26 DEPARTMENTAL REPORTS. 



transplants. The annual productive capacity of the Forest Service 

 nurseries at present is approximately 8,000,000 trees. 



The cost of the several items of nursery and planting work is 

 encouragingly low. Except at the California stations, where the 

 difficulties are great, the expense of growing and planting does not 

 greatly exceed that in Germany, with its cheap labor and long ex- 

 perience. The average cost per thousand of the l-j^ear-old seedlings 

 now in seed beds outside California is $0.81. Transplanting from seed 

 beds to nursery rows costs an average of $1.04 per thousand, while 

 seed sowing costs 15 cents per pound. Field planting in the reserves 

 of southern California is very expensive as yet, because of the natu- 

 ral difficulties. The average cost per thousand of setting 62,000 

 trees on chaparral-covered watersheds in the Santa Barbara and San 

 Gabriel forest reserves was $17.22; while on the Dismal Eiver 

 Reserve, where conditions favored rapid work, 319,000 trees were 

 planted at a cost of $1.63 per thousand. 



The progress of the j^ear's work at each of the planting stations 

 may be briefly indicated. 



SAN GABEIEI- FOREST EESEEVE (HENNINGER'S FLAT STATION). 



The working equipment was increased by the erection of a combi- 

 nation tool house and sleeping quarters for laborers, and by enlarging 

 the transplant nursery 0.75 acre. The lath house, which covers ap- 

 proximately 0.27 acre of seed beds, was worked to its full capacity. 

 The 336,760 seedlings it contained were transplanted to open-nursery 

 rows during the winter, and in the spring the beds were resown with 

 about 222 pounds of seed of 11 species. The nursery rows now con- 

 tain about 387,000 trees. 



During January and February 32,000 two-year-old trees were set 

 out in the mountains. The blanks in previous plantations were filled 

 in and small experimental plantations were made at intervals of 500 

 feet in altitude up to the summit of Mount Wilson. One new site 

 was planted and an arboretum of 3,500 trees was established. The 

 nursery and planting sites are jjrotected by 12 miles of fire lines, 

 built in 1905. Planting in the San Gabriel Reserve must remain a 

 difficult and expensive operation, yet the cost was reduced to $15.82 

 per thousand trees, a reduction of $29.34 over last year. 



Approximately 30 per cent of the trees set out this year have been 

 eaten off by rabbits and a remedy applicable on a large scale has not 

 been found. A careful study of the situation has been asked of the 

 Biological Survey. 



Besides furnishing plant material for local use, the Henninger's 

 Flat nursery supplied 30,000 trees for planting in the Santa Barbara 

 Reserve, 3,100 for Griffith Park, Los Angeles, and 11,900 for planting 

 by individuals on watersheds within forest reserves or for experi- 

 mental purposes. 



MSMAL EIVER FOREST EESEEVE (HALSEY STATION). 



The Halsey station is producing trees for extensive forest planting 

 on nonagricultural lands in the Middle West. An additional acre of 

 lath house was built, about 0.5 acre was set out to transplants, and 1.5 

 acres of open seed beds were sown with broadleaf species. The nurs- 



