 funds for forest research and investigations. The forestry depart- 

 ment of the Purdue Agricultural Experiment Station is also engaged 

 in a study of the effects of grazing on farm wood-lot management, the 

 results of which should prove of aid to private timberland owners. 

 Approximately $8,000 is being spent annually on this reasearch 

 project. In Ohio part of the time of several technical foresters is 

 devoted to research. 



SOUTHERN REGION 



The southern group comprises Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, 

 Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South 

 Carolina, Texas, and Virginia. 



Annual expenditures of State lunds to aid private owners in the 

 above States are as follows: 



