422 ELEMENTARY STUDIES IN BOTANY 



to one's information as to the work of a forester. Sometimes 

 the soil must be reclaimed by draining it if swampy, and by 

 putting it into better physical condition if necessary. Great 

 judgment must be used in the selection of trees for a given 

 region, and in the decision whether it is better to establish 

 .a pure or a mixed forest. The seed used must be tested 

 thoroughly for quality, and the care of seedlings is full of 

 details. In general, the germination of seeds and the care 

 of seedlings are best provided for in reliable nurseries. In 

 making over a forest of inferior quality, the problem is to 

 give seedlings a chance to grow and to replace the old and 

 inferior trees by young and vigorous ones. Of course each 

 forest has its own problems, but enough has been stated to 

 indicate how a uniform stand may be secured in making or 

 reclaiming a forest. 



129. Care of forests. The care of a forest means keep- 

 ing it in good condition. " Cleaning " a forest means the 

 removal of useless trees, useless because they are dead or 

 injured or old or unpromising, and the removal of other 

 plants and of brush that interfere with the proper condition 

 of the forest floor. " Thinning " a forest means the removal 

 of certain trees to prevent the trees from interfering with 

 one another. This interference is mostly a question of an 

 over-crowded canopy, for the crowns must expand freely 

 and interlace, but must not interfere with one another's 

 development. Sometimes pruning is helpful, but this is 

 not practicable in a large forest as a general performance. 

 The advantage of forest growth in the production of wood 

 as contrasted with isolated trees should be understood. A 

 tree " in the open " is often thought of as the best developed 

 tree, which may be true so far as its general appearance is 

 concerned ; it satisfies best our idea of how a tree should 

 look. But if a tree is expected to produce wood of good 

 quality, it must be associated with other trees so that a 

 good canopy is developed. A tree in the open produces 



