160 ELEMENTARY FORESTRY. 
14. What kinds of trees are best adapted to use for live fence 
posts? Should the wires be nailed directly to the tree, or on 
blocks of wood which are fastened to the tree? 
Answer: Probably the best tree for a live fence post is one 
of the willows or other hardy tree. Where the White Willow 
is used for this purpose there is no special objection to nailing 
the wire directly to the tree, except that the tree will soon grow 
over the wire, and it cannot then be removed. If it is thought 
that the wire might be removed within a few years, it would be 
much the better plan to nail it onto blocks of wood which are 
nailed to the tree. Willow trees which are used in this way as 
live fence posts may be cut off about a foot above the top wire 
and allowed to reproduce themselves. Such trees, if properly 
managed, will often produce a large amount of firewood, as well 
as afford good fence posts. 
15. We have thirty acres of rather wet land which we do not 
expect to use for many years except as pasture. Would it pay 
to grow some White Willows on a portion of it, and would they 
interfere with its value as pasture? 
Answer: If the land is not heavily pastured, it might be a 
good plan to grow a few groups of willow on it, as they will 
furnish some protection to the stock, and do not interfere 
materially with the pasturage value of the land. Scattered trees 
might also be grown, as they would not seriously interfere with 
the growth of grass under them where the land is moist; but it 
would not be desirable to encourage a very thick growth on the 
land, since it is much more valuable for pasturage than it would 
probably be for growing wood. 
16. |}. has come into possession of fifty acres of bluff land 
along the Mississippi river, in Southern Minnesota. The load is 
of good quality, but too much broken for agriculture, and when 
used as pasture it washes badly. ‘he southern slopes are nearly 
bare of trees, but the other slopes are well covered with White 
Oak, Hard Maple, Basswood and Ilm, with some Hackberry, 
Wild Black Cherry, Black Walnut and Butternut. It has been 
pastured for twenty years, and consequently there are no young 
trees coming on. Ile desires to preserve it as a wood lot, since 
it has become of litthe value for pasture. 
Answer: The first thing to do is to keep out the cattle, as 
