The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-11-13
Value of Windbreaks
.. in the Dakotas

Northwest Farmstead: The wind
break is the simplest form Of protec-
tlon against the and, to a
great extent, the destructive effects
or prevailing winds. AS to their me-
chan1caf mischief, any obstruction
that may be raised that will interfere
with the, steady, onward sweep of the
low air currents viii tend to lessen
their violence or their DESTRUCTIVE ten
denotes. A single row of trees extend
ing at right angles with the prevail
ing winds exert a noticeable influence
upon air currents, wen though they
are mo- Of the kind that form a com
pact mass Of foliage.
Who has not felt the migrating in
fuence of a row Of Lombardy poplars
against a strong north wind when
travelling through northern Iowa or
Illinois in the dead of winter? While
the trees themselves, being barren Of
leaves, could only interpose their
trunks and mayed branches, yet ap-
parently the slight interruption of the
air currents produced by these trees
actually modified the severity Of the
cutting blasts to an appreciable
degree. A detser growth of trees
would have produced q more marked
effect, especially If several rows of
some low-branching variety had been
cultivated instead Of "a single row of
the Lombardy type. A mixture of
hardy pine, such as the Black Hills
spruce, would provide even q more"ef-
fectual barrier against winter winds.
In bleak countries. such as western
Minnesota and the Dakotas during
several months of the year, the plant
ing Of windbreaks at regular intervals,
say n mile apart Cor better still,
nnn-hnIf yri1n nPNaHfN fIa tt-lIv-, H..
extending east n west across the
state would greatly modify the Sc
verify Of the winter winds. More
the drifting SHOWS would be con-
fined to the mile or the half mile
strips, instead OF being otherwise car
rfed to indefinite distances and piled
up wherever they find an obstruction.
Wayfarers overtaken by sudden
storms also would have not only con-
siderable protection, but a landmark
that would guide them to some place
of shelter. Billiards which some
times come up suddenly would, in a
great measure, be shorn Of both their
terrors and of their severity. A small
grove planted in proximity to the
tarmstead affords protection to live
stock and to the farm buildings. The
trees break the force of the winds and
cause the snow to lodge elsewhere
about the buildings. Their bene-
fetal influence is of such general OBJ
servation as to require no argument
for their propagation on every farm.
For special purposes, however, such
as the protection of valuable orchards
and the shelter of homes, the utility
of the windbreak may be so great that
Its timber value need not be consider
With a general system of wind
breaks, however, extending over the en-
tire country, the beneficial effects
would be worth many times their cost,
viewed exclusively as a protection
against the winter storms.
While the high winds of early spring
infict less loss or discomfort to ami
life than those OF m%idwinter, yet
the ycause, unless checked or modi-
fed, considerable destruction to fruit
erees, and in regions wher the soil
is light OF otherwise not properly
cared for, considerable injury to crops
by blowing the surface soil away. In
p single season thousands of acres are
sometimes uncovered by spring winds,
and the crops wholly or partially
The unbroken sweep of
winds that persistently hug the earth
do the mischief. On the other hand,
where the wind comes ii broken gusts
or blasts the damage lis not SO great