18 FORESTRY MANUAL. 



will freeze. Plant early, and cover very lightly with earth with a sprink 

 ling of leaf -mold on top. 



OTHER DESIRABLE NATIVE TREES. 



Several species of indigenous trees are desirable for ornament variety 

 in mixed plantings, or special uses, a few of which will be very briefly 

 noticed. 



HARD MAPLE. 



As a rule, it is best to gather small thrifty trees of this desirable lawn and 

 avenue tree from the native timber, where they run up straight. They are 

 not found difficult to transplant. When grown from seed, they are very 

 slow in getting started upward. For fully three years they are low tufts, 

 acting as though they never designed to make trees. They do not transplant 

 easily on our light soils until they begin to shoot up. As a strict grove tree, 

 we have, perhaps, many superior to it in all respects, yet the Sugar maple 

 groves planted twenty-five years ago, are now valuable for sirup and sugar 

 making. 



As a tree for the lawn or roadside there is none more symmetrical in 

 growth and though a slow grower when young it makes a rapid growth as 

 it attains age. 



The seeds ripen in autumn, and they should be kept in moist sand until 

 the time for sowing. The plants should be kept in seed-bed several years 

 and be well cultivated. 



YELLOW AND BLACK BIRCH. 



These trees thrive well in groves, or as ornamental trees in slightly shel- 

 tered positions. Gather the seed in the fall and mix with sand as advised 

 for other seeds. Our native birch usually is full of catkins. 



CHESTNUT. 



This desirable tree is not hardy when young, unless it is cared for until it 

 gets some depth of roots. It never does well when transplanted. * Keep the 

 chestnut in moist sand and plant early in spring in sheltered position, where 

 they can have good culture in the early part of the season. Cover the whole 

 plant with prairie hay or straw the succeeding fall. When two years old 

 mulch heavily in the fall well up the stems. After this, if the ground is not 

 .kept too clean, the trees will usually stand the winters ; but if mulched every 

 fall until six years old, they will attain more growth and bear fruit much 

 sooner. 



IIACKBERRY. 



This is quite a lofty tree of our river bottoms, and is valued for fuel. 

 Grown from seeds, it sprouts into varieties with much variation in form 

 and foliage. It holds its leaves late in the fall, when they assume shades of 



