PRODUCTIVE POSSIBILITIES OF THE WOODLOT. 21 



forest with too little care of it. In consequence the private owner 

 loses by the smaller yield of timber, and the community loses by the 

 impairment of the water-holding capacity of the soil. If woodland 

 owners can be persuaded that it is a wise policy to restore normal 

 forest conditions on their individual tracts for the sake of the resulting 

 profit to themselves, a marked improvement in sustained stream-flow 

 for the region should follow. 



While expert advice is desirable, it is by no means necessary for the 

 woodlot owner to consult a forester before he undertakes to improve 

 his holding. Common sense and thoughtfulness in place of neglect 

 will bring him a certain return. As soon as he has once awakened to 

 the fact that wood is just as much a crop as hay. and that intelligent 

 care will certainly bring a better yield and will increase the value of 

 his property, the farmer will be in a fair way to become his own 

 forester/' 



PRODUCTIVE POSSIBILITIES OF THE WOODLOT. 



The woodlot if properly cared for is money put at interest. The 

 day when a farm is valuable in proportion to the amount of cleared 

 land is long past. A good woodlot is like good buildings, good drain- 

 age, and good roads — an improvement with a market value when it 

 becomes desirable to sell. It is often said that trees grow too slowly 

 to be worth the farmers care in this country, where everyone looks 

 for quick returns. The answer is the daily conduct of the very people 

 who use the argument. The thrifty farmer insures his life, when the 

 woodlot would add insurance at a Jower cost and a faster rate; he puts 

 his savings in the bank against old age. though he gets a lower rate of 

 interest than the growth of his trees would yield; he labors to improve 

 his farm in other ways, when a few days* work in the woodlot every 

 year will bring more money for the same effort than anything else he 

 can do: he spends money and time to make his farm look well and takes 

 pride in its appearance, when a little care would make his woodlot the 

 prettiest part of his place. Fuel and fencing all the time, a few logs 

 for timber now and then, an occasional wagon tongue, axle, or bolster, 

 a few spokes or some handle stock when the need comes — the saving 

 of money when these can be got for nothing amounts to a good round 



"Bulletin No. 42 of the Bureau of Forestry, "The Woodlot," by Henry S. Graves 

 and Richard T. Fisher, although designed primarily as a practical guide for wood- 

 lot owners in the Xorth Atlantic States, is a brief exposition of general principles 

 which are widely applicable. It can be obtained from the U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture. Washington, D. C. 



Other recent publications which discuss practical forestry for farmers are: 



The Practice of Forestry by Private Owners, by Henry S. Graves.. Yearbook of 

 the U. S. Department of Agriculture for 1899. 



Practical Forestry in the Southern Appalachians, by Overton W. Price. Year- 

 book of U. S. Department of Agriculture for 1900. 



