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THE DIVERSIFIED FARM 



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In diversified farming by irrigation lies the salvation of agriculture 



THE NEW BUREAU OF FORES- 

 TRY. 



On the first of July the Division of For- 

 estry and three other scientific divisions 

 of the U. S. Department of Agriculture 

 were advanced to bureaus. This was pro- 

 vided for by the last session of Congress, 

 which appropriated for the expenses of the 

 Bureau of Forestry during its first year 

 $185,440. The appropriation of the Divi- 

 sion of Forestry during the year just 

 ended was $88,520. For the year 1898-99 

 it was $28,520. 



These figures show how rapidly the for- 

 est work of the Government has expanded 

 of late, and also how well it has commen- 

 ded itself to Congress. There was a time 

 when the practical value of the scientific 

 investigations carried on by the Govern- 

 ment was not fully understood, and far- 

 mers were inclined to think that the money 

 spent on experiment stations and chemical 

 laboratories was of little benefit to them. 

 Now the case is very different. The im- 

 provements in agriculture due to the work 

 of the Department have increased the value 

 of the farm products of the country by 

 many millions of dollars annually. As 

 this kind of work has proved its practical 

 utility, Congress has shown itself generous 

 toward it. The readiness with which Con- 

 gress has increased the appropriations for 

 the Division of Forestry is the best evi- 

 dence that forestry has proved its impor- 

 tance from a business standpoint. 



The change from a Division to a Bureau, 

 and the larger appropriation, will make 

 possible both an improved office organiza- 

 tion and more extended field work. The 

 Bureau will be provided with a much 



lager office force and will be organized in 

 three Divisions. But field work, not office 

 work, is what the Bureau exists for. This 

 work has been going on during the last 

 year from Maine to California and from. 

 Georgia to Washington. It includes the 

 study of forest conditions and forest prob- 

 lems all over the country, the giving of ad- 

 vice to owners of forest lands, and the 

 supervising of conservative lumbering op- 

 erations which illustrate forest manage- 

 ment on business principles. This work. 

 can now be greatly extended. Private 

 owners of some three million acres have 

 applied for this advice, which in every 

 case requires personal examination, and 

 about 177,000 acres have been put under 

 management. This land is in many tracts, 

 large and small, and is owned by individ- 

 uals, clubs, and corporations. Several 

 State governments have also asked the 

 aid of the Bureau. But the greatest de- 

 mand is that of the Department of the In- 

 terior of the National Government, which 

 has asked for working plans for all the 

 Forest Reserves, with the enormous total 

 area of about 47 million acres. 



FERTILIZING THE ORCHARD. 



The orchards of this country are the 

 most neglected of any of our crops. It 

 may seem strange to some to call an or- 

 chard a crop, but that is what it is. It is 

 growni for the purpose of producing some- 

 thing for use or sale just as other crops 

 are, and it is a notorious fact that this 

 crop is more neglected than any other we 

 grow. Prof. L. H. Bailey, of Cornell, re- 

 cently said some things about orchard 

 management. He said: 



