FOREST PLANTING IN THE EASTERN UNITED STATES. OAL 
Hogs root up the soil and expose the tree roots to the air, or even 
devour the roots themselves. In Iowa hogs completely destroyed one 
plantation of European larch in this way. Young trees are very 
likely to be rooted completely out of the ground. 
If shade and protection for stock can be obtained in no other way, 
the animals can be admitted to one portion of a plantation and 
excluded entirely from the other portions, which should be devoted 
exclusively to the growing of timber. 
FIRE. 
Whenever there is any danger from fire, definite steps should be 
taken to guard against it. Most of the smaller plantations already 
established are located near the owner’s residence, where they can be 
kept under observation, but in some of the larger plantations, where a 
close watch has not been kept, fires have done considerable damage. 
_ The owner of a large plantation should certainly make some provision 
to protect it, especially if it is near a railroad or is likely to be visited 
by picnic parties. Fire lnes might be constructed, and a general 
watch should always be kept. Roads often make good fire lines, and 
when so used should be kept free from grass. Where no roads pass 
through the tract, fire lines from 6 to 8 feet wide may be plowed 
around the area, or else a strip of this width burned or otherwise kept 
cleared of all inflammable material. A fire line ceases to be a fire line 
wherever it becomes covered with litter or a heavy growth of grass. 
DISEASES, 
The diseases to which the difisrent kinds of trees are subject and the 
methods of combating them can best be ascertained by consulting 
with the Office of Forest Pathology, Bureau of Plant Industry, Wash- 
ington, D.C., or the State experiment station. Prospective planters 
are strongly advised to do this before purchasing their trees. Nursery 
stock, particularly that from abroad, is often diseased. 
MISTAKES IN TREE PLANTING. 
Forest plantations have too often been started by those with little 
knowledge of the requirements of the trees set out, and who were 
often influenced in their choice of species by advertisements of tree 
agents. It is little wonder, then, that mistakes have been made. 
Planting operations should not be undertaken until a thorough inquiry 
has convinced the owner as to which species is best adapted to his pur- 
pose and which will succeed on the planting site selected. Advice and 
aid can be obtained by prospective planters from their respective State 
foresters, a list of whom is given in the Appendix. The Forest Service 
of the United States Department of Agriculture also gives advice in 
regard to the best species to plant and methods of planting. 
