1901 
757 
THH RURAL NHW-YORKER. 
Springs and Forest Growth. 
A. A. IL, Vermont.—Are springs affected 
by the cutting off of wood and timber? 
The spring which supplies my buildings 
with water comes out of the foot of a 
mountain. The question I would like an¬ 
swered by experts is; Should I cut the tim¬ 
ber near the base of this mountain and 
about the spring, would It decrease or in 
any way affect the supply of water? Do 
not the roots of large trees drink up as 
much molstune from the earth as the 
branches would hold? The trees are most¬ 
ly large maples, hemlocks, etc., and the 
spring is a deep one, evidently. If I cut the 
wood off I should set the land again to 
an orchard. 
The question as to the influence of 
forest cover on the flow of springs can¬ 
not readily be answered by a simple yes 
or no, for it depends upon a complexity 
of conditions and would, therefore, re¬ 
quire a careful diagnosis of the condi¬ 
tions surrounding the spring, especially 
geological and topographical conditions. 
There are various kinds of springs, ac¬ 
cording to the character of the geolog¬ 
ical formation; some, like the so-called 
ground water or cavern spring, would 
not be to any particular extent influ¬ 
enced by the presence or removal of the 
protecting forest cover; others, namely 
surface springs, very quickly show a 
difference in flow, sometimes to the ex¬ 
tent of wiping out the spring altogether; 
while with others, like the so-called 
fissure springs, it would depend whether 
the supply of water comes from a dis¬ 
tance or from near the spring. In the 
latter case removal of the immediate 
shade of a forest cover may reduce the 
outflow. The roots of trees do not, as a 
rule, absorb as much water as the evap¬ 
oration by the sun on an unprotected 
water-shed would. If, as the writer 
states, the spring is a deep one, the re¬ 
moval of the shade may not affect it 
much. B. E. FERNOW. 
Ithaca, N. Y. 
It is quite necessary that a person 
know something about the geological 
conditions in order to discuss this ques¬ 
tion satisfactorily. That the cutting off 
of woods does affect the flow of springs 
there is little question, generally speak¬ 
ing. While it is true that trees do act 
as pumps, and assist in giving off much 
water to the air through transpiration. 
that the clearing up of 40 to 80 acres, 
or even 160, would seriously reduce the 
capacity of any deep-seated spring. If 
your correspondent’s land covers the 
whole of a comparatively short steep 
slope, so that all of the water which 
contributes to the spring must fall up¬ 
on his own land, then it is quite likely 
that the clearing of it and replanting 
to orchards might lessen tne flow of his 
spring somewhat, unless he planted his 
orchard on contours, and controlled the 
drainage from the slope by means of 
contour ridges, so as effectually to pre¬ 
vent washing and gullying. But I 
should not expect a sufficient decrease 
to render the spring dry unless it is a 
very small spring. f. h. kino. 
Madison, Wis._ 
EVERYBODY’S GARDEN. 
Extensive vs. Intensive Culture.— 
In these days of magnificent enterprises 
in farming and gardening, as illustrated 
on page 721, the small operator must 
needs pinch himself to determine wheth¬ 
er he is really awake, or Rip Van 
Winkle-like, merely sleeping the hours 
away. To many of but little or even no 
means at all, the idea of launching out 
into the teeth of these vast undertakings 
with the hope of successfully stemming 
the tide, the outlook seems hopeless. 
If, however, it is remembered that broad 
acres and costly paraphernalia are not 
always the true index of real profits, 
the case may perchance take on a new 
aspect. I have no quarrel with the ex¬ 
tensive operator, but nevertheless have 
the almost certain knowledge that there 
always has been and always will be 
plenty of room for the less pretentious, 
provided he is the really up-to-date and 
intensive man. It is all right and 
withal very instructive for the man of 
the long bank account and unlimited 
ready cash to set the big wheels in mo¬ 
tion to tell us just how these great en¬ 
terprises may be profitably operated. 
But if he can clearly show his less for¬ 
tunate neighbors how to “make circum¬ 
stances,” and by his own unaided ef¬ 
forts to throw up a highway to success, 
he may perchance confer upon the world 
a far greater service. The vast major¬ 
ity have to begin the life battle empty 
handed, and hence, said vast majority 
are, at the start at least, compelled to 
face and solve the stern problem of 
making bricks without straw. None of 
us by any means holds the true key to 
the situation, for it must be filed and 
IMPLEMENTS USED IN GARDEN. 
Plow . $6.50 
Planet Jr wheel hoe. 6.00 
“ “ hill and drill seeder. 7.00 
“ “ 12-tooth cultivator . 8.00 
Roller . 3.50 
Wheelbarrow . 1-00 
Spade .75 
Shovel .60 
Hoe .40 
Garden line .15 
Rake .35 
Sprayer . 5.00 
Horse and wagon. 75.00 
Hotbeds . 10.40 
350 flower pots. 7.00 
Total .$131.65 
The tools above enumerated would 
have cultivated much more ground, and 
were but little worn, but reasonable al¬ 
lowance was made in interest on capital 
invested. At this rate, the profits per 
acre would be $124.48, which is a fair 
showing, but not at all out of the ordi¬ 
nary, as many of the gardens reported 
showed profits far and away above this. 
The prizes were not contingent upon the 
largest showing of profit, but accuracy 
of detail as to methods and results or 
“just what you did and how you did it 
Side Lines. —While the actual results 
clearly show that good profits are not 
always contingent upon large invest 
ments, it clearly shows that intensive 
culture will bring satisfactory results. 
While the large cash prizes must be con¬ 
sidered purely as side lines, and by no 
means to be considered as certain quan¬ 
tities, they readily show the value of 
keeping the eyes open to the possibili 
ties around us, and keeping them con¬ 
stantly set upon the highest possible 
mark. As before Intimated in these col¬ 
umns, other possibilities, such as breed¬ 
ing up, highest excellence in products, 
catering for best customers, prizes at 
fairs, and a thousand and one other 
sources of profit, are all accessible to 
the small as well as the large operator. 
Then for us who must doubtless be num¬ 
bered among the “small fry,” there is 
much of encouragement. In fact, with 
eyes ever wide open to the possibilities 
around us, we need never have a fear 
to pull off our coats and knock the chip 
from the shoulder of the largest oper¬ 
ator on earth. J. "e. morse. 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you will get a quick reply and 
‘ 'a square deal. ” See our guarantee 8th page. 
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THE STANDARD PAINT CO., 
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NEW YORK. 
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Rcmir\gtoi\; 
Standard Typewriter.^ 
WYCKOFF, SEAMANS & BENEDICT, 
327 Broadway, New York. 
they nevertheless shade the ground and 
the faithful record of success, or even 
retard much evaporation. The leaf mold 
and decaying organic matter found in 
woods act as reservoirs for springs. 
Under certain formations of soils, how¬ 
ever, springs are entirely independent 
of forest growth. I am inclined to 
think that if all of the growth above 
the spring is cut off, and the land broken 
failure, is often helpful and encourag¬ 
ing. If, happily, I may assist some one 
in the solution of this great problem. 
It may be pardonable to make some ex¬ 
tracts from the garden record of 1899, 
which was fortunate enough to win first 
prizes in the great international garden 
contest of that year. For this purpose 
the expenditures and receipts from 
up and put into an orchard, the spring ty^ree-fourths of an acre are tabulated 
would feel the effect. The orchard can¬ 
not lake the place of the forest for con¬ 
serving moisture, and at the same time 
be a profitable orchard. If only a por¬ 
tion of the wooded growth is removed, 
and that near the spring, while plenty 
of growth remains on the mountain, it 
is believed that the spring will not be 
affected. I would, however, keep a small 
amount of shade just above the spring 
itself to lessen the evaporation, and 
keep the ground moist and cool. 
Durham, N. H. frank wm. rane. 
It is not very likely that this spring 
is so local in character as to be appre¬ 
ciably affected by the removal of tim¬ 
ber from any moderate area such as a 
farm immediately around the spring. 
Forests influence the capacity of springs 
and the drainage of water from a coun¬ 
try chiefly by retaining the water which 
falls upon the ground in such a way 
that a larger per cent of it soaks into 
the ground so as to reach the source of 
springs, rather than to flow off quickly 
from the surface without penetrating 
the ground at all. This effect of forests 
is accomplished through the retardation 
of the flow over the surface due to the 
leaves, fallen branches, and forest mold, 
which absorb at once quickly and retain 
quite heavy rains, thus preventing them 
from flowing down slopes and giving 
them opportunity to soak into the 
i;round. I should not, therefore, expect 
While space forbids the detail of the 
cultural methods, or the work performed 
ia order from day to day, it may be well 
to explain that the ground, by force of 
circumstances, was cultivated in four 
separate plots, and the tables in the 
main are general results rather than 
Itemized; also that whatever was con¬ 
sumed by the family or given away, or 
left on hand at the close of the contest, 
was estimated at the regular market 
prices: 
profits. 
Rhubarb (dark forced). J6.n 
Radishes . 
Lettuce . 
Tomato plants . 
Cabbage plants . 
Peas . 
Carrots . 
Cabbage . 47.51 
Sweet corn . 
Butter beans . ^ 
Potatoes . 
Beets . 2.85 
Tomatoes . “ 
Sweet peas . 
Melons . 
Lima beans . 4.^ 
Cornstalks . 
Squashes . 
Parsnips . 
Mangels . 
Onions . 
Total .$170.87 
expenses. 
Rent of land. *3.60 
t Fertilizer . 
Seeds . 
Plants . 8-10 
Roots . 1.00 
Interest on capital invested at six 
per cent .... 
Wear of garden tools at 1% per cent. 
The FARMER^S 
1.77 
Total . 577.51 
arden.5170.87 
Expense of garden. 77.61 
Proceeds from g; 
rd< 
Profits ... 
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IDEM. M'TOMATIC 
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Do You Want a Shot Cun? 
If you do you want a good one, but you need not pay fancy prices for it. 
There is none better made than the Stevens. No. 1 has top snap, low rebounding 
hammer, special “ electro steel’’choke bored 
for nitro powder, walnut stock, rubber butt 
plate case-hardened frame. Forearm attached 
I to barrel, and fitted with metal joint. Price, 
$5.50, or with a year’s subscription to The 
R. N.-Y., §6.25. No. 2, in addition to No. 1, has automatic shell ejector, checked 
pistol grip and forearm. Price, $6.50, or 
with one year’s subscription to The R. N.-Y., 
$7.25. These guns are 12, 16 or 20-gage, 28, 
30 and 32-inch barrel, and weigh about 61^ 
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10 new subscriptions; or No. 2 for a club of 12. 
No boy or man need be without a good shot gun, when he can get one on these 
terms. A few hours’ time among his neighbors will do it. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, New York. 
