130 



THE FORESTER. 



Jun 



comes almost insignificant. Mr. Henry 

 Gannett, Geographer of the United States 

 Geological Survey, in his lath Annual 

 Report, Part 5, estimates the amount of 

 lumber sawed in this country annually at 

 23,^00,000,000 feet, board measure. In 

 comparison with this the amount cut for 

 pulp making is but 3.6 per cent. But a 

 great deal of wood is cut for other manu- 



facturing purposes, so that the total is e 

 timated at 45,000,000,000 feet, whi< 

 would bring the percentage for wood pu 

 down to 1.9. If 180,000,000,000 fe 

 used for fuel is added to this, we have 

 total consumption of 225,ooo,ooo,o< 

 board feet, of which the amount used f 

 pulp wood is but .4 of one per cent. 



C. W. LYMAN. 



TREE PLANTING IN OKLAHOMA. 



PRESENT METHODS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENTS. 



In Oklahoma the work of tree planting 

 is being prosecuted as a rule with good 

 judgment both as to the selection of varie- 

 ties, and as to the methods of planting, 

 but in the selection of locations for the 

 plantations and in the methods of encour- 

 aging the growth of the best trees in belts 



"> o O 



of natural timber many mistakes are being 

 made. It is the object of this paper to 

 point out these mistakes, and to indicate 

 certain methods of improvement. 



The soils of Oklahoma vary greatly in 

 their adaptability to tree growth, and at 

 present planting is being carried on both 

 on the desirable soils and on those which 

 are undesirable. The uplands which pre- 

 dominate in area, though very fertile and 

 well adapted to agricultural crops, are 

 underlayed by a tenacious, resistent, clay 

 subsoil, and are not usually good for grow- 

 ing trees. But in the case of valleys and 

 ravines of small streams, which vary in 

 width from a few rods to a mile or even 

 more, and which cut into the upland in 

 almost every locality, and in all parts of 

 Oklahoma, the case is different. 



The streams are almost always fringed 

 with belts of natural timber of a dozen or 

 more species, while along the ravines are 

 found scattering trees of such hardy spe- 

 cies as the White Elm, Green Ash, Hack- 

 berry and the Cottonwood. These trees 

 usually occupy spots of ground which are 

 fertile but inaccessible to the plow by 

 reason of moisture or roughness. Their 

 natural growth proves the adaptability of 

 the valleys and ravines to arboriculture, 



and suggests the idea of planting exte 

 sively in such places. Experience h 

 corroborated this, the soil and moistu 

 conditions are almost always more favc 

 able than on the upland, and everywhe 

 in the West trees have grown faster ai 

 attained larger size on the lowland. 

 Al though Oklahoma has been settl 



O 



but a few years it is already in the mic 

 of active tree-planting operations, whi 

 extend to forest as well as to fruit-tre< 

 Though the plantations are small for t 

 most part, something is being done > 

 almost every farm, and the aggregate 

 very large. In addition to this mu 

 young timber has appeared along t 

 streams and ravines, especially whe 

 stock has been excluded, and has ma 

 rapid growth. But the better kinds 

 trees have to struggle with worthl< 

 shrubs and vines that obtain a hold 

 such places, and growth is slower th 

 it would be were the conditions improve 



By proper management according 

 the following rules, many thousand aci 

 of such land, at present almost worthle 

 might be made to produce valuable timl 

 at little expense. 



1 . Stock should be excluded and t 

 land protected from fire. The you 

 timber which has already appeared or w 

 appear should be assisted by cutting c 

 the worthless shrubs and vines so far 

 they retard the trees, and by thinning t 

 seedlings where they come up too thick 



2. Where nature does not fill up t 

 spaces between the trees already growi 



