Germination of Forest Trees 3 
solve local forestry problems. Finally, there is no reason why 
forest experiment stations established and maintained by private 
endowment on the plan of the Desert Botanical Laboratory of 
the Carnegie Institution would not be able to do a great service 
along these lines. 
The importance and need of silvicultural investigations 
scarcely needs comment, yet it might be well at the outset to 
emphasize certain fundamental concepts. Forests are one of our 
greatest natural resources. Unlike coal, iron, oil, etc., they can 
be grown to insure a continuous supply. Forests are not huge 
warehouses of standing logs from which we can take our annual 
supply ad infinitum; they are not merely aggregations of indi- 
vidual trees; they are complex communities of living organisms 
capable of response to environmental factors not unlike human 
beings. It follows then that in order to replace what we take 
from the forest, in other words, in order to grow a neverfailing 
supply of timber intelligently and economically, we must under- 
stand these complex living organisms and commuiities, must 
study their behavior and requirements and ascertain the condi- 
tions under which they grow best. This domain is forest ecology 
or silvics. 
It has been asked, Does forestry in its present stage of develop- 
ment need this kind of work? Is not this work ahead of the 
times? Is it not of too little practical value to demand our atten- 
tion at present? It will be my purpose to show at this point 
of my paper that, while this class of work is not absolutely 
essential to forestry at the present time, it is extremely desirable 
that it be begun in a scientific manner at the earliest possible 
moment, in order to put American forestry upon a firm scientific 
basis. The present status of forestry in the United States em- 
phasizes the necessity of beginning soon. A brief word as to 
our present stage of development may be in order. 
Forestry either of an intensive or an extensive nature is being 
practised in many parts of the country to-day. Both private and 
public corporations are engaged in one or more of the main phases 
of it, viz.: silviculture, forest protection, forest administration, 
or forest utilization. In the field of forest protection gigantic 
