4-IO REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF 



In sandy districts all farms should be forest-farms — that is, farms which are at least 

 sixty-five per cent, forest. The necessary fire lanes in a pine-woods district ought 

 to furnish sufficient land for cultivation. A fire lane two hundred feet in width on the 

 outer edge of a one-hundred-acre piece consumes thirty-five acres of land, which 

 is quite as much as one man can comfortably till. One of the most interesting large 

 inland sand regions is the Banat Sand Desert of Hungary. Here large quantities of 

 the American locust have been planted because of its great ability to hold soil in 

 place. The good qualities of this tree are much more fully appreciated in Europe 

 than in America. Owing to its extensive root-system and root-suckers it is a good 

 soil binder. The wood is highly valued in Hungary for the manufacture of agricul- 

 tural implements. Almost everywhere throughout Europe the locust is used to hold 

 up railroad embankments. The trees are often cut back close to the ground and form 

 a solid matted coppice growth which holds the soil firmly in place, and adds at the 

 same time to the stability and safety of the road, saving also the cost of frequent 

 repairs. Shifting soils are usually temporarily held in place by sand-binding plants, 

 such as beach-grass, wattle-work, fascinage, and brush-work in general. These are 

 usually temporary means of holding the soil in place until, at least, belts of trees may 

 be established of sufficient height to break the force of the prevailing winds. 



In many instances along the coast where the great ocean mill supplies an exhaust- 

 less quantity of sand, which is being heaped up constantly by the winds and waves, it 

 is necessary to construct a huge embankment in the lee of which trees may be grown. 

 This artificial dune is held in shape by beach- grass. Later on I shall describe more 

 in detail the formation of this protective dune and the use of grasses in keeping it in 

 shape. In regions in which there is not an exhaustless quantity of sand, such as 

 comes from the shores of great bodies of water, plantations of grass are not necessary 

 for the fixation of the soil until trees may gain a footing. 



The shifting of the sand is prevented in such cases by brush-work. In France, 

 brush is placed upon the ground just as shingles are placed upon a roof, with now and 

 then a shovelful of sand to hold it down. Among this brush-work are sown the seeds 

 of the Maritime pine, which may be bought in almost any quantity at the country 

 grocery stores. These pines soon sprout, grow rapidly, and there is no danger of 

 shifting sand so long as the supply from the ocean is shut off and the ground kept 

 covered with a growth of some kind. 



In other places brush fences are used. These are placed at right angles to the 

 prevailing winds and serve to protect the soil from their injurious influences. Between 

 these fences seeds are sown or small trees planted. Sometimes these fences are only 

 pieces of brush stuck side by side in the ground ; in other instances they partake of 

 the nature of wattle-work, and fascinage, — that is, the brush is carefully woven in 



