FIELD PLANTING. 35 



While the average of yellow pine and jack pine 1-1 transplants are 

 large enough for field planting, it may be necessary at the time of 

 transplanting to separate the smallest of the seedlings and to give 

 these two years in the transplant beds. The largest of the transplants 

 are not so well proportioned as to tops and roots as the medium-sized 

 ones and hence are less valuable for planting. The ideal tree for 

 sand-hill planting has roots at least one-half longer than the top. 



DIGGING AND PACKING. 



Trees are removed from the transplant beds in the same manner 

 as from seed beds, except that they are spaded up a row at a time, and 

 as many of the long roots as possible are saved. As soon as they are 

 loosened from the soil the trees are packed in planting baskets, in 

 which there are several double layers of burlap padded with moss. 

 Between each two layers a comparatively thin layer of trees is placed, 

 so that, without making the pads very wet, all of the roots may be 

 kept moist. By retaining the fine soil which naturally adheres to the 

 rootlets a closer contact between the roots and the new soil of the hills 

 is assured. 



For shipping, trees are now always packed in slatted crates. The 

 roots are all placed at the center of the crate, with abundance of moss 

 between layers, and the tops point outward and are freely aerated. 

 This practically prevents any heating, and the only thing to be 

 feared is the lack of moisture as a result of delayed shipments. 



FIELD PLANTING. 



SPECIES. 



SPECIES FOR THE NEBRASKA SAND HILLS. 



Following the establishment of the station and nursery at Halsey, 

 in the fall of 1902, some jack pine was immediately planted. This 

 species was selected because of its well-known adaptability to the 

 sandy soils of the Lake States, and the success attained with it on 

 the Bruner ^ plantation. Experience has shown that the first choice 

 was a wise one. Some 70,000 seedlings were pulled in the forests of 

 Minnesota and planted at Halsey in the spring of 1903. Of this 

 number 15 or 20 per cent were living three years later. The trees 

 were from 2 to 5 years old when planted, and it is probable that a 

 greater degree of success would have been attained if only the younger 

 ones had been used. As it is, the survivors of this group are now 

 the leaders of the entire plantation. In nine years they have attained 

 heights of from 6 to 11 feet. 



At the same time, 30,000 forest-pulled seedlings of western yellow 

 pine, from the Black Hills, were planted. These failed entirely, and 



1 Four miles west of Swan, Holt County, Nebr. 



