The San Francisco call., 1903-09-14
WOOD AS A CROP.

IT He spread OF right conception OF the pur-
pose Of scientific forestry is very gratifying to
those who pioneered the cause in this country
The Eastern press has recently made quite specially
of forestry with the result that former timber lands
not fit for agriculture considered OF value
for raising timber and are being planted for wood as
2 crop
The hill country and mountains of New England
and the Middle States, once timbered but now bare,
are being put into white and yellow pine, black wal
nut and even oak the sowest growing of all. In
the South it is probable that the eucalyptus will flour
ish and it is evident tha not yet aware OF the
economic value of many OF the varieties of that tree
1t fourishes in California and makes rapid growth
and has been found OF value for fuel There are
about forty varieties of this and in Australia
many of them are used for piling and for dimension
timber The leaves and bark rich in essential oil
that has been found of therapeutic value and enters
into many medicinal preparations useful in diseases OF
the respiratory system.
The Philadelphia Record is urging replanting OF the
slopes Of the Allegheny Mountains in that State
Lumberng and fire have stripped them and the ef-
feet on moisture and the climate is disastrous The
land that has been laid bare useless for agriculture
and useful only for arborculture Actual experiment
has shown that much of this denuded land will in
walnut yielding $1,000 per value OF SIS per
year for the time employed in producing the crop
For about ten years OF that time nut crop is pro
duced that will pay interest the investment. II
planted thirty feet apart each will bear fifty
trees As the crop approaches maturity another may
be planted on the same land that the yield is made
constant Large walnut timber in the natural forest
now sells at $4,000 per acre and there is no prospect
that this timber will decrease in value
Mr. Clifford Pinchot has been urging the replanting
OF our denuded forest lands in California He is one
OF the foremost authorities forestry in the world
and California will get much OF value from his in
sruction. There are two policies of vast importance
TO the present and future of this State in which he
can assist us One is the prevention OF forest hres
which destroy the standing crop and the forestpro-
ducing character of the land and the other is the
planting OF lands that have been stripped In our
foothills and mountains are millions of acres, once
timbered and now covered with chemsa manzanita
and coffee bush useless for agriculture and hortcul
ture. which be made to bear timber. II Mr.
Pinchot succeed in getting the work OF replanng at
some point where it serves as an object lesson the
owners Of these lands will be induced to replant them
True II may be said that the crop of slow growth
and the man who plants may not harvest But as
soon as the growth of the crop is established the
IS ready to cut The soil especially fitted for the
growth Of coniferous trees and the yellow and sugar
pine grow here more rapidly than elsewhere so that
we have the best conditions Tor reioresting and a
prospect OF the quickest
But the planting OF trees for forest crop is new
thing with our people They know all other sorts Of
planting for crops which our lands produce, but this
is novel AS soon they instructed they may be
depended upon to take it up with enthusiasm and
intelligence A forestry school in the university
would be OF material benefit in this matter and Mr.
Pnchots promotion of that foundation is highly ap-
precated
The forests of the continent are making their last
stand here. Here therefore should be concentrated
the efforts of the friends of the forest preserve
what have and begin the creation of more, for
not elsewhere in the world is the forest as important
to every material interest OF the people