THE SAND-HILL NURSERIES. 25 



frames, 18 inches high, which completely cover the seed beds, with 

 the sides and tops covered with ^-inch mesh wire netting. 



Except for these three things — the use of sand, of raised beds, and 

 of frames, the handhng of coniferous stock is much the same as at 

 the Halsey nursery. 



HALSEY NURSERY. 



LOCATION. 



Although the Dismal River and Niobrara Forest Reserves were 

 created at the same time, in 1902, the first named offered the greater 

 inducement for planting, because of its nearness to the railroad and 

 because of the poorer quahty of its lands. The Niobrara reserve was 

 12 miles from the nearest railroad point. The Halsey nursery was 

 established 2 miles west of Halsey, which is 48 miles northwest of 

 Broken Bow and 200 miles from Lincoln, It was placed on the south 

 side of the Middle Loup River, for protection from fire which might 

 originate from locomotives. The Middle Loup is a large stream for 

 the region and gives an abundant water supply at all seasons. 



The nursery covers 5 acres on a second bench above the river at 

 an elevation of 8 feet above the stream. The bench is 250 feet wide 

 at this point, and at points above and below it is much wider. 



The ground desired for nursery purposes, like most of the second 

 bottom of the Loup, was covered with a dense but not continuous 

 thicket of plum and cherry brush. Since it was necessary to have 

 perfectly workable soil, this brush was cleared, and all roots were 

 taken out, though at considerable expense. 



SOIL AND MOISTURE. 



The presence of the shrubby, humus-making cover had built up a 

 good nursery soil. The bench had evidently been deposited by the 

 river when it last changed its bed and consists of almost pure sandj 

 with enough humus to make it dark gray in color to a depth of 10 to 

 20 inches. Below this depth it changes rapidly to a white, coarse 

 sand with occasional gravel. Were it not for the nearness of the 

 water table this soil would doubtless be quite arid, since the subsoil 

 is too coarse to hold water or to transmit it readily to a dry surface » 

 While deep-rooted plants can reach the water, this fact is of no value 

 to tree seedHngs, because the effort is made to curtail deep-root 

 development in the nursery. 



The problem of watering the nursery ground has never been difficult. 

 At the outset sufficient water was easily pumped by a windmill for 

 nursery as well as domestic use. It was stored in a cement-lined 

 reservoir and distributed to the houses and to all parts of the nursery 

 through 2-inch mains. Later, however, with a larger area under 

 63519°— Bull. 121—13 i 



