10 



demanding, but has a tendency when not crowded to produce long 

 branches near the ground, which fits it for hedges and windbreaks. 

 Honey locust will also stand cutting back when young, a quality 

 which adds to its value as a hedge tree. 



One or two year old seedlings should be used for planting. Usu- 

 ally the most satisfactory spacing is 4 by G feet, but in localities 

 where rainfall is light and extensive cultivation is necessary 4 by 8 

 feet is more desirable, since it renders cultivation easy. If the 

 planter can not give the trees continued cultivation, the seedlings 

 should be planted close together, since it is essential that the trees 

 shall form a complete cover as soon as posible. 



COTTON WOOD (Populus deltoides). 



Cottonwood is a rapid-growing tree and one of the most impor- 

 tant species for commercial planting in the Middle West. The 

 timber of cottonwood, though of relatively poor quality, has been 

 used extensively throughout the West, since it matures in a short time 

 in a region usually devoid of other timber. It is used for paper 

 pulp, box boards, backing for veneer, the unexposed parts of fur- 

 niture, wagon boxes, interior woodwork, and fuel. The fuel value 

 of cottonwood is high, since the tree furnishes a greater amount of 

 wood in a given time than any other species which can be grown 

 in the region. In proportion to volume, however, the relative heat 

 production is low. 



Cottonwood is useful for protecting agricultural lands subject to 

 an annual overflow T . A narrow belt of trees on the river side of such 

 tracts protects the field from debris and checks the erosive action of 

 the water. It is also w r ell adapted for windbreaks, since by rapid 

 growth it affords protection within a few years after planting. 



Plantations of cottonwood require a situation in which the water 

 table is within 15 or 20 feet of the surface, since the most important 

 factor in its growth and development is the available moisture in the 

 soil rather than the fertility. The most favorable site for cotton- 

 wood, therefore, is alluvial soil along the w r ater courses. Because 

 of their extensive root systems, individual trees or single rows may 

 thrive on dry upland situations. Planted in rows along highways 

 and fields cotton w^ood is valuable as a windbreak, and will give good 

 returns in fuel and repair lumber. 



Plantations of cottonwood may be established by the use of seed- 

 lings or cuttings. Cuttings should be from 18 to 24 inches long, and 

 should be made from 1 or 2 year old branches of vigorous staminate 

 trees, since such trees produce no annoying " cotton." The cuttings 

 should be planted early in the spring, as soon as the frost is out of 

 the ground. Two-thirds of the length of the cutting should be below 



[Cir. 99] 



