280 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



TREE PLANTING ON THE PRAIRIES. 



Fanners Should Choose Trees For Their Timber as well as For 

 Their Rapid Growth. 



In the States of the middle West there is press- 

 ing need of more trees, both for wood and for wind- 

 breaks and shelter belts. This need has been felt since 

 the prairies were first settled, but the attempts made to 

 supply it have, as a rule, fallen short of the benefits 

 which might have been secured. The early planting was 

 done chiefly for the sake of ornament or shade ; the use- 

 fulness of the species for wood was seldom considered. 

 In many cases, also, trees were planted outside of the 

 range to which they were adapted, and on soil and in 

 locations unfavorable to them. On the other hand, 

 many valuable species were neglected. 



Experience has now furnished the basis for bet- 

 ter practice. Various kinds of trees can be grown in 

 these regions which will serve just as well for pro- 

 tection and ornament as those which have been most 

 used, and which at the same time will furnish valuable 

 wood. For several years the Bureau of Forestry has 

 been investigating this subject, with results which are 

 recognized throughout the prairie region as of great 

 practical value. The work consists of field studies of 

 the existing forest growth, both natural and planted, 

 of its relation to soil and climatic conditions, and of 

 the effect of various cultural methods. 



In carrying on the work bureau field parties ex- 

 amine and make measurements of representative groves. 

 From these measurements volume and yield tables are 

 made which show the returns in cordwood, posts, stakes, 

 and lumber to be expected in a given time for each of 

 the species studied. In addition to the measurements, 

 the characteristics of growth and reproduction of the 

 trees are noted, and valuable data on the natural distri- 

 bution and advisable planting range obtained. 



The work in the eastern part of the two Dakotas, 

 western Minnesota, Illinois, eastern Nebraska, and west- 

 ern Kansas is already done. A bulletin based on the 

 study in western Kansas has been published, giving in- 

 formation concerning the species most suitable to the 

 locality, and telling how and where to plant them. Bul- 

 letins of the same character covering other States are 

 in preparation. This summer Iowa will be studied, 

 and later other States of the middle West, until the 

 whole region is covered. Considerable tree planting has 

 been done in some of these States, occasionally with 

 complete success; but there have been many total fail- 

 ures, and many attempts successful only in part. As 

 a rule the lack of success was due to lack of knowl- 

 edge how and what to plant. But these plantations, 

 whether successful or not, provide valuable object les- 

 sons in respect to future planting. 



An important part of the study will be to deter- 

 mine to what extent the natural forest growth along 

 streams and elsewhere is encroaching upon the drier 

 upland! in consequence of the protection from fire, 

 which settlement gives. Where this native growth can 

 be utilized, it may be advisable to encourage it. Gen- 

 erally, however, the planting of species obtained from 

 a distance will be necessary. The problem is to estab- 

 lish on the fertile prairies of the middle West the 

 trees that will grow rapidly, and thus quickly furnish 

 protection from the drying winds of summer and the 



bleak winds of winter, while at the same time yielding 

 the timber most desirable for farm construction pur- 

 poses, and possibly for lumber. It is the intention of 

 the Bureau to determine exactly which are the most 

 suitable species, and how they should be planted and 

 cultivated to secure the best success. 



.X~X~X~X~X"X- 



Send $2.50 for The Irrigation Age 

 1 year, and The Primer of Irrigation 



MYERS UNIVERSAL PUMP JACK. 



The demand for a pump jack that can be attached 

 to any windmill pump has caused F. E. Myers & Bro., 

 Ashland, Ohio, to bring out what is named the Myers' 

 Universal Pump Jack, prints of which are shown here- 

 with. 



This pump jack has special merit and fills a par- 

 ticular want, owing to its favorable construction, having 

 a half-circular base, which allows the frame of the 

 jack to be placed so the crank shaft bearing comes 

 right against the stand, and the jack can be located 



