114 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



Fig. 15. A Stump That Has Been BuiniiiK 

 Five Days. The Clav Covei-ing Has Reached 

 Half Way Round the Stump. 



Mg. 16. A Stump Around Which the Banking 

 Has Been Completed. The Stump Is Burning 

 Neai- a Bam During the Dryest Season of the 

 Year with Very Little Danger to the Building. 



summer fill this hole with dry kindling 

 and after firing cover with clay, extending 

 the cover around the stump as the fire 

 progresses until it is completely burned 

 out. 



Both methods are efficient and cheap. 

 The method does not succeed in sandy 

 soils as the falling sand prevents the 

 burning to sufficient depth to permit plow- 

 ing. It is useless to attempt the method 

 during the wet season. 



Cost 



The cost of this method is somewhat 

 below that of the others enumerated, be- 

 ing from $.50 to $75 per acre, or if charged 

 to the stumps, running from 30 cents to 

 $1.00 per stump. One advantage of the 

 method is the fact that no expensive 

 equipment is required and the work can 

 be done by the owner. 



Concliisioii 



It will be seen from the foregoing data 

 that a man without capital can not hope 

 to clear in a short time a large enough 

 tract of land upon which to support a 

 family. Under the most favorable con- 

 ditions and with the lightest clearing 

 ground the cheapest rate at which logged- 

 off land can be ])repared for the plow is 

 $50 per acre. The maximum should not 

 ordinarily exceed $150 per acre, although 

 there are exceptional tracts that will cost 

 $200 per acre to clear. This shows that 

 it is no small undertaking to make a farm 

 out of this land and that it is not feasible 

 for the poor man unless he has other em- 



ployment to provide sustenance for him- 

 self and family while the clearing is in 

 progress. It is the opinion of all who 

 have carefully studied this problem that 

 work of this kind ought to be done on a 

 large scale, at a small profit, for the public 

 good. Possibly the aid of the state will 

 be required before these wastes are made 

 into agricultural land. 



The donkey engine method of clearing 

 is a very efficient and serviceable one. 

 Where it is well equipped and properly 

 managed the expense need not be pro- 

 hibitive. Extra expense in most instances 

 is due to poor equipment, lack of experi- 

 ence, and bad management. Most of the 

 clearing that is being done at this time 

 is by the donkey engine method. 



Donkey engine outfits could be pur- 

 chased by the county or community. By 

 employing one or two experienced men 

 the other work could be done by the 

 owners of the land to be cleared. In this 

 manner the expense could be kept down 

 to a minimum. A donkey engine outfit 

 could be used to advantage in connection 

 with the char pitting method to pile the 

 burned-off tops of the stumps, logs, and 

 debris when the work is done on a large 

 scale. 



Powder plays an important part in the 

 clearing of logged-off land, as a powerful 

 agent is required to dislodge large stumps. 

 All of the devices for pulling large stumps 

 are dependent on powder to split and 

 loosen the stump before it is pulled. A 

 cheap explosive would be an incentive to- 

 ward clearing land. 



The blowing machine and other devices 

 for the destruction of stumps, while yet 

 in the experimental stage and by no means 

 perfect, may develop into cheap and 

 efficient methods of clearing land. 



Wherever the char pitting method can 

 be used successfully it should be employed 

 as it is the simplest, cheapest, and most 

 efficient of all methods of clearing land 

 where the conditions are favorable. In 

 unfavorable soil it is liable to leave too 

 many unburned roots in the ground. Sur- 

 face clearing, as the method which leaves 

 the roots under the surface is called, is 

 the worst form of clearing possible. 



