Sisseton Posten. [volume] (Effington, Sud Dakota [S.D.]) 1902-19??, 1910-11-24
The TIMBER LOT.
6y c Y. Barns, Minnesota Uni.
versity Farm.


on 50 many old farms though In con-
stantly diminishing numbers and with
. constant shrinkags in dimensions
for the sake of fuel supply, but an
ample slice Of the farm. set aside In
perpetuity for the growing OF timber
as its exclusive crop-that Is what IL
meant by the timber lot"
The recent enormously high ami
still advancing cost OF lumber of all
sorts-and the concurrent discoveries
made that many varieties of quick.
growing lumber heretofore rejected
as worthless. have positive values In
structural work and In the manufaC.
ture OF furniture. tools and boXes-in-
dicate that almost every Minnesota
farm OF eighty acres or more would be
mace more valuable II from one-tifth
TO one-quarter OF It's area should be
devoted to forestry. and planted with
a mixture OF quickgrowing and slow.
growing varieties adapted To the pre-
vailing climatic conditions by quick.
growing" Is meant variety which
will reach maturity-that is. the size
at which II may be most advantage
ously converted into lumber-in from
thirty to thirty.hve years; by SLOW
growing" variety which will require
from fifty to eighty years, or more,
for It's most profitable development
Some so-called hard wood" trees are
found in both classes; the conifcrs are
found only in the slow growing class.
The discovery OF high commercial
and manufacturing values m the tim.
ber OF many quickgrowing trees
changes the character OF the invest.
meEt "A man makes in timber lot. II
becomes not merely an investment for
posterity, something which, like "A life
policy, may afford a competency 10 his
children long after he is gone, but an
| endowment for his own old age also
For. supposing he plants II with mix
ture Of varieties when he is from thir.
| " TO forty years old, by the time he
is from sixty to seventy-fiye the one.
quarter OF his farm which has been
| planted to trees will in all likelihood
| be worth more than all the rest OF H.
| The quick-growing trees can then be
ey equal to that which would have
been netted from successive wheat
crons, on an equal area, for many
years; and the slowgrowing kinds can
be left as an inheritance, gradually ac
| quiring an even greater value, for his
children Meanwhile. another crop oi
| trees can be started to take the place
Ot tuv-~ 'ut'rvcr~u.
| After the first five or ten years
however, the forest. II properly cared
for. will afford annual returns in the
shape of fire-woOd, poles. etc. derived
| from necessary thinning and prunings
| Fruit and nut.bearing varieties, Ike
the wild cherry, Russian mulberry
June berry. walnut, hickory, butternu'
to these returns. and naples may be
tapped for sugar-making without ma
terially interfering with their develop
iHent as timber trees Add the value
| OF all these annual cuttings to the re
ceipts from numbering. and the aRgrc
gate for a fifty.year period will very
| likely exceed what has been gained
from an equal acreage OF wheat or
| an average Minnesota farm. at tho
prices prevailing during the past guar
ter Of a century.
Among the quick-growing trees re
ferred to as having recently beer
found Unexpectedly available for ium
ber are the willow. cottonwood. boz
elder and catalpa.
The slow-growing hardwoods-
the oak. white and green ash. hard
maple, hickory, black cherry. black wal
nut. rock and white elm,-will. how
ever, always retain superior value
and are likely, "in the long rum" e
| yield the largest returns. The price,
now quoted for some OF these woods
are almost fabulously high. and ther.
Is apparently no chance that the fig
ures will decline.
II is as certain as anything In earth
OF such a timber lot as is hcre advo
Gated viii. considered from the view
point OF its own product alone. prove
about as advantageous use OF the
land as can be devised But a further
advantage will accrue from the fact
that the remainder OF the farm will
profit both from the presence OF the
trees and from the concentration
thereon OF all the labor now spread
over a wider area. For most OF the
attention a forest tract requires can
usually be given at times when II is
not required in the cultivation and
gathering OF the cereal and other
crops.
Nothing Is here said about including
the pine in the list OF trees for the
Timber Lot; because. first, the time
required for its best development Is
so excessively long as TO make It's cul
tivation more properly a matter for
the state and for the undying corpora
ton, rather than for individuals. Sec
ond, although, like other trees. the
pine will grow better on good land
especially on a rich soil with a clay
subsoil-it has it's natural home on
the comparatively poor land. not
adapted to agriculture. OF which there
are such large areas In Northern Min
nesota east Of the Red River country
| The owners OF good farm land
whom we have In mind in this article
could probably use IL to better advan
tage In growing such trees as we have
/ na,rad Nth a cnu sidarahia liet ni