330 



FORESTS 



FORESTS 



fourth inch of clear sand. Before the seedlings 

 break the ground, a permanent framework at least 

 three feet above the beds is made and covered with 

 laths, laid about one and one-half inches apart, 

 running north and south, or with sufficient brush to 

 shut out about one-half the sunlight ; or a movable 

 lath frame may be built, as shown in Fig. 467. If 

 the bed is very much exposed to the winds, it should 

 have similar protection on all sides. Under sucli 

 conditions, or in woodlands where these conditions 

 can be fulfilled, evergreens can be raised with much 

 certainty, while, if seed is sown in the open ground, 

 most kinds fail. 



A cheap and convenient screen can be made from 

 common lath 4x4 feet square, leaving a space the 

 width of a lath between each two and nailing the 

 ends between two lath at right angles. Such 

 screens can be made for about thirteen cents each. 

 Sparrows and gophers are prevented from destroy- 

 ing the seeds or young seedlings by placing boards 

 along the sides of the beds and then covering the 

 whole bed, screen and all, with small-mesh wire 

 netting. 



The most common cause of failure with those 

 who try to raise evergreens is a fungous disease 

 called "damping off," which occurs only while the 

 plants are growing rapidly the first year. The 

 seeds may start well, and the seedlings may grow 

 vigorously for a short time, or until there is a spell 

 of damp weather, and then die oif with great 

 rapidity. The use of sand on the surface and plenty 

 of air circulation in moist weather, will largely 

 remedy the difliculty. 



Most of the coniferous tree seedlings grow very 

 slowly when young. Many species do not make a 

 growth of more than three inches the first year 

 nor more than five or six inches the first two 

 years. In fact, many species could be planted at 

 the age of five or six years without inconve- 

 nience as far as the size of the tops is concerned, 

 but the growth of the roots is more rapid when 

 younger, especially in rich soil. For this reason, 

 evergreen seedlings should be planted out at an 

 age of two, or, at the most, three years, while 

 the roots are still manageable. Under some con- 

 ditions it is possible to plant out one-year-old 

 seedlings, but, as a rule, these are too small for 

 convenient handling or successful growth in the 

 open. 



Mulching forms an important factor in the 

 growing of evergreen seedlings. It should con- 

 sist of a three-inch covering of straw or leaves, 

 evergreen branches or other material. This 

 mulch should be applied to the seed-bed as 

 soon as the seed is sown to preserve the mois- 

 ture in the soil and to prevent the weeds start- 

 ing before the trees. Careful watch must be 

 kept, for if the mulch is not removed as soon 

 as the seedlings break the soil they will all die. 

 On the approach of winter the same sort of 

 mulch should be put over the seedlings to protect 

 them from the sun and from alternate freezing 

 and thawing. This should be removed in the 

 spring after all danger from drying, cold winds 

 has passed. 



Literature. 



Bruncken, North American Forests and Forestry, 

 G. P. Putnam & Sons ; Gifford, Practical Forestry, 

 D. Appleton & Co.; Green, Principles of American 

 Forestry, Wiley & Sons ; Green, Forestry in Minne- 

 sota, published by Minnesota Foresti;y Association ; 

 Roth, A First Book of Forestry, Ginn & Co.; Sar- 

 gent, Forest Trees of North America, Report of 

 Tenth Census ; Forestry for Farmers, United States 

 Department of Agriculture, Farmers' Bulletin No. 

 67; Forest Planting and Farm Management, Farm- 

 ers' Bulletin, No. 228. The following bulletins of 

 the Forest Service (formerly the Bureau of For- 

 estry) of the United States Department of Agri- 

 culture, are selected from a long list of helpful 

 bulletins : Forest Growth and Sheep Grazing, No. 

 15 ; Forestry Conditions and Interests of Wisconsin, 

 No. 16 ; Experimental Tree-Planting on the Plains, 

 No. 18 ; Osier-Culture, No. 19 ; A Primer of For- 

 estry, 2 Vols., No. 24 ; Practical Forestry in the 

 Adirondacks, No. 26 ; Practical Tree-Planting in 

 Operation, No. 27; The Forest Nursery, No. 29; 

 The Woodman's Handbook, No. 36 ; The Woodlot, 

 No. 42 ; The Planting of White Pine in New Eng- 

 land, No. 45 ; Forest Planting in Western Kansas, 

 No. 52 ; The Natural Replacement of White Pine in 

 New England, No. 63. 



Practical Protection and Improvement of the 

 Farm Woodlot. 



By Alfred Akerman. 



Most of the woodlots on American farms have 

 been mismanaged or unmanaged. One of the serious 

 problems facing the farmer today who sees his 

 wood-supply rapidly diminishing is how to treat 

 his mismanaged woodlot. Before entering into a 

 discussion of this, however, it is well to call atten- 

 tion to the factors involved in the proper care of a 

 woodlot. The first of these is protection from harm; 

 the second is the actual improvement of the crop. 



Protection. 



Protection of the woodlot is fundamental, for 

 without it planting, pruning and thinning amount 

 to nothing. The two most important phases of this 

 subject are protection from fire and from the graz- 

 ing and browsing of animals. 



Protection from fire. — In dealing with fires, as 

 with ailments of the body, an ounce of preven- 

 tion is worth a pound of cure. For this reason, 

 farmers would do well to examine into the con- 

 ditions which surround their woodlots, to ascer- 

 tain whether the liability to fire may not be 

 lessened by a few simple and inexpensive pre- 

 cautions. For example, a woodlot which borders 

 on a public road may be protected by a cleared 

 strip along the road ; for a great many fires 

 start from a cigar-stump or lighted match which 

 is tossed aside by a passing smoker. Such cleared 

 strips, or " fire lines " as they are called, should 

 be cleaned up once or twice a year by burn- 

 ing at a time when the fire will not spread,' or 

 by raking back the leaves and other inflammable 

 material that may have accumulated. The cost of 



