PROTECTION OF FORESTS FROM FIRE 253 



In locating the piles it is necessary to take into con- 

 sideration the convenience and cheapness in handling the 

 brush, the clearance of way for skidding the logs, and 

 the safety to standing trees and young growth when the 

 piles are burned. Ordinarily they are placed at least 15 

 feet away from any trees or groups of young trees that 

 may be injured. In forests like spruce, which have a 

 great amount of branches, and where the trees stand so 

 close that the piles cannot be placed at this safe distance, 

 the brush is either piled and not burned, or is thorough- 

 ly lopped and left scattered evenly over the ground. 

 When the brush is piled after the logging, the piles are 

 located in the logging roads and skidding trails, and on 

 spots where skidways were located. 



The brush piles should be small and compact. 

 (Fig. 51.) As a general rule, they should not be over 

 10 feet across or over 6 feet high. The very small 

 branches are put in the bottom of the pile, with suc- 

 cessively larger material laid on afterward. The ends of 

 the branches are placed toward the center of the pile. 

 Trimmed sticks may be leaned against the pile to hold 

 it in shape, keep it from blowing over, and render it 

 more compact for burning. Windrows and large piles 

 make control of burning difficult, and are likely to make 

 such a large fire that the crowns of trees are scorched and 

 injured. 



When the piles are loosely thrown together complete 

 burning is very difficult and often impossible. To secure 

 "clean burning" (so called), it is necessary to rebuild 



