100 PRACTICAL FORESTRY 
soil in such a way that germination will follow when 
the seed falls. 
The seeds may be collected and then sown in a 
nursery where the young trees may be caretully 
tended, and when of sufficient size, planted on the 
area where they are destined to remain until the time 
of reaping. This is essential in the case of many ten- 
der species. In other instances direct sowing may 
be practised. ‘The seeds may be sown in various ways 
upon the area which one may desire to stock. . Only 
those species, however, which are not delicate may be 
sown in this way. In the case of small and expensive 
seeds, direct sowing is risky. Much depends also 
upon the nature of the locality. In poor soils and 
in regions where squirrels, mice, and other seed-eat- 
ing animals are abundant, direct sowing generally re- 
sults in failure. Vigorous, quick-growing seedlings, 
which need no protection in youth, may be success- 
fully produced by direct sowing. 
This is, of course, Nature’s method, but Nature’s 
method is characterized by the extremest kind of lav- 
ishness. Millions and billions of seeds are wasted 
every year. Every seed is a ball of extremely rich 
concentrated material, which has consumed a large 
part of the tree’s energy in its process of manufac- 
ture. Were there no forest fires, no lumberman, no 
injurious insects, or other destructive agencies except 
