8o 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



February, 



FORESTRY IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



By Warren H. Manning. 



THE general impression that the 

 first settlers in Massachusetts 

 found an impenetrable tangle of forest 

 growth covering practically all the 

 surface is a false one. There were ex- 

 tensive open areas, beaver meadows, 

 river meadows, extensive Indian-corn 

 fields, and open woodlands wdiich were 

 burned over yearly by the Indians to 

 encourage the growth of grass for deer 

 and to make hunting easier. These 

 fires, under favorable conditions, de- 

 stroyed the undergrowth, scarred many 

 trees, and even destroyed the trees 

 themselves. Certain sections burned 

 bare of trees bj^ such fires grew up 

 again to dense growth after the settle- 

 ment of the towns. 



In the early days common land was 

 held by the New England towns for 

 cattle to graze upon and from which 

 citizens were allowed to cut a certain 

 amount of timber under restrictions. In 

 some cases the cutting of even the rushes 

 in the marshes, which were used for 

 seating chairs and other purposes, was 

 limited. These restrictions did not, 

 however, apply to private holdings, 

 which were stripped of timber at a very 

 early period to clear the land for agri- 

 cultural purposes; also to procure fuel 

 for various industries, home use, and 

 for export. 



So rapidly were these woods cut that 

 a scarcity of timber in many parts of the 

 state is recorded between 1760 and 1800. 

 In certain parts of the Connecticut Val- 

 ley timber was too scarce to be used for 

 fencing, and restriction was even placed 

 on the collection of torch- wood. In the 

 east the scarcity of timber led to the 

 use of peat and coal for fuel. 



About the year 1792 the Massachu- 

 setts Society for Promoting Agriculture, 

 which included in its membership many 

 of the most eminent men of the state, 

 offered prizes for the most expeditious 

 way of clearing land in areas of not less 

 than twenty acres without plowing. 

 They sent out about the same time a 



series of questions, among which was 

 one asking if the growth of timber kept 

 pace with the cutting. The answers to 

 this question indicated that the cutting 

 so much exceeded the natural growth 

 that there was a serious scarcit}^ of fire- 

 Avood, to which I have alread}' referred. 

 This led to a complete reversal of their 

 policy, and, instead of offering prizes 

 for the destruction of the forests, they 

 offered prizes for forest plantations. 



These prizes were continued for many 

 years in one form or another, and re- 

 sulted in forest plantations being started 

 in various parts of the state. The trees 

 were planted in some cases from ten to 

 twent}" feet apart. As a result of this 

 wade spacing, the trees received so 

 much light that the lower branches 

 were strongly developed and a tendency 

 established to form several leaders. 

 Very few such plantations ever made 

 good lumber, but where the trees wxre 

 placed five to seven feet apart on suit- 

 able land, the resulting growth has 

 been of a very satisfactory character. 



In plantations made early in the cen- 

 tury hard-wood trees, such as oaks and 

 hickories, w^ere used. During the sec- 

 ond quarter White Pine was principally 

 used. Then came a period during 

 which plantations were made up chiefly 

 of such foreign trees as the larches, 

 Scotch Pine, and Norwa}' Spruce. It 

 w^as soon found, however, that they had 

 no advantage over the native trees. 

 During all this period comparatively 

 little attention was given to the devel- 

 opment of the existing growth, it being 

 assumed then, as it is now by many, 

 that the only forestal method worthy of 

 consideration was the making of new 

 plantations. 



For most farmers, plantations made 

 from average nurserj^-grown trees are 

 too expensive and too uncertain. There 

 is a section of nearly every farm that is 

 too poor to give any return from annual 

 crops that might be planted in for- 

 est trees with profit. Native seedling 



