48 FORESTRY 



way of reforesting a tract devoid of trees. The better 

 the soil, the simpler the operation. Mistakes are made 

 in choice of species and in methods of planting, chiefly 

 in going to too great an initial expense. Plant material 

 for forest planting if obtained from nurserymen, is some- 

 times held at prices more suitable for ornamental plant- 

 ing. Plants are bought which are too large for the needs 

 of the planter. White pine if planted should not be over 

 three years old, at which age, if transplanted once, it is 

 not over 6 or 8 inches high at most, and should cost not 

 more than $5.00 or $6.00 per thousand. In planting, the 

 spacing is quite important, as it determines the number 

 of plants per acre, upon which hinges the cost. Closer 

 planting than 6 by 6 feet is now universally condemned 

 in this country. It requires too many plants and the stand 

 grows up so dense that at an early age the growth is 

 checked by crowding. It does not pay to thin the stand 

 for such small material hence there is a decided loss in- 

 stead of a gain from the crowding in spite of double the 

 initial planting expense. Spacing as wide as 8 by 8 feet is 

 sometimes urged, and should succeed if care is taken to 

 secure a full stand, and the soil is not too dry. If the 

 roots of conifers are allowed to become dry at any time 

 during transplanting, the seedlings wfll be killed. But 

 after planting they should not be watered as this will 

 cause their death. Needless to say, the watering of large 

 plantations would be an impossibility in any case. The 

 operation of planting does not require much labor — a hole 

 is made by the insertion of a spade, or with a mattock, 

 big enough to receive the roots, and the earth is firmed 

 about them with the foot. Two men can plant 1,000 trees 

 a day in sandy soil, and the cost depends on the price of 

 labor. To produce the seedlings, special care is required. 

 They are raised in seed beds, and protected by lath screens 

 during the first season, and by a slight mulch over win- 

 ter. The best plan is to sow broadcast in the seed bed, 



