1906 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



1-29 



Fruit is borne abundantly. The 

 seed may be separated by crushing 

 and washing the berries. After dry- 

 ing, the seed should be kept in a cool, 

 dry place until a week or ten days 

 prior to sowing. In case of very un- 

 favorable conditions the seed may be 

 sown as soon as it ripens, but general- 

 ly the better practice is to wait until 

 the following spring, so that the seed- 

 lings will have an entire season in 

 which to grow before the coming of 

 cold weather. The seed should be 

 sown in good moist soil, and covered 

 about one-half inch deep. ( )ne to two 

 weeks or longer are required for its 

 germination. Better results are ob- 

 tained by mixing the seed with moist 

 sand and keeping the mixture in a 

 warm place until germination begins. 

 The sand and seed can then be sown 

 on a well-prepared bed. The seed can 

 be given more even distribution by 

 sprinkling the bed after it is sown. The 

 bed should then be covered with one- 

 eighth inch of sifted loam. The growth 

 during the first season will be enough 

 to make the little trees of proper size 

 to transplant to the permanent situa- 

 tion the next spring. Planters who do 

 not care to raise their own trees can 

 get them cheaply at nurseries which 

 handle forest seedlings. The price for 

 one-year-old seedlings runs from $i 

 to $3 a thousand, depending upon the 

 size and the nursery dealt with. 



The Russian mulberry should be 

 close-planted in order to overcome as 

 much as possible its inherent tendency 



to branched and crooked growth. For 

 windbreaks it should be planted at 

 about two-foot intervals ; for timber 

 plantations it may be set four feet by 

 four feet. The best method, however, 

 is to have the rows eight feet apart and 

 the trees two or three feet apart in the 

 rows. This spacing permits of easy 

 cultivation, and at the same time gives 

 a large number of trees to the acre. 

 Cutivation should be given for at least 

 three years after planting, and until 

 the ground is entirely shaded. 



ENEMIES. 



The Russian mulberry is attacked 

 by a number of fungi, only a few of 

 which, however, are of economic im- 

 portance. If injury by a fungus is 

 suspected, the Bureau of Plant Indus- 

 try of the Department of Agriculture 

 should be consulted regarding a possi- 

 ble method of treatment, specimens be- 

 ing submitted for examination. In- 

 sects are sometimes destructive, par- 

 ticularly in the semi-arid plains, where 

 swarms of locusts sometimes devour 

 the foliage and even strip the bark 

 from the trees. The fall web worm 

 sometimes attacks the trees. Its leaves 

 also serve as food for the silkworm 

 (Bombcx mori). When insect injury 

 is serious, the Bureau of Entomology 

 of the Department of Agriculture 

 should be consulted regarding meth- 

 ods of control, specimens of the in- 

 sects and their work being forwarded 

 for identification. 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION IN 



CONGRESS 



Status of Bills on Forestry and Irrigation 

 and Related Subjects on March 5, 1906 



IN RESPONSE to many requests for 

 information regarding bills on 

 forestry, irrigation and related sub- 

 jects there is given herewith a list of 

 the bills introduced up to March 6 : 



APPALACHIAN AND WHITE MOUNTAINS 

 FOREST RESERVK l'.H.LS. 



S. 34 (Sen. Gallinger) Creation of 

 White Mountains Forest Reserve. 



