The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1910-08-12
Ten Tons OF Seed For ReStOck;
ing National Forests.

4 SCCti 1893 dAA CANy OGNu Rio0t~A ~ 'SWn-
The rest will be utilized later in the
season, as favorable conditions are pre-
scented.
1t takes great many tree seeds to
make ten tons. Jackpiue, the most i'm
portant tree for planting in the Nebraska
sand bills by the Forest Service, will
average something like $4,000 TO the
pound. OF Western yellow pine, the tree
most extensively planted throughout the
National Forests as whole, 10000 seed
will make pound. Altogether the ten
tons of seed to be used this year represent
perhaps 900 million single seeds.
If every seed could be depended on to
produce yonng tree suitable for plant
lug, the result would be a supply of
nursery stock sufficient to plant three
hundred thousand acres of land, but no
such result can be looked for because
many seeds do not germinate. Most of
the seed will be sown either broadcast or
in seed spots, or planted with corn
planter, directly in the place where the
trees are to stand.
Even when nursery stock is raised q
liberal allowance must be made for loss.
In the first place, a considerable percent-
age of the seeds will be found to be in
fertile. of those which geruinate. many
will die before they leave the nursery
beds, aud many more will be lost in
transplanting. If, from pound Of West
ern yellow pine seed that contains 10000
individual seeds, 1000 ,three-year-old
transplants are available for field plant
ing. the Department of Agriculture has
obtainad satisfactory results.
There are now twenty, four National
Forest nurseries with an annual produc-
live capacity of over s million seedlings.
But there are many millions of old burns
on the National Forests which are waiting
to be restocked. and some quicker and
cheaper method than the actual planting
Of nursery grown trees isurgently needed.
Therefore the. foresters are making ex
periments on large scale with different
methods of direct sowing and planting,
aud most of the seed gathered last year
was obtained for this use.
Broadcasting has already been found to
give good results in some regions. 1t was
first tried in the Black Hills uf South
Dakota, with an encouraging outcome.
To broadcast an acre of land with yellow
pine seed, about 8 pound of seed is used.
One of the most formidable drawbacks to
this method is the extent to which the
seed may be consumed by birds and 70
dents. If the season happens 10 be one
in which seed for these animals is scarce,
the loss is very heavy. The problem of
control of animal pests, such as field
mice, ground squirrels and gophers,
which eat the tree seeds.> and also the
further problem of preventing the cepre
dations of rabbits, which are altogether
too fond of the little trees themselves.
whether nursery transplants or field
grown seedlings. isreceiving the attention
of the Biological Survey experts at the
dLkulCub Vi 1AkAtS0itaaSs
In some localities the Department has
had to purchase seed, but most Of that
used is gathered by the Forest Service
men themselves. The cost of gathering
has varied from the different regions from
thirty.6ve cents to one dollar pound.
AS rule the seed is collected in the fall
months when most conifers ripen their
seed Parties of three or four men ordi-
narly work together. Where numbering
is in progress the collectors follow the
sawyers and take the cones directly from
task is much more arduous. The men
must often climb tall pines and pull the
the cones from branches as best they can.
Where these are on the extremities and
beyond the reach of the hand, pruning
shears are used. The cones are dropped
TO the ground and then gathered into
buckets and transferred to sacks, in
which they are carried to central point
for further treatment.
The extraction of the seeds is tedious
rather than difficult. In some cases the
cones are spread out upon sheets in the
sun, when, after time, they open and
the seed drop out; id other cases, it is
necessary 10 resort to artificial heat. This
is applied BY plscing the cones upon
Trays with screen bottoms and raising the
temperature of the room to the proper
degree. The cones open. the winged
seeds, fall ont. and the seed is separated
finally from wings and dirt by tanning
mill good many seeds have been re-
moved from the cone by hand, but this is
a sore trial to the fingers of the pickers
aud an exceedingly slow process.
Why Kidney Disease Is Dangerous.
Kidney disease'is dangerous because it