TREE-PL AN^TING ON PRAIRIES. 51 



which do well and afford good shade when mixed with 

 Green Ash or Box-elder. (4) Mixed plantings are most 

 interesting and ornamental. (5) They attract more birds 

 by their better protection and the greater variety of food 

 offered. (6) While the chance of injury to some of the 

 species by climatic changes, diseases, and insects is in- 

 , creased, the possibility of total loss from any or all of these 

 causes is reduced to the minimum. 



The Most Important Constituent of a Prairie Grove 

 of mixed trees should be some well-known durable kinds, 

 as the Elm, Ash, Hackberry, Basswood, Soft Maple, Hard 

 Maple, or Box-elder of deciduous kinds and such standard 

 evergreens as White Spruce, Norway Spruce, Red Cedar, 

 Bull Pine, and Scotch Pine, of which there should be a 

 sufficient number to completely shade the ground when 

 the others are gone. On the outside, especially on the 

 north and west, it is often a good plan to put at least a 

 few rows of White Willow, or possibly Cottonwood, to fur- 

 nish a quick protection. The rest of the grove should con- 

 sist of hardy sorts, and may include some of the evergreens 

 and such fruit-bearing trees or shrubs as the Wild Plum, 

 Wild Black Cherry, Russian Mulberry, and June-berry. 

 These latter furnish food for the birds and may often be a 

 help in supplying the home table. The plan of planting 

 with a view of providing some food for birds is not mere 

 sentiment, for they protect our gardens from many insects, 

 and if we furnish an abundance of Russian Mulberry they 

 will not trespass much on our strawberries or raspberries. 

 It is the author's opinion that in all our prairie-planting we 

 should pay more attention to using our native fruits and 

 Russian Mulberry as plants of secondary importance. 



List of Trees for Planting. The adaptability of trees to 

 any locality is not alone dependent on climate, but is 

 affected very largely by the quality of the soil, so that any 

 list of trees that might be given for a large area would 



