A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 1213 



ment and participation the States have engaged in the growing of 

 nursery stock in competition with private business, and that since 

 the State nurseries are in part supported by public funds private 

 nurserymen are unable to compete. 



The validity of both these arguments must be recognized, and justi- 

 fication for the projects rests on the question whether public interest 

 is best served through the encouragement to tree planting that the 

 Federal act provides or through encouragement to business by with- 

 drawing from this field in favor of the commercial nurserymen. 



In the first place, it is believed that no distinction between farmers 

 and others should be made in the distribution of nursery stock, for 

 reasons that will be discussed later. On the question of State compe- 

 tition it is the belief of State and Federal workers acquainted with the 

 project that it has on the whole stimulated rather than restricted the 

 business of commercial nurserymen. The general observation of 

 public officials has been that farmers cannot or will not pay the seed- 

 ling prices charged by commercial nurserymen for farm planting on an 

 extensive scale, and that unless they can secure stock at much lower 

 cost it will not be planted. But an actual or potential increase in 

 commercial nursery business is seen in the fact that State nurseries do 

 not generally supply trees for ornamental planting (the Federal Gov- 

 ernment in no case participates in that), and that the establishment of 

 forest plantations and shelter belts tends to stimulate this demand. 



Commercial nurserymen have also contended that when planting 

 stock is supplied to farmers at very low prices, the result is much the 

 same as if it were free. Nurserymen argue that if it costs nothing to 

 secure the stock the farmer will often order it without any well-con- 

 sidered plans for planting, and consequently seedling distribution 

 does not result in the woodlands and shelter belts contemplated by 

 the law and its sponsors. The validity of this argument is recognized. 

 It is not believed that public aid should extend beyond furnishing 

 farmers or others needed technical advice and nursery stock at a 

 price that will insure their interest if they order and pay for the trees. 

 There is nothing to prevent the States purchasing the stock from 

 private nurserymen if they are in position to furnish it at favorable 

 prices. 



Assuming limited basis of Federal cooperation, there would seem 

 to be no good reason why the privilege of purchasing State-grown 

 trees should not be extended to all landowners who wish to engage in 

 the project of planting forests. The Forest Service has several times 

 reported favorably on proposed amendments of the Clarke-McNary 

 Act, which, if enacted, would extend its scope as thus indicated. 



Federal interests in forest planting would seem to be as well served 

 through planting by other landowners as by farmers, and many 

 difficulties of administration would be avoided by the proposed 

 change. It is not believed that large increases in Federal funds are 

 called for in any event. 



FEDERAL AID IN WOODLAND MANAGEMENT 

 FARM WOODLANDS 



Approximately 20 percent of all the forest land of the country is 

 in native woodlands on farms. They represent by far the most stable 

 form of private ownership, and, from this important angle at least, 



