CHAPTER XII 



THE FOREST NURSERY 



1. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 



THE forest nursery is an essential part of every well-managed 

 forest. There is need for nursery-grown stock in forests that are 

 regenerated by natural means because failed places invariably 

 occur and planting must be employed to complete the stand. 

 Direct seeding is seldom uniformly successful and the regenera- 

 tion must usually be completed by planting. Windfalls fre- 

 quently interfere with the established plan of natural regeneration 

 and planting is necessary. Forest fires by completely destroying 

 large areas of forest often make regeneration by planting the 

 only practical method. Abandoned farm lands, prairies, and 

 other denuded areas must, in most cases, be forested by planting. 

 Under certain conditions it is advantageous to manage the forest 

 under a system of clear-cutting followed by planting, as is the 

 usual practice in growing Scotch pine in Europe. 1 



Forest stock is grown in commercial nurseries which distribute 

 the trees to their customers as required, or it is grown in home 

 nurseries owned and managed by the forest owner. Permanent 

 nurseries are those where forest stock is grown continuously year 

 after year on the same site. Temporary nurseries are used for a 

 few years only, usually to grow stock for planting on a particular 

 area. They are then abandoned and new ones laid out where 

 additional planting is necessary. 2 



Commercial forest nurseries have long been established in 

 Europe, some of which have an annual output of 50 to 100 million 

 trees. These nurseries not only supply the local trade but also 

 have a large export business. It is only within comparatively 

 recent years that commercial forest nurseries have been estab- 

 lished in the United States. The forest stock necessary to supply 



1 Mayr, Heinrich: Waldbau auf naturgesetzlicher Grundlage. S. 361. 

 Berlin, 1909. 



2 Schlich, Wm.: Manual of forestry. 4th ed., vol. II, p. 199. London, 1910. 



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