236 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



June, 



GRAZING AND WATER STORAGE IN THE BLACK MESA 



FOREST RESERVE. 



By a. F. Potter, 



Bureau of Forestry. 



THE live-stock industry is one of 

 great importance to all of the 

 states of the Rocky Mountain region, 

 many sections being almost entirely de- 

 pendent upon it for their support. In 

 the early settlement of this part of the 

 frontier the mining prospectors and 

 stockmen were the pioneers. A very 

 large proportion of this western country 

 will always be more valuable for stock- 

 raising than for any other purpose, the 

 land which can be cultivated comprising 

 a very small part of the entire area. 



The crop of forage which grows upon 

 this open range is one of the country's 

 most valuable resources and can be har- 

 vested only by grazing. Many sections 

 are divided naturally into summer and 

 winter ranges, the utilization of one de- 

 pending greatly upon the other. A 

 summer range, which is covered with 

 snow during the winter and furnishes 

 an excellent crop of forage during the 

 summer, would be of little use without 

 an adjoining winter range. It some- 

 times happens that the winter range is 

 one upon which permanent water is very 

 scarce, and is grazed over during the 

 winter only while there is snow upon 

 the ground or the winter storms have 

 made tank or lake water. When this 

 dries up in the spring the stock move 

 back to the permanent watering places 

 and to the mountains. In many places 

 without the mountain summer range 

 this kind of winter range would be of 

 little value. 



As forest reserv^es are established and 

 these mountain ranges put under forest- 

 reserve management, the rules and reg- 

 ulations which are to be enforced are of 

 great importance to the stockmen. The 

 present rules for grazing in forest re- 

 serves prohibit the grazing of sheep in 

 all forest reserves except those of Ore- 

 gon and Washington, or in the reserves 

 where their presence would not ad- 



versely affect insuring a permanent sup- 

 ply of timber and favorable conditions 

 to a continuous water flow. The Black 

 Mesa Forest Reserve, in Arizona, is one 

 in which a limited number of sheep have 

 been allowed to graze since its establish- 

 ment. The grazing of cattle and horses 

 has been allowed in all of the forest re- 

 serves. 



The reason for restricting sheep is 

 that there is greater evidence of damage 

 having been done by them than by cattle 

 and horses. In moving sheep from 

 place to place, especially in driving along 

 trails from one range to another, if the 

 flocks are bunched up close, and thus 

 driven instead of being allowed to scatter 

 out and graze along naturally, they do 

 more damage in tramping out young 

 seedlings and grass roots than is done 

 by stock which are allowed to run loose ; 

 also, on lambing grounds, where flocks 

 are bedded or corralled for several weeks 

 in the same place, there is often evidence 

 of considerable damage to young trees 

 by nibbling ; consequently the greatest 

 damage from tramping is generally seen 

 along the driveways, and the damage 

 from nibbling in places where flocks 

 have been held too long. 



The manner of handling sheep is of 

 importance in judging the number 

 which can safely be allowed to graze 

 upon a certain area, as 5,000 head im- 

 properly herded would do more damage 

 than double the number which were 

 allowed to scatter out and graze prop- 

 erly. 



In some limited areas which have been 

 overstocked with cattle serious damage 

 has been done by stock running loose, 

 both in the destruction of young trees 

 and tramping out the grass. 



The remedy for these evils is to limit 

 the sheep, cattle, or horses which shall 

 be grazed upon a certain area to a num- 

 ber for which that particular section 



