124 INTRODUCTION TO BOTANY 



7. Cattle should not be pastured in woods in which it is im- 

 portant to protect the growth of young seedling dicotyledon- 

 ous trees, but they do not greatly injure mature trees. Sheep 

 pasturing and forestry cannot thrive together, since by brows- 

 ing the sheep destroy many young seedling trees. On grassy 

 hillsides and mountain sides sheep, by close grazing and by 

 cutting the turf to pieces with their sharp hoofs, soon kill the 

 grassy cover and pave the way for extensive erosion. Great 

 damage has been done in this way in the Rocky Mountain 

 and Pacific Slope regions of our own country. In southern 

 Europe the pasturing of sheep and goats has led to the con- 

 version of great areas of comparatively fertile mountain sides 

 into bare ridges and bowlder-lined torrent beds. 



PROBLEMS 



1. Irrespective of the hardness, what means are there of distinguish- 

 ing between coniferous woods and nonconif erous woods ? 



2. Explain how you can recognize red cedar, cypress, white pine, oak, 

 sycamore, hickory, and black-walnut wood. List the kinds of wood that 

 you know well. 



3. What kind of wood is commonly used in your region for the 

 frames of houses ? for shingles ? for packing cases ? for barrels ? for 

 fence posts ? for railroad ties ? for fuel ? Explain why each is chosen. 

 What is the most extensive wood-using industry of your locality? 



4. What kind of wood is used for lead pencils? for matches? for 

 toothpicks ? for rulers ? for shoe pegs ? Why ? 



5. Have you become acquainted with any well-grown tracts of self- 

 sown forest? Of what kinds of trees do they mainly consist? How 

 much does the nature of the soil have to do with the constitution of 

 forests that you have seen ? Does cultivation affect forest trees ? 



6. Are coppice woodlands composed of conifers or of hard woods ? 

 Why? 



7. What rules of forest management are most frequently violated in 

 timber lands that you have seen ? Why ? 



8. What trees are most frequently planted for shade in your vicinity ? 

 Give the good and the bad points of each. 



9. Get copies of your state forest laws ; study and report on them. 



