36 HAND-BOOK OF TREE-PLANTING. 



Instances of a much more rapid growth, on 

 the rich soils of the West, might be adduced, 

 though not reaching over so long a period of 

 time. But we have chosen to take illustrations 

 such as the above, as showing not only a tree- 

 growth satisfactory in itself, but the additional 

 fact that land, poor and otherwise unremuner- 

 ative, may thus be put to profitable use. Fur- 

 ther, it ought to be taken into consideration 

 that a plantation of trees is not only profitable 

 in itself, but that, if rightly disposed, it makes 

 adjacent lands more valuable. In regard to 

 many if not most farms in our country, it may 

 be said with confidence that if from a tenth 

 to a sixth part of their area, on the sides most 

 exposed to winds, were devoted to a growth 

 of wood, the protection thus afforded to the 

 growing crops would increase their yield by a 

 large amount. 



It is to be remembered also, when consider- 

 ing the economic aspects of forestry, that trees 

 are not an exhausting crop, but on the contra- 

 ry, by the accumulation and decay of their 

 leaves, falling from year to year, they serve 

 to enrich the ground where they grow. On 



