The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-04-15
TREE VALUE FOR UTAH.

| 4hIJLs v <dho oAs ~ A<AAA.
In pursuance of law, of custom, and
Of the Governor IS proclamation, today
is Arbor Day. Much attention will be
given. as usual, to the planting OF trees,
and the officialdom of the State viii
lend countenance and set examples IN
this respect. All Of which is good, and
The moro Of this sort of activities the
better IT will be for all this region, for
naturally the timber here is not first
class but by careful selection and
tending, Utah can raise as good tim
Der as any State.
In this connection we wish to renew
our suggestions made year by year in
connection with Arbor Day tree-plant-
ing that there should he measures
| taken. either by the formation of so.
cieties. clubs, or otherwise. to preserve
in good health and growth the trees
that are planted on Arbor Day. 1t has
been pertinently asked, "Where are
the trees of yesterycars' and the an
swcr is "Nobody knows" Tt is large
ly waste Of effort to plant trees on
Arbor Day unless those trees are to be
| tended and given a chance to grow.
Here is an opportunity for large work
to be performed in Utah, much larger
work than the mere planting of trees
on Arbor Day. That larger work would
contemplate a constant supervision Of
the trees during the season, to the end
that they should be watered sufficient
ly to promote their growth, and that
anything threatening their destruction
should be warded away.
The soil and climate here are excel.
lent for the growth Of trees. The State
owns large tracts Of land upon which
treegrowth would be extremely profit
able. 1t would pay the State to at
tend to this in a systematic manner, so
that the value of the lands would be
very greatly enhanced every year.
Think of the difference in the price Of
a forty acre tract Of land that is we'll
covered with choice timber and the
price of forty~acre tract of arid land
on which nothing but native brush can
be seen. Surely the State Land Com
mission ought to be able to see the ad-
vantage in the wholesale planting of
trees upon the lands owned by the
State, and the giving of sufficient at
tention to those trees to insure their
growth. If the State should begin the
growth, for example, of $50 acres of
walnut trees on selected site, it would
not be so very many years until the
walnut trees would bring ten times the
quoted price of the land, and there
could be young growth started after
the older trees got well developed that
would continue the growth of walnut
timber and correspondingly the value Of
the land, and so on, indefinitely. Sup
pose that the State Land Commission
should enter upon determined and
persistent tree-culture policy like this,
is it not plain to every one that within
comparatively few years Utah would
have ample timber Of the best quality
to supply its own market, and to meet
besides the demands of neigbboring
States7 Why should not the State Land
Board Commission meet today and de-
termine upon this plan of tree propa-
CATION upon State lands? Is it not plain
that this policy would pay? Is it not
plain that every fortyacre tract would
within very few years be quadrupled
in value as compared with the land in
it's natural state7 And who cannot see
the advantage Of such policy compared
with the policy of letting that land lie
in state Of naturef
Here is an Arbor Day proposition
that it seems to us may easily result IN
lands owned by the State, at compar.
atively trifling cost. It is true that the
trees would have to be cared for, wa.
tered, and trimmed from time to time,
but who can fail to see that this would
pay many times over, in increasing
the value Of the land9
The Tribune offers this Arbor- Day
suggestion for the consideration of the
State, and particularly of the State
Land Board, And we at the same time
wish all possibl success to the tree.
planting of the day, and hope that the
Arbor Day movement will not exhaust
itself during the day, but will be con,
tinued throughout the year, so as to
preserve life and .vigor in every tree
that is planted.