FORESTRY
STUDY I. WHAT FORESTRY IS AND WHAT IT DOES
Although Forestry is not a new idea but, as a science and an art, has
been applied for nearly two thousand years, there are many persons who
still need an explanation of its aims and principles.
Forestry deals with the establishment, protection and utilization of
forests.
By establishment, is meant the planting of new forests and the cutting
of mature forests, in such a way as to encourage a natural growth of new
trees without artificial planting or seeding. The planting may consist
of sowing seed, or of setting out young trees. The establishment of a
forest by cutting may consist of the removal of all mature trees and
dependence upon the remaining stumps to reproduce the forest from
sprouts, or it may consist of the removal of only a portion of the
mature trees, thus giving the young seedlings on the ground room in
which to grow.
By protection, is meant the safeguarding of the forest from fire, wind,
insects, disease and injury for which man is directly responsible. Here,
the forester also prevents injury to the trees from the grazing and
browsing of sheep and goats, and keeps his forest so well stocked that
no wind can uproot the trees nor can the sun dry up the moist forest
soil.
[Illustration: FIG. 122.--A Forest of Bull Pine Cut on Forestry
Principles. (Photograph taken on the Black Hills National Forest, South
Dakota.)]
By utilization, is meant the conservative and intelligent harvesting of
the forest, with the aim of obtaining the greatest amount of product
from a given area, with the least waste, in the quickest time, and
without the slightest deterioration of the forest as a whole. The
forester cuts his mature trees, only, and generally leaves a sufficient
number on the ground to preserve the forest soil and to cast seed for
the production of a new crop. In this way, he secures an annual output
without hurting the forest itself. He studies the properties and values
of the different woods and places them where they will be most useful.
He lays down principles for so harvesting the timber and the
by-products of the forest that there will be the least waste and injury
to the trees which remain standing. He utilizes the forest, but does not
cut enough to interfere with the neighboring water-sheds, which the
forests protect.
[Illustration: 123.--A White Pine Plantation, in Rhode Island, Where the
Crowns of the Trees Have Met. The trees are fifteen years old and in
many cases every other tree had to be removed.]
Forestry, therefore, deals with a vast and varied mass of information,
comprising all the known facts relating to the life of a forest. It does
not deal with the individual tree and its planting and care,--that would
be arboriculture. Nor does it consider the grouping of trees for
aesthetic effect,--that would be landscape gardening. It concerns itself
with the forest as a community of trees and with the utilization of the
forest on an economic basis.
Each one of these activities in Forestry is a study in itself and
involves considerable detail, of which the reader may obtain a general
knowledge in the following pages. For a more complete discussion, the
reader is referred to any of the standard books on Forestry.
The life and nature of a forest: When we think of a forest we are apt to
think of a large number of individual trees having no special
relationship to each other. Closer observation, however, will reveal
that the forest consists of a distinct group of trees, sufficiently
dense to form an unbroken canopy of tops, and that, where trees grow
so closely together, they become very interdependent. It is this
interdependence that makes the forest different from a mere group of
trees in a park or on a lawn. In this composite character, the
forest enriches its own soil from year to year, changes the climate
within its own bounds, controls the streams along its borders and
supports a multitude of animals and plants peculiar to itself. This
communal relationship in the life history of the forest furnishes a
most interesting story of struggle and mutual aid. Different trees
have different requirements with regard to water, food and light.
Some need more water and food than others, some will not endure much
shade, and others will grow in the deepest shade. In the open, a
tree, if once established, can meet its needs quite readily and,
though it has to ward off a number of enemies, insects, disease and
windstorm--its struggle for existence is comparatively easy. In the
forest, the conditions are different. Here, the tree-enemies have to
be battled with, just as in the open, and in addition, instead of
there being only a few trees on a plot of ground, there are
thousands growing on the same area, all demanding the same things
out of a limited supply. The struggle for existence, therefore,
becomes keen, many falling behind and but few surviving.
[Illustration: FIG. 124.--Measuring the Diameter of a Tree and Counting
its Annual Rings.]
This struggle begins with the seed. At first there are thousands of
seeds cast upon a given area by the neighboring trees or by the
birds and the winds. Of these, only a few germinate; animals feed on
some of them, frost nips some and excessive moisture and unfavorable
soil conditions prevent others from starting. The few successful
ones soon sprout into a number of young trees that grow thriftily
until their crowns begin to meet. When the trees have thus met, the
struggle is at its height. The side branches encroach upon each
other (Fig. 123), shut out the light without which the branches
cannot live, and finally kill each other off. The upper branches vie
with one another for light, grow unusually fast, and the trees
increase in height with special rapidity. This is nature's method of
producing clear, straight trunks which are so desirable for poles
and large timber. In this struggle for dominance, some survive and
tower above the others, but many become stunted and fail to grow,
while the majority become entirely overtopped and succumb in the
struggle; see Fig. 139.
But in this strife there is also mutual aid. Each tree helps to
protect its neighbors against the danger of being uprooted by the
wind, and against the sun, which is liable to dry up the rich soil
around the roots. This soil is different from the soil on the open
lawn. It consists of an accumulation of decayed leaves mixed with
inorganic matter, forming, together, a rich composition known as
_humus_. The trees also aid each other in forming a close canopy
that prevents the rapid evaporation of water from the ground.
The intensity of these conditions will vary a great deal with the
composition of the forest and the nature and habits of the
individual trees. By composition, or type of forest, is meant the
proportion in which the various species of trees are grouped; i.e.,
whether a certain section of woodland is composed of one species or
of a mixture of species. By habit is meant the requirements of the
trees for light, water and food.
[Illustration: FIG. 125.--Mountain Slopes in North Carolina Well Covered
with Forests.]
Some trees will grow in deep shade while others will demand the
open. In the matter of water and food, the individual requirements
of different trees are equally marked.
The natural rapidity of growth of different species is also
important, and one caring for a forest must know this rate of
growth, not only as to the individual species, but also with respect
to the forest as a whole. If he knows how fast the trees in a
forest grow, both in height and diameter, he will know how much
wood, in cubic feet, the forest produces in a year, and he can then
determine how much he may cut without decreasing the capital stock.
The rate of growth is determined in this way: A tree is cut and the
rings on the cross-section surface are counted and measured; see
Fig. 124. Each ring represents one year's growth. The total number
of rings will show the age of the tree. By a study of the rings of
the various species of trees on a given plot, the rate of growth of
each species in that location can be ascertained and, by knowing the
approximate number of trees of each species on the forest area, the
rate of growth of the whole forest for any given year can be
determined.
[Illustration: FIG. 126.--Bottom Lands Buried in Waste from Deforested
Mountains. Wu-t'ai-shan, Shan-si Province, China.]
[Illustration: FIG. 127.--Eroded Slope in Western North Carolina.]
Forests prevent soil erosion and floods: Forests help to regulate the
flow of streams and prevent floods. Most streams are bordered by
vast tracts of forest growths. The rain that falls on these forest
areas is absorbed and held by the forest soil, which is permeated
with decayed leaves, decayed wood and root fibers. The forest floor
is, moreover, covered with a heavy undergrowth and thus behaves like
a sponge, absorbing the water that falls upon it and then permitting
it to ooze out gradually to the valleys and rivers below. A forest
soil will retain one-half of its own quantity of water; i.e., for
every foot in depth of soil there can be six inches of water and,
when thus saturated, the soil will act as a vast, underground
reservoir from which the springs and streams are supplied (Fig.
125). Cut the forest down and the land becomes such a desert as is
shown in Fig. 126. The soil, leaves, branches and fallen trees dry
to dust, are carried off by the wind and, with the fall of rain, the
soil begins to wash away and gullies, such as are shown in Fig. 127,
are formed. Streams generally have their origins in mountain slopes
and there, too, the forests, impeding the sudden run off of the
water which is not immediately absorbed, prevent soil erosion.
[Illustration: FIG. 128.--Flood in Pittsburgh, Pa.]
Where the soil is allowed to wash off, frequent floods are
inevitable. Rain which falls on bare slopes is not caught by the
crowns of trees nor held by the forest floor. It does not sink into
the ground as readily as in the forest. The result is that a great
deal of water reaches the streams in a short time and thus hastens
floods. At other periods the streams are low because the water which
would have fed them for months has run off in a few days. The farms
are the first to suffer from the drouths that follow and, during the
period of floods, whole cities are often inundated. Fig. 128 shows
such a scene. The history of Forestry is full of horrible incidents
of the loss of life and property from floods which are directly
traceable to the destruction of the local forests and, on the other
hand, there are many cases on record where flood conditions have
been entirely obviated by the planting of forests. France and
Germany have suffered from inundations resulting from forest
devastation and, more than a hundred years ago, both of these
countries took steps to reforest their mountain slopes, and thereby
to prevent many horrible disasters.
[Illustration: FIG. 129.--Planting a Forest with Seedling Trees on the
Nebraska National Forest. The man on the right is placing the tree in a
slit just made with the spade. The man on the left is shoveling the dry
sand from the surface before making the slit for the tree.]
[Illustration: FIG. 130.--Diagrammatic Illustration of a Selection
Forest.]
How forests are established: New forests may be started from seed or
from shoots, or suckers. If from seed, the process may be carried on
in one of three ways:
First, by sowing the seed directly on the land.
Second, by first raising young trees in nurseries and later setting
them out in their permanent locations in the forest. This method is
applicable where quick results are desired, where the area is not
too large, or in treeless regions and large open gaps where there
is little chance for new trees to spring up from seed furnished by
the neighboring trees. It is a method extensively practiced abroad
where some of the finest forests are the result. The U.S.
government, as well as many of the States, maintain forest-tree
nurseries where millions of little trees are grown from seed and
planted out on the National and State forests. Fig. 129 shows men
engaged in this work. The fundamental principles of starting and
maintaining a nursery have already been referred to in the chapter
on "What Trees to Plant and How."
The third method of establishing a forest from seed is by cutting
the trees in the existing forest so that the seed falling from the
remaining trees will, with the addition of light and space, readily
take root and fill in the gaps with a vigorous growth of trees,
without artificial seeding or planting. This gives rise to several
methods of cutting or harvesting forests for the purpose of
encouraging natural reproduction. The cutting may extend to single
trees over the whole area or over only a part of the whole area.
Where the cutting is confined to single trees, the system is known
as the "Selection System," because the trees are selected
individually, with a view to retaining the best and most vigorous
stock and removing the overcrowding specimens and those that are
fully mature or infested with disease or insects.
Fig. 130 is a diagrammatic illustration of the operation of this
system. In another system the cutting is done in groups, or in
strips, and the number of areas of the groups or strips is extended
from time to time until the whole forest is cleared. This system is
illustrated in Fig. 131. Still another method consists in
encouraging trees which will thrive in the shade, such as the beech,
spruce and hemlock, to grow under light-demanding trees like the
pine. This system presents a "two-storied" forest and is known by
that name. The under story often has to be established by planting.
[Illustration: FIG. 131.--Diagrammatic Illustration of the Group or
Strip System.]
In the system of reproducing forests from shoots or suckers, all
trees of a certain species on a given area are cut off and the old
stumps and roots are depended upon to produce a new set of sprouts,
the strongest of which will later develop into trees. The coniferous
trees do not lend themselves at all to this system of treatment,
and, among the broadleaf trees, the species vary in their ability to
sprout. Some, like the chestnut and poplar, sprout profusely; others
sprout very little.
How forests are protected: Forestry also tries to protect the forests
from many destructive agencies. Wasteful lumbering and fire are the
worst enemies of the forest. Fungi, insects, grazing, wind, snow and
floods are the other enemies.
[Illustration: FIG. 132.--The Result of a Forest Fire. The trees,
lodgepole pine and Englemann spruce, are all dead and down. Photograph
taken in the Colorado National Forest, Colorado.]
By wasteful lumbering is meant that the forest is cut with no regard
for the future and with considerable waste in the utilization of the
product. Conservative lumbering, which is the term used by foresters
to designate the opposite of wasteful lumbering, will be described
more fully later in this study.
Protection from fire is no less important than protection from
wasteful lumbering. Forest fires are very common in this country and
cause incalculable destruction to life and property; see Fig. 132.
From ten to twelve million acres of forest-land are burnt over
annually and the timber destroyed is estimated at fifty millions of
dollars. The history of Forestry abounds in tales of destructive
fires, where thousands of persons have been killed or left
destitute, whole towns wiped out, and millions of dollars in
property destroyed. In most cases, these uncontrollable fires
started from small conflagrations that could readily, with proper
fire-patrol, have been put out.
There are various ways of fighting fires, depending on the character
of the fire,--whether it is a surface fire, burning along the
surface layer of dry leaves and small ground vegetation, a ground
fire, burning below the surface, through the layer of soil and
vegetable matter that generally lines the forest floor, or a top
fire, burning high up in the trees.
When the fire runs along the surface only, the injury extends to the
butts of the trees and to the young seedlings. Such fires can be put
out by throwing dirt or sand over the fire, by beating it, and,
sometimes, by merely raking the leaves away.
Ground fires destroy the vegetable mold which the trees need for
their sustenance. They progress slowly and kill or weaken the roots
of the trees.
[Illustration: FIG. 133.--A Top Fire near Bear Canyon, Arizona.]
Top fires, Fig. 133, are the most dangerous, destroying everything
in their way. They generally develop from surface fires, though
sometimes they are started by lightning. They are more common in
coniferous forests, because the leaves of hardwoods do not burn so
readily. Checking the progress of a top fire is a difficult matter.
Some fires will travel as rapidly as five miles an hour, and the
heat is terrific. The only salvation for the forest lies, in many
cases, in a sudden downpour of rain, a change of wind, or some
barrier which the fire cannot pass. A barrier of this kind is often
made by starting another fire some distance ahead of the principal
one, so that when the two fires meet, they will die out for want of
fuel. In well-kept forests, strips or lanes, free from inflammable
material, are often purposely made through the forest area to
furnish protection against top fires. Carefully managed forests are
also patrolled during the dry season so that fires may be detected
and attacked in their first stages. Look-out stations, watch-towers,
telephone-connections and signal stations are other means frequently
resorted to for fire protection and control. Notices warning campers
and trespassers against starting fires are commonly posted in such
forests. (Fig. 143.)
[Illustration: FIG. 134.--Sheep Grazing on Holy Cross National Forest,
Colorado. The drove consists of 1600 sheep, of which only part are shown
in the photograph.]
The grazing of sheep, goats and cattle in the forest is another
important source of injury to which foresters must give attention.
In the West this is quite a problem, for, when many thousands of
these animals pass through a forest (Fig. 134), there is often very
little young growth left and the future reproduction of the forest
is severely retarded. Grazing on our National Forests is regulated
by the Government.
As a means of protection against insects and fungi, all trees
infested are removed as soon as observed and in advance of all
others, whenever a lumbering operation is undertaken.
[Illustration: FIG. 135.--A Typical Montana Sawmill.]
How forests are harvested: Forestry and forest preservation require that
a forest should be cut and not merely held untouched. But it also
demands that the cutting shall be done on scientific principles, and
that only as much timber shall be removed in a given time as the
forest can produce in a corresponding period. After the cutting, the
forest must be left in a condition to produce another crop of
timber within a reasonable time: see Fig. 122. These fundamental
requirements represent the difference between conservative lumbering
and ordinary lumbering. Besides insuring a future supply of timber,
conservative lumbering, or lumbering on forestry principles, also
tends to preserve the forest floor and the young trees growing on
it, and to prevent injury to the remaining trees through fire,
insects and disease. It provides for a working plan by which the
kind, number and location of the trees to be cut are specified, the
height of the stumps is stipulated and the utilization of the wood
and by-products is regulated.
Conservative lumbering provides that the trees shall be cut as near
to the ground as possible and that they shall be felled with the
least damage to the young trees growing near by. The branches of the
trees, after they have been felled, must be cut and piled in heaps,
as shown in Fig. 122, to prevent fire. When the trunks, sawed into
logs, are dragged through the woods, care is taken not to break down
the young trees or to injure the bark of standing trees. Waste in
the process of manufacture is provided against, uses are found for
the material ordinarily rejected, and the best methods of handling
and drying lumber are employed. Fig. 135 shows a typical sawmill
capable of providing lumber in large quantities.
In the utilization of the by-products of the forest, such as
turpentine and resin, Forestry has devised numerous methods for
harvesting the crops with greater economy and with least waste and
injury to the trees from which the by-products are obtained. Fig.
136 illustrates an improved method by which crude turpentine is
obtained.
[Illustration: FIG. 136.--Gathering Crude Turpentine by the Cup and
Gutter Method. This system, devised by foresters, saves the trees and
increases the output.]
Forestry here and abroad: Forestry is practiced in every civilized
country except China and Turkey. In Germany, Forestry has attained,
through a long series of years, a remarkable state of scientific
thoroughness and has greatly increased the annual output of the
forests of that country.
In France, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Norway, Sweden, Russia
and Denmark, Forestry is also practiced on scientific principles and
the government in each of these countries holds large tracts of
forests in reserve. In British India one finds a highly efficient
Forest Service and in Japan Forestry is receiving considerable
attention.
In the United States, the forest areas are controlled by private
interests, by the Government and by the States. On privately owned
forests, Forestry is practiced only in isolated cases. The States
are taking hold of the problem very actively and in many of them we
now find special Forestry Commissions authorized to care for vast
areas of forest land reserved for State control. These Commissions
employ technically trained foresters who not only protect the State
forests, but also plant new areas, encourage forest planting on
private lands and disseminate forestry information among the
citizens. New York State has such a Commission that cares for more
than a million acres of forest land located in the northern part of
the State. Many other States are equally progressive.
The United States Government is the most active factor in the
preservation of our forests. The Government to-day owns over two
hundred million acres of forest land, set aside as National Forests.
There are one hundred and fifty individual reserves, distributed as
shown in Fig. 137 and cared for by the Forest Service, a bureau in
the Department of Agriculture. Each of the forests is in charge of a
supervisor. He has with him a professional forester and a body of
men who patrol the tract against fire and the illegal cutting of
timber. Some of the men are engaged in planting trees on the open
areas and others in studying the important forest problems of the
region. Fig. 138.
[Illustration: FIG. 137.--Map Showing Our National Forests.]
[Illustration: FIG. 138.--Government Foresters in Missouri Studying the
Growth and Habits of Trees. They are standing in water three feet deep.]
Where cutting is to be done on a National Forest, the conditions are
investigated by a technically trained forester and the cutting is
regulated according to his findings. Special attention is given to
discovering new uses for species of trees which have hitherto been
considered valueless, and the demand upon certain rare species is
lessened by introducing more common woods which are suitable for use
in their place.
Aside from the perpetuation of the national forests, the U.S.
Forest Service also undertakes such tree studies as lie beyond the
power or means of private individuals. It thus stands ready to
cooperate with all who need assistance.
STUDY II. CARE OF THE WOODLAND
Almost every farm, large private estate or park has a wooded area for
the purpose of supplying fuel or for enhancing the landscape effect of
the place. In most instances these wooded areas are entirely neglected
or are so improperly cared for as to cause injury rather than good. In
but very few cases is provision made for a future growth of trees after
the present stock has gone. Proper attention will increase and
perpetuate a crop of good trees just as it will any other crop on the
farm, while the attractiveness of the place may be greatly enhanced
through the intelligent planting and care of trees.
How to judge the conditions: A close examination of the wooded area may
reveal some or all of the following unfavorable conditions:
The trees may be so crowded that none can grow well. A few may have
grown to large size but the rest usually are decrepit, and
overtopped by the larger trees. They are, therefore, unable, for the
want of light and space, to develop into good trees. Fig. 139 shows
woodland in such condition.
[Illustration: FIG. 139.--Woodland which Needs Attention. The trees are
overcrowded.]
There may also be dead and dying trees, trees infested with
injurious insects and fungi and having any number of decayed
branches. The trees may be growing so far apart that their trunks
will be covered with suckers as far down as the ground, or there may
be large, open gaps with no trees at all. Here the sun, striking
with full force, may be drying up the soil and preventing the
decomposition of the leaves. Grass soon starts to grow in these open
spaces and the whole character of the woodland changes as shown in
Figs. 140 and 141.
[Illustration: FIG. 140.--First Stage of Deterioration. The woodland is
too open and grass has taken the place of the humus cover.]
Where any of these conditions exist, the woodland requires
immediate attention. Otherwise, as time goes on, it deteriorates
more and more, the struggle for space among the crowded and
suppressed trees becomes more keen, the insects in the dying trees
multiply and disease spreads from tree to tree. Under such
conditions, the soil deteriorates and the older trees begin to
suffer.
[Illustration: FIG. 141.--Second Stage of Deterioration. The Surface
Soil of the Wooded Area Has Washed Away and the Trees Have Died.]
The attention required for the proper care of woodland may be summed
up under the four general heads of _soil preservation_, _planting_,
_cutting_, and _protection_.
Improvement by soil preservation: The soil in a wooded area can best be
preserved and kept rich by doing two things; by retaining the
fallen leaves on the ground and by keeping the ground well covered
with a heavy growth of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. The
fallen leaves decompose, mix with the soil and form a dark-colored
material known as _humus_. The humus supplies the tree with a
considerable portion of its food and helps to absorb and retain the
moisture in the soil upon which the tree is greatly dependent. A
heavy growth of trees and shrubs has a similar effect by serving to
retain the moisture in the soil.
Improvement by planting: The planting of new trees is a necessity on
almost any wooded area. For even where the existing trees are in
good condition, they cannot last forever, and provision must be made
for others to take their place after they are gone. The majority of
the wooded areas in our parks and on private estates are not
provided with a sufficient undergrowth of desirable trees to take
the place of the older ones. Thus, also, the open gaps must be
planted to prevent the soil from deteriorating.
Waste lands on farms which are unsuited for farm crops often offer
areas on which trees may profitably be planted. These lands are
sufficiently good in most cases to grow trees, thus affording a
means of turning into value ground which would otherwise be
worthless. It has been demonstrated that the returns from such
plantations at the end of fifty years will yield a six per cent
investment and an extra profit of $151.97 per acre, the expense
totaling at the end of fifty years, $307.03. The value of the land
is estimated at $4 per acre and the cost of the trees and planting
at $7 per acre. The species figured on here is white pine, one of
the best trees to plant from a commercial standpoint. With other
trees, the returns will vary accordingly.
[Illustration: FIG. 142.--A Farm Woodlot.]
The usual idea that it costs a great deal to plant several thousand
young trees is erroneous. An ordinary woodlot may be stocked with a
well-selected number of young trees at a cost less than the price
generally paid for a dozen good specimen trees for the front lawn.
It is not necessary to underplant the woodlot with big trees. The
existing big trees are there to give character to the forest and the
new planting should be done principally as a future investment and
as a means of perpetuating the life of the woodlot. Young trees are
even more desirable for such planting than the older and more
expensive ones. The young trees will adapt themselves to the local
soil and climatic conditions more easily than the older ones. Their
demand for food and moisture is more easily satisfied, and because
of their small cost, one can even afford to lose a large percentage
of them after planting.
The young plants should be two-year-old seedlings or three-year-old
"transplants."
Two-year-old seedlings are trees that have been grown from the seed
in seed beds until they reach that age. They run from two to fifteen
inches in height, depending upon the species.
Three-year-old "transplants" have been grown from the seed in seed
beds and at the end of the first or second year have been taken up
and transplanted into rows, where they grow a year or two longer.
They are usually a little taller than the two-year-old seedlings,
are much stockier and have a better root system. For this reason,
three-year-old transplants are a little more desirable as stock for
planting. They will withstand drought better than seedlings.
The best results from woodland planting are obtained with
native-grown material. Such stock is stronger, hardier and better
acclimated. Foreign-grown stock is usually a little cheaper, owing
to the fact that it has been grown abroad, under cheap labor
conditions.
The trees may be purchased from reputable dealers, of whom there are
many in this country. These dealers specialize in growing young
trees and selling them at the low cost of three to ten dollars per
thousand. In States in which a Forestry Commission has been
inaugurated, there have also been established State nurseries where
millions of little trees are grown for reforestation purposes. In
order to encourage private tree planting, the Forestry Commissions
are usually willing to sell some of these trees at cost price, under
certain conditions, to private land owners. Inquiries should be
made to the State Forestry Commission.
Great care must be taken to select the species most suitable for the
particular soil, climatic and light conditions of the woodlot. The
trees which are native to the locality and are found growing
thriftily on the woodlot, are the ones that have proven their
adaptability to the local conditions and should therefore be the
principal species used for underplanting. A list from which to
select the main stock would, therefore, vary with the locality. In
the Eastern States it would comprise the usual hardy trees like the
red, pin and scarlet oaks, the beech, the red and sugar maples, the
white ash, the tulip tree, sycamore, sweet gum and locust among the
deciduous trees; the white, Austrian, red, pitch and Scotch pines,
the hemlock and the yew among the conifers.
With the main stock well selected, one may add a number of trees and
shrubs that will give to the woodland scene a pleasing appearance at
all seasons. The brilliant autumnal tints of the sassafras,
pepperidge, blue beech, viburnum, juneberry and sumach are
strikingly attractive. The flowering dogwood along the drives and
paths will add a charm in June as well as in autumn and an
occasional group of white birch will have the same effect if planted
among groups of evergreens. Additional undergrowth of native
woodland shrubs, such as New Jersey tea, red-berried elder and
blueberry for the Eastern States, will augment the naturalness of
the scene and help to conserve the moisture in the soil.
Two or three years' growth will raise these plants above all grass
and low vegetation, and a sprinkling of laurel, rhododendron, hardy
ferns and a few intermingling colonies of native wild flowers such
as bloodroot, false Solomon's seal and columbines for the East, as
a ground cover will put the finishing touches to the forest scene.
As to methods of planting the little trees, the following
suggestions may prove of value. As soon as the plants are received,
they should be taken from the box and dipped in a thick puddle of
water and loam. The roots must be thoroughly covered with the mud.
Then the bundles into which the little trees are tied should be
loosened and the trees placed in a trench dug on a slant. The dirt
should be placed over the roots and the exposed parts of the plants
covered with brush or burlap to keep away the rays of the sun.
When ready for planting, a few plants are dug up, set in a pail with
thin mud at the bottom and carried to the place of planting. The
most economical method of planting is for one man to make the holes
with a mattock. These holes are made about a foot in diameter, by
scraping off the sod with the mattock and then digging a little hole
in the dirt underneath. A second man follows with a pail of plants
and sets a single plant in this hole with his hands, see Fig. 129,
making sure that the roots are straight and spread out on the bottom
of the hole. The dirt should then be packed firmly around the plant
and pressed down with the foot.
Improvement by cutting: The removal of certain trees in a grove is often
necessary to improve the quality of the better trees, increase their
growth, make the place accessible, and enhance its beauty. Cutting
in a wooded area should be confined to suppressed trees, dead and
dying trees and trees badly infested with insects and disease. In
case of farm woodlands, mature trees of market value may be cut, but
in parks and on private estates these have a greater value when left
standing. The cutting should leave a clean stand of well-selected
specimens which will thrive under the favorable influence of more
light and growing space. Considerable care is required to prevent
injury to the young trees when the older specimens are cut and
hauled out of the woods. The marking of the trees to be removed can
best be done in summer when the dead and live trees can be
distinguished with ease and when the requisite growing space for
each tree can be judged better from the density of the crowns. The
cutting, however, can be done most advantageously in winter.
Immediately after cutting all diseased and infested wood should be
destroyed. The sound wood may be utilized for various purposes. The
bigger logs may be sold to the local lumber dealers and the smaller
material may be used for firewood. The remaining brush should be
withdrawn from the woodlot to prevent fire during the dry summer
months.
In marking trees for removal, a number of considerations are to be
borne in mind besides the elimination of dead, diseased and
suppressed trees. When the marker is working among crowding trees of
equal height, he should save those that are most likely to grow into
fine specimen trees and cut out all those that interfere with them.
The selection must also favor trees which are best adapted to the
local soil and climatic conditions and those which will add to the
beauty of the place. In this respect the method of marking will be
different from that used in commercial forestry, where the aim is to
net the greatest profit from the timber. In pure forestry practice,
one sees no value in such species as dogwood, ironwood, juneberry,
sumac and sassafras, and will therefore never allow those to grow up
in abundance and crowd out other trees of a higher market value. But
on private estates and in park woodlands where beauty is an
important consideration, such species add wonderful color and
attractiveness to the forest scene, especially along the roads and
paths, and should be favored as much as the other hardier trees. One
must not mark too severely in one spot or the soil will be dried out
from exposure to sun and wind. When the gaps between the trees are
too large, the trees will grow more slowly and the trunks will
become covered with numerous shoots or suckers which deprive the
crowns of their necessary food and cause them to "die back." Where
the trees are tall and slim or on short and steep hillsides, it is
also important to be conservative in marking in order that the stand
may not be exposed to the dangers of windfall. No hard-and-fast rule
can be laid down as to what would constitute a conservative
percentage of trees to cut down. This depends entirely on the local
conditions and on the exposure of the woodlot. But in general it is
not well to remove more than twenty per cent of the stand nor to
repeat the cutting on the same spot oftener than once in five or six
years. The first cutting will, of course, be the heaviest and all
subsequent cuttings will become lighter and lighter until the
woodlot is put in good growing condition. On private estates and
parks, where beauty is the chief aim, the woodland should be kept as
natural, informal and as thick as possible. Where the woodland is
cut up by many paths and drives, density of vegetation will add to
the impression of depth and distance.
Protection: This subject has already been discussed considerably in the
previous study on Forestry, and here it becomes necessary merely to
add a few suggestions with special reference to private and park
woodlands.
Guarding woodlands from _fire_ is the most important form of
protection. Surface fires are very common on small woodland holdings
and the damage done to the standing vegetation is generally
underestimated. An ordinary ground or surface fire on a woodland
area will burn up the leaf-litter and vegetable mold, upon which the
trees depend so much for food and moisture, and will destroy the
young seedlings on the ground. Where the fire is a little more
severe, the older trees are badly wounded and weakened and the
younger trees are frequently killed outright. Insects and disease
find these trees an easy prey, and all related forest conditions
commence to deteriorate.
Constant watchfulness and readiness to meet any emergency are the
keynote of effective fire protection. Notices similar to the one
shown in Fig. 143 often help to prevent fires. It is also helpful to
institute strict rules against dropping lighted matches or tobacco,
or burning brush when the ground is very dry, or leaving smouldering
wood without waiting to see that the fire is completely out. There
should be many roads and foot-paths winding through the woodland in
order that they may serve as checks or "fire lanes" in time of fire.
These roads and paths should be kept free from brush and leaves and
should be frequently patrolled. When made not too wide,
unpretentious and in conformity with the natural surroundings, such
drives and paths can become a very interesting feature of the place,
winding through the woodland, exposing its charms and affording
opportunity for pleasant driving and walking. The borders of the
paths can be given special attention by placing the more beautiful
native shrubs in prominent positions where they can lend increased
attractiveness.
In case of fire, it should be possible to call for aid by telephone
directly from the woodland and to find within easy reach the tools
necessary to combat fire. It is also important to obtain the
co-operation of one's neighbors in protecting the adjoining
woodlands, because the dangers from insects, disease and fire
threatening one bit of woodland area are more or less dependent upon
the conditions in the adjoining woodland.
[Illustration: FIG. 143.--Poster Suitable for Private Woodlands and
Forest Parks. The translations in Italian and Polish have been used by
the writer in this particular instance to meet the local needs.]
As to other forms of protection, passing mention may be made of the
importance of keeping out cattle, sheep and hogs from the woods, of
eliminating all insects and disease, of keeping the ground free from
brush and other inflammable material, of retaining on the ground all
fallen leaves and keeping the forest well stocked with little trees
and shrubs.
Forest lands may be exempted from taxation: In New York and other States
there exists a State law providing for exemption or reduction in
taxes upon lands which are planted with forest trees or maintained
as wooded areas. The object of the law is to encourage home forestry
and to establish fairness in the agricultural land-tax law by
placing forest lands in the same category with other crop-producing
lands. For detailed information and a copy of the law, one should
address the local State Forestry Commission.