36 FORESTATION, SAND HILLS NEBRASKA AND KANSAS. 



the same fate befell extensive broadcast sowings of red cedar, jack 

 pine, western yellow pine, and Colorado blue spruce. 



The first planting of the nursery-grown yellow pine in 1904 was 

 partially successful, in spite of the very difficult sites which were 

 selected. One-year-old seedlings planted in 1905, on steep, cool, 

 moist, north slopes, have succeeded, though for several years it 

 seemed a question whether they would rear their heads above the 

 grass. Western yellow pine is slow in gaining a foothold, and small 

 trees may not make any appreciable growth for two or three years, 

 yet they will retain life. Then, if the roots have succeeded in making 

 a place for themselves in spite of the grass, vigorous growth begins. 

 Jack pine, on the other hand, always establishes itself quickly and 

 soon obtains enough root and crown space to give it an advantage 

 over the native vegetation in the struggle for moisture and light. 



By 1906 jack pine and western yellow pine had proved their worth. 

 While no other species had been so thoroughly tested, Douglas fir, 

 blue spruce, and other trees from the upper slopes of the Rockies 

 had been tried in the nursery and, because of the little success in 

 growing them from seed, they were abandoned. 



Scotch pine was first planted in 1907. The plantation was on the 

 gentle north slope which bore a heavy stand of bunch grass and was 

 not very successful; but the persistence of some of the trees, which 

 were of imported stock, clearly indicated the value of the tree for 

 sand-hill planting. In 1908 and 1909 this species was tried again 

 with stock grown at Halsey, and each year promised greater success. 



Austrian pine was first tried in 1909 with seedlings brought from 

 the east. It did not then, and has not since, shown any qualities 

 that fit it for sand-hill planting. Possibly this is because all stock 

 so far used has come from more humid regions. While the seedlings 

 show great vitality and ability to resist drought, they are, even more 

 than yellow pine, slow to gain a foothold. 



Norway pine, a tree of the sandy soils of the Lake States, was 

 tried on a small scale in 1909, and more extensively in 1910, with 

 Halsey grown stock. The 1910 plantation on north slopes was very 

 successful, and the trees are now making rapid growth. 



An effort was made, in 1909, to systematize the arrangement of 

 species in accordance with topographic features. Four sites are 

 recognized ridge, south slope, bottom, and north slope. The char- 

 acteristics of the four main sites and the reasons for planting certain 

 species on them are as follows: 



(1) The ridge type has a very sandy soil, is most exposed to wind, 

 bears the lightest vegetation, and has a low but very even moisture 

 supply. Yellow pine seems best adapted to the ridges, because 

 experiment has shown that it does not suffer from summer winds. 

 The evenness of the moisture supply favors the slow-growing seed- 



