25 



The trees have done very poorly. They are short, often not over 5 

 feet high, and very branchy, and will never be of much value. It is 

 true that no tree could have made its best growth on this site, but if 

 the ground had been planted to hardy catalpa the results would have 

 been much better, as is evidenced by the fact that where catalpa and 

 Osage orange are planted side by side on this tract the former is from 

 6 to 10 feet the taller, and is a much superior tree in every way. 



With the introduction of barb-wire fences, Osage orange as a fence 

 material has gone out of favor, and its use for this purpose in Nebraska 

 is probably a thing of the past. As a post timber, however, it is unex- 

 celled, and it is chiefly for this that it is recommended for commercial 

 planting. Under favorable conditions it will reach post size in from 

 twelve to fifteen years. Because of the well-known durability of 

 Osage orange in contact with the ground and its great strength, it 

 always commands good prices. The fuel value of the tree is very high, 

 and the cordwood from a plantation gives it an added value. For 

 farm repairs, too, such as whiffletrees, plow beams, etc., it is exceed- 

 ingly valuable. 



The windbreak value of Osage orange must not be overlookt. Its 

 low-branching habit and ability to grow in close stands make it one of 

 the most valuable of the broadleaf trees for this purpose. 



Plantation No. 1. This plantation is situated on a prairie upland 

 farm. The site is low and slopes gently to a ravine along the west 

 side. The soil is a rich black loam, fresh, well drained, and deep. The 

 subsoil is a clay, underlaid with limestone at a depth of from 10 to 12 

 feet. 



The ground was used at first as a seed bed for growing Osage orange 

 plants for the market when this species was being planted so exten- 

 sively as a hedge fence. When hedge fences went out of favor the 

 demand for plants ceased and the seed bed was abandoned. The last 

 crop of plants was sold in the spring of 1871, and the present stand 

 has sprung up from the culls that were left at that time. The young 

 plants were twice turned over in an effort to destroy them, but each 

 time they came up from the roots again. The plan was then tried of 

 grubbing them out, but even this heroic treatment was a failure. It 

 was then decided to allow the plantation to stand. It has never had 

 care of any sort. On the contrary, it has been very severely pas- 

 tured by all kinds of live stock. Despite these adverse conditions it 

 is a valuable plantation, as its products will show. 



The owner has sold 100 telegraph poles per acre from the plantation 

 in the past two years. The poles ran from 16 to 20 feet in height, 

 and would average 18 feet. It is estimated that 700 first-class and 500 

 second-class posts per acre have been cut from these groves in the 

 past. This estimate is believed to be conservative, since the owner 



[Cir. 45] 



