68 



THE WESTEKN POMOLOGIST. 



1871 



Tbe American Cbestnnt— OaltlTation. 



The natural scarcity of timber in a large portion of the Western States, and its rapid disappearance 

 in the older-settled portions of the country— in their primitive state one vast forest— is a matter justly 

 attracting the attention of 

 both agriculturists and manu- 

 facturers. The question is— 

 "from whence shall come the 

 supply of timber for future 

 generations — for fencing, fu- 

 el, building, and for manu- 

 facturing purposes?" The on- 

 ly solution to this question is, 

 forest tree culture, and which 

 we are glad to see is attract- 

 ing the attention which the 

 importance of the subject 

 demands. In the Eastern 

 States, much land, which has 

 been in cultivation for gen- 

 erations, is being spontane- 

 ously re-timbered by a 

 growth of spruce, pine, 

 birch, maple and other spe- 

 cies of timber indigenous to 

 the country. A field or tract 

 of land there when aban- 

 doned by the farmer, soon 

 shows a growth of timber 

 unaided by the hand of man. 

 Not so here at the West. To 

 timber our naked prairies, 

 we must sow and plant ; and 

 to attain the best results we 

 should go about it under- 

 standingly — know what is 

 best to plant, and the best 

 way to do it. 



Of the deciduous trees, the 

 chestnut, black, white and 

 hickory walnuts, white and 

 sugar maples, white ash, elm 

 and birch are all very de- 

 sirable, and may be easily 

 grown from seed. Among 

 the number, the Chestnut 

 stands pre-eminent in our 

 estimation. There is no tree 

 that can be grown from seed 

 more readily, or that posses- 

 ses so many valuable quali- 

 ties. For posts or rails the 

 timber is invaluable. We 

 have seen fence rails of it in 

 New England fifty years old 

 from the log, and apparently 

 as sound as ever. The tree 

 is a rampant grower, re-pro- 

 <iuctive and produces a most 



LEAF AND^OPEN BtJBR OF THE CHESTNUT,^ATimAi SIZE. 



