April 1902.] The Hardy Catalpa. 139 



durability in contact with the soil. Well authenticated and reliable 

 observations give life-record of 100 years for timber from large, mature 

 specimens, Seasoned timber from trees ten inches or more in di- 

 ameter will last fifteen to thirty years in continuous contact with the 

 soil. 



4. Catalpa Culture. Seed sown about twenty-five to the foot, in 

 shallow drills one inch deep. Spring sowing best in Northern states. 

 Seedlings "heeled in" over winter, and set permanently following 

 spring. Planting should not be closer than 5x8 feet. Thin to 10x8 

 from the eighth to twelfth year. Thinning continued until trees 

 stand 20x16 feet, or 16x16 if original planting was 8x8. Crops of 

 corn, etc., can be grown between eight-foot rows first year after set- 

 ting. If cut to ground second year from setting, and single sprout 

 allowed to grow, resulting trunk will be straighter than if not cut back. 

 Sprouts from older roots produce post timber in four years. Pruning 

 necessary for formation of straight trunks first pruning in fifth or 

 sixth year ; second in the tenth year. Trees in forest increase in 

 diameter from one-third to one-half inch annually, if not planted 

 closer than 5x8 feet ( 1000 trees per acre). Trees standing 16x16 feet 

 ( 170 per acre) may increase in diameter one inch annually up to 

 about twelfth year. From that time on, probable annual rate of in- 

 crease will be one-half inch. Post timber produced in from seven to 

 ten years ; tie timber, telegraph and telephone poles in from fifteen to 

 twenty-five years. 



5. Special Need of Tie Timber. White oak, the best tie timber 

 hitherto used, nearing exhaustion. Expense of chemically treating 

 cheap ties of perishable wood is great. Metallic ties are out of the 

 question on American road-beds. Strong demand exists for durable 

 tie timber to replace oak. In 1900 there were 535,668,000 ties in track 

 in the United States. Renewals in that year, 48,000,000, worth, at 

 forty cents apiece, $19,200,000 nine per cent, of the total in track. 

 If laid with catalpa ties, annual renewals would not exceed four per 

 cent., counting life of catalpa ties at but fifteen years ; they have been 

 known to last twenty years. Annual saving of expense of renewals 

 thus affected, estimating the cost of catalpa ties also at forty cents 

 apiece, $10,600,000. 



6. Post and Pole Timber Durable quality of catalpa renders it 

 especially valuable for fence-posts and for telephone and telegraph 

 poles. Value for post timber lies not only in its resistance to decay, 

 but also in its not checking or splitting with age. 



7. Commercial Plantations. First catalpa forest planted in south- 

 eastern Missouri in the late '70's by the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & 

 Southern railroad. Not cared for and finally abandoned. 



