SPECIAL FARM TOPICS 275 



it does not receive the care necessary for its protection and security. 

 (Kept. Irr. & Drain. 1906.) 



Wherever land reclamation has been carried out on an ex- 

 tensive scale and in a thorough manner, some or all of the following 

 benefits have been obtained : The greater certainty of >a full crop ; 

 increase in acreage and also in the yield per acre; a permanent in;- 

 crease in the market value of the land ; benefits to the public roads ; 

 benefits to railroads because of increased tonnage of freight; benefits 

 to nearby towns because of increased business; benefits to public 

 health and general welfare. (Wyo. Ex. Sta. B. 199.) 



Dunes. In some sections of the country large areas of tillable 

 lands are threatened with ruin from shifting sands in what are 

 called simply dunes or sand-dunes. This sand is loose and the high 

 winds which prevail at certain seasons of the year take up this loose 

 sand and scatter it over the surrounding country, sometimes to such 

 a depth as to wholly destroy the fertility of the soil. These dunes 

 are not capable of cultivation, that is the returns would be so small 

 as to render any attempt to cultivate unprofitable. The only thing 

 left is to protect the adjacent lands from the shifting of the dunes. 

 In some sections this has been a serious problem for many years and 

 various experiments have been tried, none having proved wholly 

 successful. The system that has most nearly approached success in- 

 volves heavily planting the dunes with some hardy grass that will 

 thrive on the sand, and at the same time produce thick, matted roots 

 that will hold the sand from the winds. Reforesting has also been 

 resorted to, but all trees will not grow under the conditions prevail- 

 ing in these sand areas. In reclaiming the dunes around Cape Cod, 

 Massachusetts, the following trees have been found the most success- 

 ful: pines, pitch pine (Pinus rigida) , Austrian pine (P. laricio), 

 and Scotch pine (P. sylvestris) are proved successes. The pitch 

 pine is used most extensively, as it grows naturally in the adjacent 

 forests, and young trees and cones can be obtained in almost un- 

 limited quantities. The black locust (Robinia pseudacacia) and 

 the European or black alder (Alnus glutinosa) , though not occupy- 

 ing extensive areas, have proved thoroughly adapted to the condi- 

 tions, and it is the plan to increase the plantings of these two species. 

 The Scotch broom (Cytisus scoparius) is well adapted to the con- 

 ditions with the one exception of not being perfectly hardy, as many 

 small areas have been killed by one or two excessively cold winters, 

 though much of the original planting is still alive and vigorous. 

 The plant does not spread readily from seed, as the severe conditions 

 prohibit its existence in the early seedling stage, and furthermore, 

 the seed being large and conspicuous is readily eaten by birds and! 

 small animals. The growth is very dense, and even scattered 

 bunches would prevent the sand from shifting, but its semihardiness 

 makes it decidedly inferior to the bayberry, which is locally abun- 

 dant, perfectly hardy, and easily transplanted. The bayberry has 

 formed the bulk of the pioneer plantings of woody growth, and 

 used in connection with the beach grass appears to be the only 

 necessary forerunner of the pines. (Bu. Plant Ind. B. 65.) 



