February 19, 1890.] 



Garden and Forest. 



93 



fine seed it is not covered at all with soil. The whole is 

 then carefully watered with a fine rubber sprinkler. Seeds 

 such as Aster, Stocks and Primroses are covered with soil to 

 the depth of about the thickness of the seeds. The finest 

 seeds are covered with sheets of glass, on which is kept a sin- 

 gle covering of paper, either an old newspaper or light pack- 

 ing paper. The coarser seeds are covered only with paper, 

 and at no time until germination takes place is any direct light 

 admitted. After germination the paper is removed at night, 

 and again replaced for a while during the day-time. A safe 

 temperature for most seeds is from fifty-eight to sixty-five 

 degrees. ~ , T , , 



ptarl River. N. Y. John Thorpe. 



Lachenalia Nelsoni.— The admirers of hardy plants owe a 

 debt of gratitude to the late Rev. J. Nelson for the valuable 

 garden varieties of the common Moss Pink [Phlox subulata), 

 which were originated by his skill, and have proved so valua- 

 ble in the spring garden. Many other admirable hybrids were 

 produced by this enthusiastic amateur, and among them the 

 one named at the head of this paragraph. Of all the Lache- 

 nalias we have tried this is best adapted to general use. The 

 flowers are bright coral-red in bud, and golden yellow when 

 expanded ; ;they are borne on stems six to eight inches 

 long just above the foliage, which is prettily mottled with 

 brown. The value of Lachenalias as winter-blooming plants 

 lies in the durability of their flowers, which last in good condi- 

 tion for nearly two months. Nothing is more simple than the 

 culture of these bulbs. They should be potted in September, 

 three in a four-inch pot, and'in winter kept in a light place, 

 where the temperature does not fall lower than forty-five de- 

 grees; they will then flower in January and February. After 

 flowering the foliage soon dies down, when the bulbs require 

 no water until potted again in September. There is no reason 

 why these plants should not become popular for window-cul- 

 ture, as the conditions necessary to the successful flowering of 

 a Geranium in winter suits Lachenalia Nelsoni admirably, both, 

 in fact, being the offspring of plants native to South Africa. 



Passaic, n.j. E. 0. Or pet. 



Christmas Roses.— My experience with this species of Helle- 

 borus and its varieties agrees with that of Mr. Gerard. This 

 winter and the preceding one cannot be accepted as a test of 

 their hardiness. Even protected by the ordinary hot-bed 

 frames and sashes, I am far from believing that they would 

 flower during a winter as severe as that of 1884-85. To in- 

 duce them to flower in such a winter the frame would need 

 the further protection of a lining of litter besides mats and 

 shutters. Cultivated under such conditions, they lose their 

 claim to be considered hardy, and above all, their charm. The 

 majority of people who cultivate hardy plants can enjoy them 

 only as such, and they should not remain under any delu- 

 sion about Christmas Roses. 



Wellesley, Mass. 1. V. H. 



The Forest. 



The Need of a Forest Policy in Pennsylvania. 



THE need of a more rational system of forest management 

 is as great in Pennsylvania as in any of her sister states. 

 That this has been a settled conviction on the part of many 

 thinking men is apparent from the frequency with which for- 

 estry matters have been discussed before her agricultural and 

 other societies. In 1881 the State Board of Agriculture ap- 

 pointed a commttee on forestry, which, in the succeeding 

 year, rendered a carefully prepared report, which was the 

 result of inquiry in every part of the state, and gave answers 

 to the questions as to (1) the approximate amount of old tim- 

 ber in each county, (2) the amount of young growth, (3) the 

 best protection against fires, (4) the legislation which seemed 

 desirable, together with some others of less moment. 



These inquiries developed a widespread feeling that, although 

 Pennsylvania had been one of the best timbered states of the 

 Union, there was now need of a husbanding of the remaining 

 forest resources, and some encouragement to reforesting 

 and protection from fires. How to secure these ends gave 

 rise to various suggestions more or less practicable, which, 

 from time to time, were brought to the attention of the Legis- 

 lature. But they appeared — at least to the Legislature — to lack 

 distinctness and purpose, or to be impracticable, and nothing 

 came from them. In 1888 the Governor of the Common- 

 wealth, acting under a joint resolution of the Legislature, ap- 

 pointed a committee of five citizens to consider and report 

 upon the forests of the state, and to recommend legislation if 

 they saw fit. No provision was made for the expenses of such 

 committee, and it was left to determine its own methods and 



scope of work. None of the committee felt that, under the 

 circumstances, any considerable personal examination of the 

 forest-condition and needs of the state could be made ; hence 

 they sought to obtain all the information possible through 

 correspondence. And by personal letters chiefly, and a circu- 

 lar to county officers and corporations, collected a large num- 

 ber of facts as the basis for their report. 



The report which they rendered was a brief and compact 

 resume of the general forestry question as it exists in the east- 

 ern United States to-day, fortified by various facts and consid- 

 erations which had special bearing on the condition in Penn- 

 sylvania. That a more elaborate report was not presented 

 was, perhaps, a disappointment to some, but it was felt that, 

 in the absence of authentic and definite information, a longer 

 report, founded, as it must have been, on general principles 

 alone, would carry no additional weight, and might even be 

 of lessened value. Accompanying the report was the draft of 

 a bill, which it was hoped might commend itself to the Legis- 

 lature. The main features which it embodied were as follows : 

 The appointment of a permanent forestry commission of 

 three members, with power to elect a secretary, who is the 

 working member of the board ; also such wardens and agents 

 as they may deem necessary, and to define their duties. The 

 duties of the commissioners were to ascertain the true state 

 and condition of the forests of the commonwealth ; their rela- 

 tion to the needs and industries of the people ; the rate of de- 

 struction by different means, and the prosecution of offenders 

 of the laws relating to forests. The means necessary to ac- 

 complish these purposes were detailed as fully as seemed 

 practicable. 



Circulars or bulletins of information on forestry methods 

 were to be issued for the benefit of landholders. The subject 

 of forestry was to be brought before the teachers of public and 

 normal schools and various associations by a lecturer to be 

 provided by the board, and by the distribution of Forest 

 Leaves, the publication of the Pennsylvania Forestry Associa- 

 tion. Special effort was to be made for securing better ob- 

 servance of the laws regarding trespass upon and firing of 

 forests, by the posting of notices of these laws in all suitable 

 places. 



After presentation to the Legislature the bill was referred to 

 the Committee on Agriculture for further consideration. The 

 advocates of the measure were granted a tearing before this 

 committee, and endeavored to explain further the intent and 

 value of it. No direct report or reply was ever received as a 

 result of this interview, but it was understood that the bill was 

 considered to be impracticable, even in a modified form, and 

 it was never reported back to the House. 



Whatever may have been the defects of this bill, it was 

 framed with the intent to meet what many believe is a grow- 

 ing, and soon to be an imperative, need in our state, namely : 

 Some systematic care and attention to the conservation of our 

 forests, and their perpetuation over those large areas, chiefly 

 mountainous, which ought to be not only continuously pro- 

 ductive, but also centres of salubrity, and checks and barriers 

 to climatic extremes. Meanwhile, the interest in forestry has 

 continued to increase, and, although most active and visible 

 in the eastern part of the state, is nevertheless becoming more 

 and more evident in the others, and includes the intelligent, 

 thinking men of various occupations and surroundings. 

 From letters received from correspondents it seems in place 

 to note very briefly the opinions of three, which may be taken 

 as representative. 



A farmer and lumberman of one of the north-eastern coun- 

 ties says : "The time is near at hand when no question will be 

 of more vital importance to the Pennsylvania land-owner than 

 that of how best to restore the wasted woodlands of the state. 

 In solving this problem there is abundant room for both 

 thought and work. It will not be wise to leave the work of 

 restoration wholly in the hands of Nature, for while Nature can 

 do and is doing much to reclothe the waste places in our forests, 

 Nature does not always, in selecting species, give us those 

 most useful to us, nor can she unaided successfully cope with 

 tramps and incendiaries, private and corporate, whose care- 

 lessness or malice often, in a few hours, destroys the work of 

 years. How can Nature's generous efforts in our behalf be 

 best assisted ? The state can do something. The act of June 

 1st, 1887, is good as far as it goes, but it does not afford ade- 

 quate protection against irresponsible depredators. Forestry 

 associations can do something, but much must be left to indi- 

 vidual work. We have learned only too well how to get rid of 

 trees, we need now to learn how to replace them. We shall 

 find the last problem a harder one to solve than the other." 



An engineer in active service with a mining company, hav- 

 ing written a letter to the Scientific American on the timber 



