24 



Canadian Forcslr]) Journal, January, 1920 



SYSTEMATIC TREE PLANTING IN COUNTRY 



PLANNING 



B\) W. W. An(]rc})'s, LL.D., Retina. 



Town planning is the policy of taking a long 

 look ahead in municipal affairs. 



It is the intelligent adoption of a plan for 

 a town, or section of country which may take 

 20 years or more to complete, but every year 

 may be made an approach to its realization. 



The object of town and country planning 

 are: 



1. Efficiency and economy. 



2. Health, and conservation of life. 



3. Beauty and culture, or in a word the en- 

 richment of life. 



It seeks to make community life richer, Iiap- 

 pier, fuller, by wide-awake forethought and 

 appreciation of human interests. 



The special feature I wish to bring out is this, 

 the systematic protection of our prairie roads 

 and farms by tree planting. The form recom- 

 mend is planting of continuous rows of carrag- 

 anas and poplar and such sure growing trees, 

 flanking the roads 50 or 100 feet back from the 

 road line of each side and then as soon as pos- 

 sible a set of fine trees on the road line. When 

 this plan comes to be fully carried out in any 

 section it would mean that every road would be 

 protected by four rows of trees and every sec- 

 tion would be surrounded by four lines of trees. 

 Probably when the immense benefits of this 

 scheme were seen many farmers would plane a 

 double row of trees at least 50 feet apart along 

 the half-section lines. 



TREE-PLANTING BENEFITS. 

 (a) To General Traffic. 



1, Drifts from either side would never reach 

 the roads after the third year. 



2. With only the snow on the level to con- 

 tend with in 90 per cent of our winter seasons 

 our automobiles would be able to run as well 

 in th« country as in our cities. 



This would release for the service of our 

 people one million horse power in automobiles 

 (rated at 20 horse power each) now idle almost 

 five months of the year. This idle power will 

 be doubled in ten years. 



If gradually the guage of our sleds were 

 changed, automobile traffic would be greatly 

 helped. 



3. The bli/./.ard and dust storm would be 

 greatly modifier!. Travel for children would be 

 safe and for all safer and more pleasant. How 

 greatly the winter school would benefit! 



4. The prairie country would be like a gar- 

 den. The beauty, homelikeness and general at- 

 tractiveness of the country would be greatly 



enhanced. 



5. This plan avoids the serious objections 

 which arise from trees wrongly placed, in caus- 

 ing drifts too near the house and barn and 

 along the roads and upon the ploughed lands. 



6. In some cases, roads running diagonally 

 of our survey, with a railway station as a centre 

 would be of great advantage. 



7. Roads opened up along the railways need 

 protection on one side only. 



(b) Benefits to the Farm. 



1. Such protection would lessen the force of 

 the wind and the blowing out of grain and the 

 discomfort of dust storms would be greatly miti- 

 gated if not wholly prevented. 



2. The scorching effect of hot winds on the 

 grain would be lessened and the number :)f tons 

 of water per day taken from a bare summer 

 fallow of ordinary sie, by a dry wind under a 

 hot sun would be greatly reduced. 



3. The warmth of the day would blanket the 

 fields longer after sunset and therefore the 

 growth of grain would be accelerated. 



4. The late and early frosts would be dis- 

 tinctly less harmful. 



5. The 100-foot strip between the two rows 

 of trees on account of its large share of moisture 

 and its protection, the most valuable upon the 

 farm for the growth of small fruits, silo crops, 

 such as corn, alfalfa and roots, pasturage for 

 young cattle and pig runs and garden stuff, <as 

 conditions dictated. 



If the whole strip were given to trees it 

 would probably pay handsomely if the varieties 

 were well selected, for wood must always be 

 dear in this prairie land. 



6. The beauty, comfort, and attractiveness 

 of the farm home would be enhanced. Witness 



