The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-07-01
STATE FORESTER'S REPORT
Many Acres of Land in Connecticut Could Be Made VRluab1e-Chest- nut Tree Blight is on the
 Increase.

State Forester Walter O'FilIey has issued the sixth report of the Connec- ticut Agricultural Experiment Station at New Haven. The pamphlet scon- tains an especially valuable paper on Forest Planting in Connecticut con- trdbuted by Samuel N. Spring, profes- sor, of forestry, Cornell University, for merly state forester of Connecticut. Regarding the progress of forest planting he says that statistics of re- cent date indicate that nearly 4,0o0 acres of land in this state have been planted with forest trees since 1900 and that forest planting for. the pur- pose of making non-agricultura1 land produce profitable crop of timber is a very recent development in Connec- ticut but one which is receiving more attention each year, both in Connec- ticut and in other states.
 Tables of statistics indicate that 2,- 715,70O trees have been planted and 2,293 acres forested with commercial species of trees. The Agricultural College furnished 500,0OO trees at cost to private owners who desired to plant forests, in the spring of 1912. With this added area planted there is not far from 4,000 acres containing over 100000 trees, under cultivation in the state, which area is small compar- ed with the large area of non-produc- tive agricultural land in the state Un- der separate heads the author takes up planting sites and their classes di- vided into open pasture land of poor quality; brush land; recently cut-oVer sprout land and woodland. The pa per maintains that the plantations in the state have been successfully starv- ed and are thriving today on the several types of sites.
 Nine different species of conifers are mentioned and eight broad leaf deciduous trees are among the num- Der planted and doing we'll. The ar tic1e takes up the season of planting and their care; the number to plant per acre; the preparation of the site, the methods of planting. it's cost; los ses and replanting: damages to plan tations and protective measures; the cleaning and pruning of plantations and the forming of a forest from di- rect seeding
 The report also contains a descrip- ton of the experimental forest planta- tions at Rainbow which were estab- ltshed in 1902, and which furnish a valuable object lesson to owners of waste land to how it may be made productive.
 The report of G. P. Clinton, the state botanist contains an exhaustive treatment of the plant diseases of Connecticut comparing those of 1912 with those of the previous year. The IOQOII Sl6l0S C11e4A fungus O1SSdSSS were more prevalent in the former than in the latter year. He refers particularly to the black rot of apple, on the foliage and rust and scab on the same.
 MT. Clinton also takes up the chest nut bark disease dealing with it's dis coVery, the early and more recent in- Vesugation; it's identity and character istics; the progress of the disease; the distri button in the United States; the manner of distribution and the dam age and loss already caused. The re- port states millions of feet of fine chestnut timber suitable for planking, piles, telegraph and electric light poles will be lost within the next two years. It also refers to the loss in the matter of shade and ornament aside from the commercial loss. Under the head of 'tThe present sit uatfon and future prospects in Con- necticut'' appears the following quota ton from Superintendent G. H. Hol- lister of Keney Park:-'tAs we made a pretty thorough cutting of the dis | eased chestnut trees last winter, l have not found the tops of the larger 1 trees so badly infected as last year l have found a great many trees with one or more branches infected, and | more young trees than ever before. l Probably many of the older trees have | the blight, but it is not easily seen at | present. On the whole I consider the | disease more prominent in 1912 than l in 1S11."
 In conclusion the report says: ''we are not advocating concerted action l throughout the state to attempt con- tro1 of the disease by the cutting out | method. We are only rarely advis- 1 ing this method, in certain districts where probable results might seem to warrant it. such as isolated woods re- l gently and slightly infected. and of | sufficient value to warrant the ex- pense. Where a wood lot as a whole is merchandise, and the disease is present, we advocate that, if market | conditions are favorable, it be cut and : disposed of in the ordinary way
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