Canadian Forestry Journal, April, ipi6. 



477 



reforestation remains the greatest 

 -weapon in the hands of the Forest 

 Service. The catchment areas have 

 been re-clothed extensively by plant- 

 ing and seeding, both with broad 

 leaves and conifers. It has been 

 found that except in the few situa- 

 tions where conditions are very fa- 

 vorable for forest growth, planting is 

 much more satisfactory and even more 

 economical when results are consider- 

 ed. Nurseries have been started near 

 all the large projects, and coniferous 

 species are used for an overwhelming 

 proportion of the work, the most com- 

 mon of which are the pines, P. S3dves- 

 tris, P. cembra, and P. uncinata. Other 

 conifers planted extensively are larch 

 (Larix europaea) in the Alps and Py- 

 renees and fir (Abies pectinata) in the 

 Cevennes and Pyrenees. Broad leaf 

 trees, chiefly various species of alder 

 and willow, are planted in the beds 

 of streams and on steep banks where 

 it is important that a soil cover be rap- 

 idly established. Beech (Fagus syl- 

 vatica), chestnut (castanea vulgaris) 

 are commonly used in the Cevennes 

 and in the Pyrenees. 



At the beginning of 1909, 629,488 

 acres had been reforested at a cost for 

 estabHshing the forest cover of $8,- 

 000,000, or $12.70 per acre. Of the 

 total, 363,151 acres have been refor- 

 ested by the State, 134,005 by the com- 

 munes, and 132,332 by private owners. 

 The State has given valuable assis- 

 tance to both the communes and the 

 private owners, having paid 55 per 

 cent, of the cost of the work accom- 

 plished b}" the communes and 37 p'^r 

 cent, of the cost of the reforestation 

 carried on by private owners. The 

 departments have also made small 

 money grants for reforesting in the 

 mountains amounting to 23.5 per cent, 

 in the case of work done by communes 

 and 5 per cent, in the case of plnata- 

 tion by private individuals. The to- 

 tal cost of the reforestation work to 

 the State up to 1909 has been $5.568.,- 

 683 on State projects; $812,807 sub- 

 ventions to communal projects; $348,- 

 744, subventions to private works ; to- 

 tal, $6,730,234. 



The remainder of the expense of es- 

 tablishing cover on the catchment 

 areas of mountain torrents has been 

 shared as follows: Private owners, 

 $546,488; departments, $400,723 ; com- 

 munes, $320,921. 



Costs of Land Purchase. 



The programme of work is by no 

 means completed. The land already 

 purchased by the State, 325,265 acres, 

 represents only about 55 per cent, of 

 the area for the acquisition of which 

 plans have been completed. There 

 still remain 266,047 acres, the purchase 

 of which will be necessary. The aver- 

 age cost of the land purchased in 

 France for stream control is $18.50 

 per acre. The expenditure in the 

 purchase had reached in 1909 $6,022,- 

 644, and it was estimated that a fur- 

 ther $3,500,000 would be required. 



Over 92 per cent, of the land al- 

 ready purchased will be reforested. 

 The remainder consists of rock out- 

 crops and areas above timber line. 



Reforestation alone is not always 

 sufficient; where the catchment area 

 of the stream is very small, where the 

 immediate control of waterflow is an 

 important consideration, where the 

 slopes are very steep and the banks 

 lack stability or where a very rapid 

 fall of water must be broken, recourse 

 must be had to the erection of barriers. 

 The French Engineers in the Depart- 

 ment of Waters and Forests are cred- 

 ited with leading the world in the con- 

 struction of works for the artificial 

 control of mountain streams. Over 

 half a century of experience has de- 

 veloped several well-defined methods 

 of correcting the flood tendencies of 

 runaway streams. 



The small tributaries, high in the 

 mountains, which are dry daring a 

 portion of the year, but down which in 

 the season of melting snow or rain the 

 water sluices without obstruction, are 

 first atacked. The most common 

 method here is to cover the bed with 

 a woven network of branches, held 

 down by stakes or by poles criss-cross- 

 ing the bed and driven into the banks. 

 The bed of brush catches material 



