METHODS OF PROPAGATION. 



The boxelder is hardy and easily propagated. In natural stands 

 reproduction is fairly good in moist situations, and when a plantation 

 is once established it can easily be so managed that it will perpetuate 

 itself through natural seeding. 



Plantations should be started with nursery stock. Seed is pro- 

 duced in large quantities nearly every year and ripens in early au- 

 tumn. It may be gathered as soon as ripe and sown immediately in 

 the nursery, or stratified in sand during the winter for spring sowing. 

 Collecting in mild climates may even be delayed until winter, since 

 the seeds hang on the trees until spring. Although produced in 

 abundance and apparently fertile, the seeds have an average germina- 

 tion of only 40 to 60 per cent. 



The seeds should be sown in the spring on carefully prepared 

 ground in drills sufficiently far apart to allow cultivation. They 

 should be dropped so thickly that they touch one another and should 

 not be covered more than one-half inch. 



One pound of boxelder seed contains about 15,000 seeds and will 

 be sufficient to sow 400 linear feet of drills. This amount of seed 

 should produce about 6,000 plants. 



Under favorable conditions and with proper care the seedlings will 

 grow to a height of 10 to 14 inches during the first season. 



PLANTING. 



The seedlings should be transferred to the permanent site in the 

 spring when 1 year old. Since the boxelder is very tolerant of shade 

 and has a tendency to form a spreading head the trees should be 

 spaced 5 feet apart each way or 4 by 6 feet. 



It is rarely desirable to plant the boxelder in pure stands, except 

 for wind-breaks, shade, or ornamental purposes. In forest planta- 

 tions the tree may be planted to good advantage in mixture with 

 white elm, hone}^ locust, black locust, green ash, black walnut, and 

 European larch. 



CULTIVATION AND CARE. 



Plantations of the boxelder should be carefully protected from fire 

 and stock, and should be cultivated for the first two or three years 

 until the trees begin to shade the ground. 



If damage by insects becomes noticeable, specimens should be sent 

 to the Bureau of Entomology of the Department of Agriculture for 

 identification and advice as to treatment. 



[Cir. 86] 



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