FOREST, FISH AXD GAME COMMISSIONER. 73 



food crops, they can, under proper management, be utilized for the pro- 

 duction of timber and various sizes of wood. Possibly, after many years, 

 these open fields might have commenced to reforest themselves naturally; 

 even in that case the resultant tree growth might not be of a valuable, 

 merchantable kind. But if planted now, there will be in due time a young 

 forest in which each tree will be a desirable one, of some useful species 

 needed by the people, and in number as great as the soil will support. 



There are planted forests in Europe, — planted in just such soil — which 

 when cut will yield 65,000 feet of logs per acre, while the wild uncultivated 

 woeds of the Adirondacks will not yield one-third that amount, even if the 

 unmerchantable hardwoods are included. 



In making plantations last year on this sandy ground, our foresters 

 used in their wcrk certain species which thrive in such soil, and which, as 

 we have learned from experience in our previous work and by observations 

 elsewhere, will attain a rapid, thrifty growth. 



In our work this last season we set out 520,000 young plants: 

 White pine, three-year-old transplants . . . 300,000 



White pine, four-year-old transplants 

 Scotch pine, four-year-old transplants . 

 Norway spruce, four-year-old transplants 

 European larch, four- year-old transplants 



Total 



75,000 



90,000 



50,000 



5,000 



520 , 000 



As the capacity of our nurseries is insufficient to furnish four- year-old 

 plants each year for the plantations, we imported 300,000 white pines from 

 German} - . This stock arrived in good condition and was planted last May 

 on lot 22, township 18, in the town of Brighton, Franklin county. A careful 

 inspection of this work was made last fall, at which time these plants were 

 in a healthy condition, less than one per cent, having succumbed to the 

 effects of the long transportation and shock of transplanting. The com- 

 paratively few dead ones will be replaced next spring with live plants. 

 Small purchases were also made from the nurseries of D. Hill, Dundee, 111. ; 

 from R. Douglass' Sons, Waukegan, 111. ; and from the Evergreen Nursery 

 Co., Sturgeon Bay, Wis. 



