Windbreaks and Shelterbelts 



197 



terbelt planted in the Great Plains 

 during one of the Nation's most severe 

 droughts. 



Although hand planting is still com- 

 mon and will probably continue to be 

 used for small and rough areas, most 

 windbreaks and shelterbelts will be 

 planted with machines in the future. 

 One type of mechanical tree planter 

 may be constructed by the farmer or 

 his local blacksmith for as little as 

 $175. Others, capable of planting as 

 many as 1,000 trees an hour, are avail- 

 able through purchase from manufac- 

 turers, or loan by the soil conservation 

 districts or other agencies. 



If hand planting is done, we recom- 

 mend a long-handled, straight-shanked 

 shovel, such as is common on farms in 

 irrigated areas. The planting job is 

 best if done on well-prepared, reason- 

 ably moist ground. On sandy loam or 

 heavy soils, a subsoiler run down the 

 row before planting will loosen the soil 

 and speed up planting. Trees are car- 

 ried in a metal or wood carrying tray 

 or in a large bucket, and kept covered 

 with wet burlap and some shingle tow 

 or moss. 



In using the shovel, the loose, dry 

 soil is scraped off, and the shovel blade 

 is sunk vertically to full depth with the 

 concave side toward the planter; the 

 handle is pushed forward to break out 

 the soil and the shovel pulled toward 

 the planter with the handle inclined 

 slightly toward the planter; the back- 

 wall, away from the planter, is made 

 vertical by a second cut and the shovel 

 again drawn back and held to keep the 

 soil from rolling into the hole; a tree 

 is inserted with roots dangling down- 

 ward, the hole is then half filled and 

 tamped with the heel, then completely 

 filled and tamped again. One man can 

 plant from 50 to 120 trees an hour by 

 this method, depending on the condi- 

 tion of the soil. 



In moist soil, planting can also be 

 done in deep, freshly opened furrows. 

 In this method, the tree is held against 

 the vertical side of the furrow without 

 curling the roots and enough soil is 

 scraped with the foot against the roots 



to hold the tree in place. Then another 

 furrow is plowed against the trees and 

 the soil packed in with the foot or by 

 running the tractor tires over the sec- 

 ond furrow-slice and very close to the 

 trees. A crew of one with a tractor, as- 

 sisted by two helpers, can plant about 

 350 to 500 trees an hour. 



Planting by machine saves labor and 

 time. The planting machines consist 

 of a tractor-drawn trenching device 

 which is mounted on a unicarrier or 

 chassis and which opens a narrow V- 

 shaped trench about 12 inches deep, 4 

 inches wide on top, and about 1/2 

 inches wide at the bottom. Two men 

 usually ride the machine and place the 

 trees in the open trench, which is then 

 mechanically closed and firmed by 

 packing wheels all in the same oper- 

 ation. A production of 1,000 to 1,200 

 trees an hour is generally attained by 

 such machines. 



There is a wide range of climate, 

 elevation, and soils in various parts of 

 the United States where windbreaks 

 and shelterbelts are desirable. These 

 factors govern the choice of trees and 

 shrubs selected for planting. Some of 

 the better species mentioned here are 

 used in areas where this type of tree 

 planting is desirable. 



The most promising species for the 

 Great Plains include the Chinese elm, 

 green ash, hackberry, honeylocust, cot- 

 tonwood, white and golden willow, the 

 American elm, boxelder, chokecherry, 

 Tatarian honeysuckle, caragana, east- 

 ern and Rocky Mountain redcedar, 

 and ponderosa pine. The adaptability 

 of these and other species in the vari- 

 ous Prairie and Plains States is set forth 

 in tables in the last section of this book. 



For northwestern United States, in- 

 cluding Idaho and the dry-farming 

 areas of eastern Washington and Ore- 

 gon, the species that have given best 

 results in farm windbreaks and shelter- 

 belts are green ash, black locust, honey- 

 locust, the Chinese elm, caragana, the 

 boxelder, ponderosa pine, Austrian 

 pine, and Colorado blue spruce. On the 

 sites with better moisture conditions, as 

 in low spots or irrigated areas, the 



