SYLVICULTURE 



insure healthy sprouts and to encourage the production of root- 

 suckers. The growth is very fast in the first years. 



G. Willows (Osier-culture) : 



Osier culture is considered a money maker in Germany where 

 labor is cheap. It is now in vogue in New York and in New Jersey. 

 The best species are Salix viminalis, Salix amygdalina, Salix pur- 

 purea, Salix acutifolia (caspica). The rotation comprises one or 

 two years. With the exception of Salix caspica, a moist soil is re- 

 quired (meadow land in river bottoms) by the willows. 



The stumps do not yield a return for more than twelve to sixteen 

 years. 



For the formation of an Osier grove, shoots two feet long are 

 used of which about 80,000 are put in per acre. It is stated that the 

 more shoots there are per acre, the better is the quality of the 

 Willow, as branchy stuff cannot be used for basket making. 



Cultivation between the rows is said to be very advisable or even 

 necessary, especially in the first years. There are many insects feed- 

 ing on the leaves and many fungi besetting the leaves of the W^illow^s. 

 A one-year rotation is best. After three or four years, however, 

 a two-years' rotation frequently intervenes, so as to allow the root 

 to develop unhampered. The shoots two years old are used for the 

 framework of heavy baskets. The cutting takes place in July and 

 August. Krahe, however, advises cutting in November. 



The first cost of an Osier plantation is very high. After Krahe, 

 the net yield amounts to $32 per acre per annum. 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE COPPICE-UNDER-STANDARDS FOREST. 



Paragraph LXXIII. Genesis of coppice-under-standards forests and 

 its methods. 



"Coppice under standards" consists of an underwood and of an 

 overwood. 



rhe underwood is nothing but simple, even-aged coppice. 



The overwood exhibits the selection, sometimes the group form 

 of high forest, and is supposed to recruit itself from seedlings. 



A. The underwood: 



I. Species: The species forming the underwood must combine 



natural sprouting capacity with shade endurance. On good soil, a 



smaller amount of both qualities is required. Excellent species for 



underwood are Basswood; Chestnut; Gum; Hornbeam; Calmia and 



161 



