FOREST TREE SEED AND SEED COLLECTING 145 



The gray and red squirrels of our eastern hardwood forests 

 store the fruits of many of our nut-bearing trees, such as walnut, 

 hickory, chestnut, beech, and oak. Usually, however, they are 

 stored in the ground only a few in a place or else in hollow, stand- 

 ing trees out of reach. 



9. COMPARATIVE COST OF COLLECTING CONES AND OTHER 

 FRUITS OF FOREST TREES 



The cost per bushel or pound for collecting the fruits of forest 

 trees varies between wide limits. It not only depends upon the 

 species but is also largely dependent upon the fullness of the crop, 

 the cost of labor, and the experience of the collector. When a 

 collector enters a given field for the purpose of securing a supply 

 of seed, he either employs laborers at a stated price per day to go 

 with him into the field and do the collecting under his super- 

 vision, or else he offers a fixed price per bushel for the fruit after 

 it is gathered and delivered at a point agreed upon. On the whole, 

 the latter practice is less expensive except when experienced labor 

 is available. It requires no supervision and enables the col- 

 lector to determine in advance the approximate cost price of the 

 seed. 



The average price paid in the Adirondack Mountains for col- 

 lecting white pine cones and delivering them at the railroad or 

 seed-extracting plant is 40 cents per bushel; red pine, $1; jack 

 pine, 80 cents; and pitch pine, 60 cents. The large-coned species 

 in the Rocky Mountain region and on the Pacific coast usually 

 cost from 40 cents to $1 per bushel, although during years of 

 abundance the cost in some localities is as low as 25 cents, par- 

 ticularly when the cones are obtained from squirrel hoards. Hem- 

 lock, cedar, redwood, and other species bearing small cones are 

 collected at greater expense. 



The following table by Mason shows the range in cost per bushel 

 of lodgepole pine cones. As great a range may be anticipated 

 with other species. 



