42 EUCALYPTS IN FLORIDA. 



average, under ordinary conditions, of about $25 per acre, has been 

 the usual cost. A number of California nurserymen make a specialty 

 of raising eucalyptus stock and quote prices of from $8 to $30 per 

 thousand, varying with the species and the size of the trees. Home- 

 grown stock may, however, be easily raised at a cost of about $5 per 

 thousand. 



The cost of planting in Florida should in most cases be less than 

 in California, if planting stock can be obtained at a reasonable price. 

 The two principal expenses of planting are the amount of prepara- 

 tion necessary for the area and the cost of the planting stock. The 

 first will vary with each particular tract. But, under ordinary cir- 

 cumstances in the loose sandy soils of Florida, very little preparation 

 of the site will be necessary. Where grubbing out of palmetto is 

 contemplated, this item will be larger. 



The cost of the seedlings will also vary considerably, and if the 

 seedlings are home grown the price per 1,000 will decrease in direct 

 proportion to the number of the seedlings used. The cost of planting 

 per acre will, of course, vary with the number of seedlings used to 

 the acre ; in other words, with the spacing. 



When only a small area is to be planted, it will probably be more 

 economical to procure the stock from some reliable nurseryman, pro- 

 vided it can be bought at the price of forest nursery stock. If large 

 plantations are undertaken, however, it is much better, as well as 

 cheaper, to raise the stock at home, because in Florida the nurserymen 

 can not now supply this stock at a reasonable price. The cost may 

 thus be greatly reduced, and the entire cost of planting under ordi- 

 nary conditions should not exceed $15 to $20 per acre if home-grown 

 stock is used. 



OTHER EUCALYPTS WHICH MAY BE SUITABLE TO FLORIDA. 



Besides the species found growing in Florida, many of which were 

 not suited to the localities in which they were planted, there are a 

 number of other species which, if introduced under proper conditions, 

 might prove successful there on account of the* similarity of the cli- 

 matic conditions in their range in Australia to those of Florida. 



In the selection of these species only those have been chosen that 

 produce large trees and whose wood is useful for other purposes than 

 fuel. 



There are, of course, a number of subalpine species, such as E. 

 alpina, coccifera, coriacea, stuartiana, and rernicosa, which, while 

 they could doubtless endure the temperatures even of the northern 

 range in Florida, are often mere shrubs or low trees about 20 feet 

 high and of no value except as forest cover for the protection of slopes 

 or watersheds, and for this reason are of no use in Florida. 



