230 THE TREE BOOK 



grow on thinner soil; their rate of growth or 

 their power of reproduction may be greater — 

 there is some reason why they are better fitted 

 for their surroundings. It is the forester's busi- 

 ness to underS'tand this. He must know what 

 trees are best suited for certain conditions, for 

 he cannot afford to make mistakes. A crop of 

 trees takes the lifetime of a man to bring to 

 harvest. It would be folly to plant beech or 

 black walnut on dry, barren ridges: they are 

 trees with a passion for rich, moist soil and 

 damp situations. So, too, are the black gum 

 and the red maple, but on the other hand the lat- 

 ter often do well on dry, stony soils at a dis- 

 tance from water. The seeds of some trees may 

 be scattered broadcast and grow with very little 

 attention, others require careful handling, and 

 many of the seedlings must have "nurse trees" 

 for the first few years of their existence. Some 

 trees are really "weeds." They provide shade 

 but do little else. Their places might better be 

 filled by trees having timber and food values. 

 It is a knowledge of such qualities as these 

 which makes the valuable forester. 



"Direct" or broadcast seeding has so many 

 disadvantages, that the transplanting of seed- 

 lings is rapidly finding favor in most Forests. 

 The government maintains twenty-nine seed- 



