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ment and all the help possible by the Pennsylvania Chestnut Tree 

 Blight Commission. 



Where the blight percentage is high it would often be wise to 

 make a clear cutting of chestnut and if there are other species in 

 the mixture perhaps the chestnut could be eliminated, and the 

 land stocked to other species. In many cases the chestnut is being 

 clear cut and the ground planted to pine, spruce or hardwood trees. 



The commission has established a Department of Utilization, 

 which is collecting information on the various industries which use 

 or might use chestnut, listing the buyers and owners of chestnut, and 

 assisting the owners of blighted chestnut in marketing the timber 

 to their best advantage. The department is trying to increase the 

 demand of chestnut by calling attention to its many good qualities, 

 and thus utilize a large quantity that must necessarily be thrown 

 upon the market. In spite of the large amount of blighted chestnut 

 much of which is being cut the market price of chestnut lumber in 

 many places throughout the State looked for a drop in price, but in- 

 stead are confronted with an increase of from $i.oo to $3.00 per 

 1,000 feet within the past three months. There is at present a very 

 good market for first and seconds. No. i common and sound wormy, 

 in inch boards and all sorts of dimension material. Chestnut owners 

 need not be afraid to cut their timber into different grades of 

 lumber because there is a ready sale for material of this kind. 



There is a good market, also, in almost every locality, for poles 

 and ties. Cordwood presents a difficult problem of disposal. The 

 best market for this is in the central part of the State at the extract 

 plants the nearest one being at Newport, Perry County. The com- 

 mission has secured from the Pennsylvania Railroad a special tariff 

 on blighted chestnut cordwood so that this product may be profitably 

 shipped from greater distances than before. 



Although the chestnut wood has only about 65 per cent, of the 

 heating value of good oak, it makes a good summer fuel, since it 

 makes good kindling, burns rather quickly, and does not produce the 

 lasting intense heat that oak does. A good argument for using 

 chestnut instead of oak or hickory for fuel is that the small chestnut 

 might in a few years be killed off by the blight while the oak, 

 hickory, etc., will grow in value. 



There has been more or less discrimination against blighted 

 chestnut. This has been in many cases unjust since the blight does 

 not appear to injure the value of the wood for most purposes for 

 which it is used. However, the owners sometimes fail to realize 

 that blight cankers are favorable places for the entrance of wood 

 borers and that where a large number of trees are being considered 

 a percentage of them may be materially injured by insects. This is 

 a secondary result of blight infection. When telephone poles are 

 barked it is often seen that borers have attacked the wood under 

 blight cankers and have not touched any other part of the tree, and 

 these cankers are attractive spots for wood destroying fungi. Tele- 



