PRACTICAL ARBORICULTURE 441 
Every branch formed detracts that much from the vigor of the trunk. 
Grasp the tree with one hand, rubbing downward, to remove all growing 
buds, not allowing them to form a woody branch. 
Keep all vines from the tree, especially while young. These weigh down 
the head and cause the soft, immature wood to become crooked. 
Two or more branches, with the large leaves, separate the branches and 
cause crooked trees. 
In cutting off the trees, cut as near the ground as possible, and stick a 
small branch upright midway between the trees, to define the rows and guide 
the plowman. 
If these branches grow, no harm will result. These will be trees to take 
up for filling in gaps next season. 
Irom time to time, during the season, workmen should be set at removing: 
extra shoots which start from the stump. 
The Catalpa will not grow from the roots, but does grow from the stump 
very persistently. 
This is the critical period with these trees. They should be watched 
carefully all the season. 
There is no excuse for workmen allowing singletrees or doubletrees to 
strike the tree trunks and knock off the bark. The foreman should be held 
personally responsible for such mutilation. The trees now have very strong 
roots, and will push upward a straight, strong stem, if not prevented by bad 
treatment. 
PRUNING A FOREST. 
The financial value of timber trees and the uses to which they may be 
adapted depends entirely upon the length of the trunk, its freedom from 
objectionable knots, its straightness of body and soundness of the wood, and, 
withal, the number of available trees on the tract. Small, short-bodied trees, 
and those which are crooked and knotty have a value for fuel purposes only. 
and that is the lowest grade of wood values, and which are measured by their 
bulk, or cord prices, while good, merchantable timber possesses the highest 
value for lumbering purposes, and are measured by board measure. Hence it 
is important that the timber land owner should give consideration to the 
character of his young forest, and not depend upon Nature to perform the 
work which man only can do economically. 
In some things Nature is a most excellent guide, while in other directions 
Nature can only be followed at the expense of time and a long period of in- 
terest accumulating capital. 
There are many species of forest trees which under natural conditions will 
not make long, straight, branchless boles, vet by judicious manipulation, with- 
out great expense, may be trained into ideal milling timber. Others require 
so long a period to accomplish this object, under the methods of Nature, that 
as a cash investment they become very unprofitable. 
There are three methods of obtaining straight trunks, free from knots, in 
forest trees: 
