The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1875-08-20


have wrr.l-r-d Why TIL, tr..,.. >" i..,'a
c.pt,- IL ~. and so easily grc,yu. !s,-Hor
h'-.'n l....s:s.i in the East. ~ would
grow, ] n..iirve, ia aiinoSt amy of the
Eastern States, and ;iS ii shade. free. for
cattle is unsurpassed. The young eat
tin.,s are readily obtained from Western
cottonwood furnishes better shelter and
! lurl ia shorter time than any other
tree ia America There are cottonwOods
| growing near Omaha thirteen years odd
that measure. twenty-five inches ia diam
etrr and forty feet high. a thousand
Of these trees can De- grown on AN acre
several acre., of cottonw6ods which grew
! seven feet in one year from the cuttings
As / write look out upon cottonwood
that was planted in 1869, then no thicker
than my thumb and as high as "A mans
head, and now as thick as Il mans body
and over thirty feet high. 1t has in fact
become an imposing tree in six years.
THE WILLOW
would like to write . good deal abont
the willow, but the length of this com
munication warns me to be brief. The
white willow is the most valuable of this
variety. As windbreak it can be grown
rapidly, and for protection of farms from
hot and cold winds, sun, rain, sleet and
snow, the willow cannot be overrated
When planted Singly it attainS growth
Of from seventy to eighty feet in height
with an immense trunk, but its value is
most realized when planted III rows as
road shades. What is prettier than an
avenue of giant white willows with the
grateful shade and long, graceful branch
g.? | know of several miles of willow
wind breaks which are five years old
from the cuttings, aud form n perfect
wind break fifteen feet high. A farmer
in Douglas COUNTY, Neb., has four miles
of willows, two years old, and at four
years OF age they are a complete prOtec-
Willow cuttings are best made in the
fall, and should be tied in bundles and
buried in II dry place under n foot OF
earth. Keep them cool in n cellar, and
as soon as the ground in the spring will
permit plow deep fnrrow and set out
the cuttings against the land side, while
a second man follows with spade, fill
ing III the earth and pressing it down
, firmly with the foot. The soil should be
pressed as closely about the plants as
possible. Cuttings should be set ont so
us to leave two or three inches out of the
earth. With proper care in planting
and keeping down the weeds not over ;
per cent 81 the pla"ts will be lost; yet
this is considered one OF the hard trees
to raise. \ belt Of willows planted along
the side OF an orchard near Nebraska
City sheltered It from frost. 4 severe
frost had occurred few days before my
informant SAW the belt of willows. dau-
aging the fruit blossoms greatly, and
along the side where the willows were
growing fifteen to twenty feet high. few
peaches were killed, while on the north
side. where there were 10 willows. the
peaches were total failure The reason
of tliiS was that when the sun had its
full power the temperature rose to such
an extent that rs soon as the cold air of
evening, peculiar to northern ATTITUDES,
set in, that locality was first to feel its
effects and suffer most from frost
of trees, bat have already written more
tlIan intended: and for fear of weary
ing the reader will now close my letter.
There is no secret about forest culture.
Any man who can raise potatoes and
corn can raise trees, if he will only take
the trouble to plant and cultivate them
n little. We have got 10 come to forest
planting some time, and the sooner we
begin the better The land las been
robbed of its noble woods, and they can
only be replaced by forest culture. 1t is
not after all so difficult 10 replace them,
but we should begin at once. The man
who plants tree, EY that act becomes
public Eenefaetor The awakening
interest among all classes of the eomnu
nifty about tree growing is most encour-
aging TO the friends Of crest culture.
Yours truly,
JAMES 5. BRIsBIN,
United States Army