FORESTRY ON THE COUNTRY ESTATE 



105 





WHITE PINE SEEDLINGS SET OUT FIVE YEARS AGO. 



western Utah and Nevada where 

 occasional "sports" show the desired 

 light-blue coloration and from these 

 the "Koster" stock was originated. 



In poor, dry, sandy soils, such as are 

 encountered here and there in New 

 England and the Lake States, I should 

 not advise either white pine or spruce. 

 Time was when such ground was planted 

 in imported Scotch (or Sylvester) pine. 

 We have since learned better. Time has 

 shown that in our climate and soil the 

 red pine will give finer and healthier 

 trees, and will be just swinging into its 

 prime when the Sylvester begins to give 

 up the struggle against the vicissi- 

 tudes of our climate. The red pine, also 

 called "Norway" pine, not after King 

 Kaakon's country but named after 

 that noble locality, the hamlet of 

 Norway in Main, has the same climatic 

 range as the white pine. It grows in 

 company with it, taking whatever soil 

 is too poor for the white. It will not 

 thrive where long, hot summers and 

 droughts are to be encountered, in 

 general not much south of Northern 

 Pennsylvania. South of that the much- 

 maligned pitch pine can take it splace. 

 This species is renowned for its thick 

 leafy verdure, its fire-resisting capacities 

 and its everlasting wood. As it fills 

 a special niche in the woodworking 

 industries you will always find a market 

 for a small planted forest of it and the 



bright green bushy trees are a joy for- 

 ever to look at. 



Having decided upon your species, 

 the next problem will be where to get 

 the trees and how to plant them. 

 Paradoxical as it may seem the State 

 nursery four-year "transplant" is the 

 cheapest of all planting stock Cheaper 

 than seeding, seedlings, or transplanted 

 forest stock. The four year state trans- 

 plant costs $4.80 a thousand in white 

 pine and $5.12 in Norway spruce. Two 

 year old seedlings cost around two 

 dollars a thousand but their percent of 

 failure ranges 50 to 60% making the 

 ultimate cost the same, to say nothing 

 of the cost of replanting. As for seeding, 

 either broadcast or in seed spots, by 

 the time you have bought your seeds at 

 around $1.50 a pound, prepared your 

 ground, sown the seed and then thinned 

 out the seedlings and rescued them from 

 weeds your cost will run at least $10. 

 an acre against $8. an acre for four year 

 state transplants that are already four 

 years ahead. In the state nurseries the 

 seedlings are grown, 7,000 of them to a 

 bed 4 ft. x 12 ft. and in their second 

 year are transplanted six inches apart by 

 twelve in the rows in the nursery fields. 

 At the end of two more years they have 

 grown to bushy little trees a foot high 

 with compact, vigorous root growth. 

 Planted in the open fields or on old 

 burns or brush land their percent of 



