394 



RECREATION. 



tbt nature of the country, forest, brush, 

 plain, etc., the protection it affords, and 

 the extent to which man may interfere. 

 The removal of the coniferous growth and 

 in course of time the reversion to hard 

 woods will greatly affect all these condi- 

 tions. 



Deer and ruffed grouse are the principal 

 game of the Adirondack woods. 



Conifers and hard woods, while the latter 

 are in leaf, offer this game essentially the 

 same shelter; but at this warm season the 

 game needs little protection from natural 

 dangers. It is when the snow covers the 

 ground that shelter is needed. 



Where does the ruffed grouse go in the 

 blizzard ; where, when the Norther blows ? 

 Does he roost on a ibare maple limb ? 



Where do the deer lie when the snow 

 is deep? Under the yellow birch, or the 

 heavy-crowned spruce sapling? Where do 

 the 'deer } r ard? On a hard wood ridge, or 

 in the spruce swamp ? 



The ease with which game can be killed 

 affects its plentifulness. If Tom, Dick and 

 Harry could kill a deer every time they 

 wished, how many would remain? 



Why do you like best to hunt ruffed 

 grouse and deer after the leaves have 

 fallen? You can see better, you can shoot 

 farther. 



The abundance of food determines the 

 size and fecundity of the animal. Not a 

 feast and a famine diet is desirable, but 

 a good food supply all the year round. 

 The question of food during the late spring, 

 the summer and the fall is of minor im- 

 portance. 



All the game in the Adirondacks could 

 thrive on 100,000 acres during that period. 

 The supply of game that an area will sup- 

 port is dependent on the amount of food 

 available during the worst season, the win- 

 ter. We must consider, therefore, the effects 

 of the removal of the evergreens on the 

 winter's food supply. 



The food of the deer from November to 

 April is arbor vitae, hemlock, balsam, 

 mosses and lichens, buds and twigs of 

 witch hazel, dogwood, mountain maple 

 and other shrubs. The extent to which 

 evergreens enter into the diet is shown by 

 the fact that venison late winter killed is 

 tainted by them and of little value. 



The ruffed grouse, during the winter in 

 the Adirondacks, live on the buds, leaves 

 and seeds of the pines, spruce, balsams, 

 tamaracks and poplars. 



The great hard wood region of the Ap- 

 palachians, many times the size of the Adi- 

 rondacks and as wild and often wilder, 

 now has few deer. In early times they 

 were extremely plentiful. In former times 

 when the snow came the game went to the 

 warm, low valleys now occupied by farms 

 and villages. Now they must winter in the 



high altitudes where they summer. It has 

 become a hard-wood country, and food is 

 absent. As we come North into Pennsyl- 

 vania, New York and Maine, and the per- 

 centage of coniferous growth increases ; so 

 do the deer. 



PECAN NUTS. 



Botanically the pecan, Hicoria pecan, be- 

 longs to the hickory family. The tree is 

 one of the largest of the forest, growing 

 75 to 170 feet high, with wide spreading 

 branches and symmetrical top. In appear- 

 ance the tree resembles somewhat closely 

 the ordinary hickory nut. The nuts are 

 generally oblong and vary in weight from 

 25 to over 100 a pound. The shells are 

 relatively thin and much more easily 

 cracked than those of the common hickory 

 nut, and are dark colored and fairly 

 smooth. The nuts are usually polished be- 

 fore marketing. Some fancy and high- 

 priced varieties are not polished, hut sold 

 in their natural condition. 



The pecan is found native in river bot- 

 toms from Iowa and Kentucky, Southwest 

 into Mexico. It is successfully grown in 

 many other States. Generally, however, 

 pecans will not be commercially successful 

 North of parallel 40. Pecan nuts are grown 

 on a commercial scale in California, and 

 orchards have been planted in a number 

 of Southern States. Texas and Louisiana 

 at present furnish the main bulk of the 

 annual crop, mostly from native trees. 



Pecans may be propagated from s'eed. 

 They are liable to considerable variation, 

 however, and budding and grafting are 

 therefore resorted to in propagating desir- 

 able sorts. 



By selection and cultivation a number of 

 varieties of pecans have been originated 

 which are great improvements over the 

 native sorts. The points to be considered 

 in estimating the value of pecans are qual- 

 ity and flavor, plumpness of kernel, ease 

 with which the kernel separates, size, and 

 the thickness of the shell. A thin-shell 

 variety, other factors being equal, is most 

 desirable. Stuart, Van Deman, Centennial, 

 and Frotcher are considered standard 

 sorts. 



Pecan trees may bear a few nuts at an 

 early age, but paying crops can not be ex- 

 pected under 10 years, and full crops under 

 20. The annual crop of a tree in full bear- 

 ing has been variously reported as 1 to 

 20 bushels. 



Like most nuts, pecans contain a large 

 quantity of fat or oils, fairly large quanti- 

 ties of nitrogenous material, and little car- 

 bohydrates. They are used principally as 

 table nuts and in the making of cakes and 

 confectionery or similar foods. The meats 

 are also frequently salted. 



