BY J. E. BARTON | ~ STATE FORESTER OF KENTUCKY Se Pee RRANKPORE 8 > - p . f y. * 4 { « ¥ . . | ¢ * th < 1 pillewn.* Esco nee aie on row F aette.| ahaa MR IDee aale =i sf a é f i s ‘ ae4 . an . ‘ < ‘ oF : r . t Re ‘ ‘ i - S PS ( ‘7 aed i « Rie , 2 , te ae : 4 Tuan RAT i * 1 , tae ‘ ‘ } > - “ ' = < 4 6 5 , . ' , t ia 7 Ls h oy ee = ; , . 4 : ! 1 a ; q A" 4 p : + ; ts em, j > am, 1 : 7 o ¢ 4 ies ‘ . wae é A wy had 4 ii ¢ — ma n ; : = - 4 A 7 ‘ ‘ : +4 . Sh pane “BOTAIBS WSOIOT “S “M1 AQ 004d “(,g—,L) SIsod FIs OyeUr [ITM 910e jJyey-2u0 UO S9eI} JG] ‘“OOIM} POUUTY} BdUIS puv ‘1eah DUO poayeAT[ND OS sIvdt SUIN “J1vde jooy Ino} SMOI UL ‘puR, peMold Ul UMOS p9Zdg [10S 100d UO aINjsed UL GAOIS YsNdO] YorIG The Farm and the Woodlot By J. E. BARTON, State Forester of Kentucky. Published by the direction of the State Board of Forestry. GovERNoR JAMES B. McCreary, Chairman. Joun W. NEwMay, Commissioner of Agriculture. JosepH H. Kastue, Director, Kentucky Experiment Station. Hon. JoHnson N. Campen, Versailles. Hon. W. H. Mackoy, Covington. _ Mrs. Mason Maury, Louisville. “oe oY n AAAS THE FARM AND THE WOODLOT INTRODUCTION. Undoubtedly, one of the most important phases of the forestry work, so far as the individual States are concerned, is the question of the woodlot and its improvement. In the Eastern States—that is, those east of the Mississippi River— a very considerable portion of the forested areas within each State is in the form of woodlots which are a part of and an adjunct to the farm so that in any comprehensive forest policy for the Eastern United States a great deal of attention must be focused upon this phase of the work. This is, undoubtedly, true so far as Kentucky is concerned where, as a whole, the land is held in fee simple by the citizens of the State as farms from a few acres in size up to several thousand acres. By the majority of the owners of these farms, the value and import- ance of the woodlot is little understood nor has the practice of forestry as it applies to these woodlots any significance whatsoever. The object of this bulletin is to make clear just what forestry is, the relation of scientific forestry to the im- provement of the woodlot and the economical part which the farm woodlot plays in the industrial and social welfare of the State. As a matter of fact, this is one of the most difficult features of the work to present properly, because it is a hard matter to make clear to the average individual just why a woodlot is an asset in connection with his property and how the improvement and care of his woodlot concerns him closely and means a proportional increase directly in the actual money value of the material on hand and indirectly in ways which do not present themselves readily unless the attention is focused on them—as for example, the value of a woodlot as a wind-break in connection with an orchard or in connection with the farm as a whole, or the value of a wooded area on an 4 Tar Farm AND THE WOODLOT easily eroded hillside as a fixative for the soil and a preven- tative against the deterioration of the cultivated areas below it. The effort then of this bulletin will be—first, to show how the average woodlot may be brought to a standard of pro- ductivity compatible with the complete utilization ‘of the ground, and second, to show in detail what the direct and in- direct benefits of a woodlot in connection with any farm will be under the best circumstances. In the preparation of this -bul- letin, free use has been made of all bulletins and publications on this subject, which the writer has been able to get hold of and acknowledgment is made to these as a whole, since it would be impracticable to make complete individual acknowl- edgement. WHAT IS FORESTRY ? To the average individual, forestry as a science does not mean very much. The impression is that it has to do with the trees, but to what extent and how it deals with this question is by no means thoroughly understood. In the first place, for- estry deals with trees as a community and not as an individual —that is, it deals with them in the bulk and in this respect differs from kindred sciences where the individual tree is a matter of concern. The forester is often called upon to answer questions and discuss matters with relation to shade trees or ornamental trees, but this is not a matter within his province properly, but is a matter for the landscape architect or horti- eulturist. Forestry primarily coneerns itself with the plant- ing and growing of trees for sale at a profit. Occasionally forestry may concern itself with the growing and raising of trees for purposes where the money value of the crop, while it may not be as evident as where the trees are placed on the market and sold, is neverthehless, a real money consideration. This is the case, where certain areas are planted for the purifi- cation and conservation of a city water supply. Here the actual worth of the forest is the value to the people of the city or community of pure drinking water. This will be the ease in the Catskill Mountains where enormous expenditures are being made for supplying New York City with pure water Tor Farm AND THE WOODLOT 5) and where the purity of this water supply depends upon the maintenance of certain areas in forest growth. Forestry then, so far as it relates to the farm and woodlot, may be defined as dealing with trees as communities and the growing and marketing of these trees for a profit. It is a simple proposi- tion, the same as raising corn. In raising corn, the ground is prepared, the seed is planted at a certain time in the spring, the necessary attention is given during the growing season and in the fall it is harvested and sold. A certain price is obtained for the grain and a certain price for the stalks, usually in the form of fodder for stock. The chief value of the corn crop depends upon the number of bushels per acre of corn (grain) that have been produced and the kind and quality of corn there is to market. The kind and quality of the corn crop depends on the selection of seed, All this is accomplished within a year’s time—the planting, the harvesting, the cul- tivation and the sale of the product. Forestry is exactly the same proposition. The stock is selected, the trees are planted, the necessary attention is given them during the growing period, and eventually the crop is harvested and marketed for the best price obtainable. The value of the timber crop de- pends on how much material you raise to the acre, the kind and quality of the product you have to market and the de- mand in the market for the class of material to which the timber crop is particularly adapted. The chief difference is this: that, whereas, the corn crop has been planted, harvested and marketed within one growing season, a forest crop takes a period of growing seasons before it is ready to market. The precise length of this period depends on the kind of material you are to raise, as fence posts, ties, lumber, ete. IMPROVEMENT OF THE WOODLOT. What then can be done to show the man most concerned, the farmer, the importance of the improvement of his wood- lot? First, an attempt will be made to set forth the matter as clearly as possible in print, which is the object of this bulletin; and the necessary steps will then be taken to furnish an ocular demonstration of the facts herein set forth by the 6 THe Farm AND THE WoopLor establishment of nurseries and the maintenance of model woodlots. On the big majority of farms in Kentucky, there are certain areas which are not good farm land and never will be for a variety of reasons( inferior soil, rocky soil, too steep a slope, ete.) ; but these lands in most cases can produce timber crops and should be producing them, since they are a commer- cial adjunct to the farm and bring in a revenue. As Mr. W. F. Cook, of Hickman County, says, ‘‘It is a great deal more valuable than giving the land over to weeds and wild briars.”’ Ordinarily, there is little or no attention paid to the wood- lot on a farm, and without attention a woodlot is in much the same condition as a corn field in which no attention was paid to the kind of corn planted, and which was not cultivated during the growing season. You commonly find in a woodlot a great variety of trees, some of a valuable species and some of more or less worthless species. You also find crooked and defective and diseased trees, and further you ordinarily do not find in any particular woodlot one-half the trees that the ground will support, which is about the worst feature of all, since here is an economic waste. PURPOSES OF THE WOODLOT. When the improvement of the woodlot is seriously under consideration, one of the first propositions is to determine just what purpose the woodlot will serve in the economy of the farm. Ordinarily a woodlot will be maintained for the fol- lowing reasons: 1. To furnish fence posts; 2. To furnish fuel; 3. As a shelter belt for certain areas or for the whole farm; 4. As a protection on steep up-lands against erosion; 5, As a means of regeneration of worn out land; 6. As an investment pure and simple, without regard to immediate returns; 7. For the aesthetic value. Any combination of these reasons may prevail for the maintenance of a woodlot; however, each one of them will be discussed in its turn as separate propositions. 1. Probably one of the chief reasons for maintaining the woodlot on farms in Kentucky from the purely utilitarian standpoint will be to obtain fence posts. These are a commod- THe Farm anp THE WoopbLot (| ity on the farm which cannot be dispensed with and for which the demand is staple. Concrete may and will at some future date, supersede wood as fence posts, especially in rich easily accessible agricultural regions where farming is very profita- ble and conducted as a business, but it will do this only slowly in remote regions, and at the present time concrete posts are not extensively used in any locality. A woodlot can then be reasonably maintained for the production of fence posts. Ordinarily the posts are largely consumed on the home farm, since they are more valuable to the producer at this point than if he should sell them; however, if there is a surplus, a market for this will not be lacking and the price obtained will more than justify the cost of the establishment of the woodlot and its maintenance up to the time of har- vesting the crop. In considering the species which lend them- selves most readily to the production of this class of products in Kentucky, undoubtedly, black locust (Robinia pseudaeacia) sometimes locally called yellow locust, lends itself most read- ily to this purpose. It is indigeneous to the State, grows fairly rapidly and lasts a long time in contact with the soil, three prime requisites of any species which is to be used in the growing of this class of material. Other species which may be used are catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) walnut, osage orange, chestnut and juniper (also known locally as cedar or red cedar). 2. As a general proposition, it appears that the mainte- nance of a woodlot for the growing of fuel, so far as Ken- tucky is concerned, is not an important consideration. So far as my observation goes throughout the State—even in the rural districts—coal is the general fuel in use on account of the abundance of supply and is in a large number of ways cheaper and preferable to wood as a fuel. On this account the woodlot will supply only a very small amount of fuel and consideration of this matter is not important. If it does happen that a supply of fuel wood is desirable or necessary on the farm, undoubtedly, hickory and oak lend themselves most readily for this purpose. Any species of hickory grows fairly rapidly, and certain species of oak, as for instance red 8 THe FARM AND THE WoopuLuoT oak, makes a reasonably rapid growth. A woodlot for this purpose would be managed as a sprout forest. 3. The removal of forests and wooded areas of Kentucky has undoubtedly resulted in certain climatic changes. These are principally to be noticed in the prevalence of high winds which formerly did not exist, and such winds have a marked effect on certain farm activities, as for instance the handling of an orchard or the handling of stock.