552 FOREST CULTURE IN IOWA. 



began, and as it is, bear witness to the fact, which they declare to be 

 "within the knowledge of all old residents, — that a marked change for the 

 worse has taken place within the last twenty years. The rank verdure 

 of the native prairies, has been succeeded by cultivated fields ; ponds 

 and marshes are now dry, and the exposure of the soil to the atmos- 

 phere tends to promote evaporation to a degree unknown in the early 

 days of settlement. The only remedy against this great and increasing 

 evil is tree-planting and wind-breaks. Convinced of this, they proceeded 

 to specify the kinds of timber best adapted for cultivation, and the profits 

 from each, being substantially the same given elsewhere in this report, as 

 the authorized instructions of the society, for the cultivation of timber 

 trees. 



Prof. C. E. Bessey, of the Iowa Agricultural College, in remarking 

 upon the climate of Iowa, says: 



Onr climate is a dry one, subject to great and sudden changes of temperatnre. These 

 characteristics of climate have much to do with the modifications which every botan- 

 ist notices in the plants of the Northwest. Our plants, in general, are rougher, harsher, 

 harder, and possessed of more leaf-surface than their relatives in moister and less 

 changeable climates. What these climatic and other conditions have done for the 

 native plants they will do for the introduced ones, and if any particular one differs too 

 njuch from the typical Northwestern plant, or for some reason cannot undergo the 

 modifications which the aforesaid conditions tend to bring about, then that plant will 

 die. These influences of climate are well known to the botanist and zoologist, and 

 there can be no reasonable doubt as to their potency. There is but little doubt that 

 one great and prei)on derating reason why the ordinary Eastern evergreens cannot 

 be made to survive when planted on our open prairies, is to be found in the fact that 

 they are natives of moister and milder climates. The same may be said for the api)le. 



Alluding to the fact that representative or corresponding species may 

 sometimes be introduced where their native conditions are similar, he 

 suggests that evergreens from the dry, changeable climate of the Eocky 

 Mountains would succeed better than those from the East, and that the 

 native deciduous trees would, in the long run, be found better than 

 those sent from other sections. In the discussions that followed, sever^^l 

 speakers dissented, especially in regard to the reliability of Eocky 

 Mountain evergreens and the Norway spruce. 



A committee of the State Agricultural Society, in 1866, issued circu- 

 lars for the purpose of procuring information upon tree-culture, and pub- 

 lished returns from over thirty counties, with details of methods and 

 results. Opinions difi'ered somewhat as to kinds that should have pre- 

 ference, mode of planting, &c., but the following were very generally 

 mentioned as adapted to the soil and climate : Cottonwood (got with 

 roots from sand-bars in rivers, or set from cuttings of last year's 

 growth), soft maple, white and black walnut, ash, cherry, and locust; 

 although in some counties the latter had been given up on account of 

 the borers. Of evergreens a confldence was generally expressed in the 

 red cedar, balsam fir, and Norway spruce, and so far as trial had been 

 made, the larch succeeded admirably. The soft ma^jle, cut in June, and 

 peeled, had been found a good fencing material. Cherry posts, well- 

 seasoned before setting, had been found almost as durable as white oak. 

 There was no difference of opinion expressed about the necessity of 

 thorough preparation of the soil and cultivation two or three years to 

 keep down w^ieds and grass. The majority had selected tw^o or three 

 trees of native species, after trying several. The nut-trees had been 

 found uncertain in transplanting, and should be planted w^here they 

 should stand. Quite a number planted corn with the trees, the benefits 

 being economy, shelter from the young plants in summer, and support 

 against snows in winter. Profits began to be realized from plantations 



