41 



and as ornamental trees for parks and yards are neat and pleasing in 

 appearance. 



But two kinds of pine are planted to any extent in western Kansas. 

 Both are foreign species Scotch and Austrian. So far as noted, 

 there is little difference between them in hardiness, though nursery- 

 men are inclined to think the Austrian pine the hardier. The rate of 

 growth is slightly in favor of the Scotch pine. The foliage of the 

 Austrian species is heavier and darker colored, thus making it both 

 a better windbreak and more ornamental than the Scotch pine. 



With care either species will thrive on the uplands. Scotch pine is 

 doing fairly well at Dodge City in spite of neglect, and growing well 

 at Smith Center under cultivation. These are upland situations with 

 heavy soil. At Stockton, with a sandy loam soil and water 20 to 25 

 feet below the surface, a good deal of Scotch pine has been planted, 

 which is doing excellently. The diameter growth is practically the 

 same as at Smith Center one-third of an inch a year but the height 

 increase is much better, often running up to 2 feet. There is a strik- 

 ing clump of Austrian pine near Offerle, Kans. These trees are on 

 an upland situation and have not been cultivated for many years, yet 

 they are in fine condition and make an average yearly increase in 

 diameter of one-third of an inch. Since so few measurements could 

 be made in one locality, no table is given for pine. 



There seems little reason to doubt that jack pine will grow in many 

 places where Scotch and Austrian pines have proved successful. Its 

 ability to thrive on poor soil is notable, and the growth is rapid. The 

 western yellow (or bull) pine grows naturally in New Mexico within 

 75 miles of the Kansas line, where the precipitation is no greater than 

 in western Kansas. It is a hardy pine of great adaptability, occur- 

 ring in the mountains from Arizona to Washington, through all the 

 varying degrees of temperature and humidity. Jack pine promises to 

 be the most valuable species in the forestation of the Nebraska sand- 

 hills, and there is reason to think that it will do well in the sandhills 

 of Kansas. 



BLACK LOCUST. 



Black locust would be one of the most desirable species for Plains 

 planting, were it not for the borers. It grows rapidly and withstands 

 both cold and drought well, while the wood ranks high in strength, 

 durability, and fuel value. Like mulberry, Osage orange, and ca- 

 talpa, it produces fence posts of the highest quality. Black locust 

 does well on the uplands, where the measurements show an average 

 diameter increase of one-third of an inch yearly, and still better in 

 the valleys, where the average is one-half inch per year. The tenacity 

 with which black locust holds to life is well shown by a small group 



[Cir. 161.] 



