236 WHITE OAK CLASS 



the second cutting will be of little value. Thus it will be 

 seen that rapid natural reproduction is unlikely to occur 

 under the most favorable circumstances. Moreover, the 

 tree does not bear fruit in early life in the forest seldom 

 under fifty years. 



Having a tap-root well developed when young, and suf- 

 fering severely from its loss, it is manifest that growing 

 the trees in a nursery and transplanting them into the forest 

 would be quite likely to result in frequent failure. It is not 

 denied that the little tree will recover, to a certain extent, 

 from loss of the tap-root, which will inevitably occur when 

 removed from the nursery, but it is well known that it takes 

 a long time to do it, and it is doubtful if it ever does fully 

 overcome it. 



The remaining method of growing a White Oak forest 

 is to plant the acorns where the trees are to stand during 

 life, and this is evidently the best way. It has some draw- 

 backs. The principal one is that the young trees are liable 

 to be overcome and smothered by grass, weeds, or bushes 

 growing on the ground where planted, and it might be 

 necessary, in some cases, to remove such from around the 

 little trees for the first few years. Then there is danger 

 that mice or squirrels may dig up the seeds after they are 

 planted, for the acorns are freely eaten by them. To avoid 

 this, planting would be best done in the spring, the acorns 

 being properly cared for over winter. 



The acorns should be gathered as soon as ripe and either 

 planted at once or put in layers with moist sand and kept 

 in a cool place until planted. If not kept cold freezing 

 will do no harm the acorns are liable to sprout. It is not 

 an uncommon thing to find them sprouted in the fall where 

 they have been covered with leaves and kept moist, yet they 

 should not be allowed to become dry. In planting, a hole 

 can be made with a sharp stick, or one dug with a mattock, 

 the latter by far the better way, and two or three 

 acorns dropped in and covered about one and one half 

 inches deep. If the ground is naturally dry and loose, two 



