What I Know Of Forest Culture

[Now tliat Albor Uny is HpirooMiii(f, lie followi-.g paper taken trom tlie renrt of the recent Fore.try c-oiivt-iition at Grand Raplds, will be of value to our eader: As you are Bwnra my home is located n ii forest, surrounded on all sldes by ïoble forest trees. The forest grounds are not largc, comiiising only Hhout eijfiit acres, still there s quite a vaiieiy of trees - oak, hickoiie. im ril and suft maplen, elms, black walnuts, lUtterunU, Raseafrnses andseverol otliers, with a jrooil sprinkllng of evergreen. l'lic oaks predomínate, añil there are CTtnl species, quite a nuinber of which ire trom uvotu live loei. in diameter near he ground. These are indeed tlie lords f tiie foret. Tben tliere are black oaks vel luw onks, red oaks, ].in oak, burr a,ks and otheis. Tliere are some twenty or tblrty black walnuts, averaging from ten to twenty iiehes In diameter. The young black walnut trees come up all over the grounds from the mits that luit the Muirrels plant for their winter bod. I have taken great palns to have the tu -es in this torest kept in (jood order, cutting ofl all dead linihs and trimming 'tl nll unsighily brancheg, and removing ¦iidi trees as I thought un-ight iy, and letore cuttinjf down a tree I look at It 'rom every direction, and when the axe s uplifleü the thought often comes to me, "VVoodmaii, spare tlmt Iree," and the ixe falls hmmle-s to ihe ground, and many a tree now stands lirm as a liring monument tothat thought. Mr. Cuairiiian, I .said 1 had n sprinkling of evergreens, viz : White, Austriuu and Scotch plnes, Norway spruce, arbor vii.T, hemlouks and otliers. I have a Norway liedje some thirty rods long and aliout geven feet high, go thick tliat you cannot see through it. I hIso have au arbor vita someeighteen feet high aruund a curve of my drive, and each hedge is as line as I have everseen and hard to beat. And now, Mr. Chainnan, you will bear wilh me when 1 teil you t liat I ani a great lover of trees. I have bet a goud many ilioii-iinils of forest and fruit trees duriug my long and busy life, tor I have set trees for the last seveuty years. ] comiuenced setting tiees when I was nine years olil, and there hardly been a yèi r since that I have not set more or loss trees. I have sometimes set several thousands in one year, nm-tly fruit tree. And, Mr. Chairmun, I can show you, if you would go with me to (Jonnecticut, Toledo or Mauinee, trees that I set out that are now about two feet in diameter. In taking up trees J am very careful not lo m;ii the roois and lo be suie and get a goud Mipi'ly, uud trim the top lliorouühly so that so that the roots wil! predomínate. 1 seldom lose a tree thtt I set, tor I cultivóte arouud the tree thorouglily and keep the grouud mellow uutil the tree is giowing well. In traveling through cities, towng nul country, I am geuerally looklng out for the trees as 1 pass ulong, and I seldom tuut a. line sliade tree without looking at it, eapeotally darinic spring, suinmer and mi umn. It does me pood to see a line, m inihetiical tree; it Cüeerf and gladden s tny lieart. l'he American elm I consider the bett and most appropriate tree to plant in a villaje or city, as it ueeds ljss trimming, is long-lived and arches over u street so be;.utitully. Althougli it is not perhaps quite as syninietrical as the sugar maple and is not as ood n ghade tree, not being .- thick, lUll 1 think it is preterable, ai the maple, when trimnied, is spoiled ot ita beauty and symmetry. There are other kinds of trees which are very appropriate tor planting along the sireets and iiiads. liasjwood ia a fine tree, white ash, black cherry and a number of other that I could mention. Wben I canie here, twenly year9 ago tle coming spring, the second prowth trees on iny place were about six iuches in difi mater, and now many of theui are trom eighteen to twenty inchef. öurely this is a goóU pro tl t and a fair interest on the investuient. Don't till me that tree culture will not pay I Mr. Chairman, what can be finer than l line wooded forest with the uuderhrusl all cleared ott' and the ground flnelj scodtd down, uinkiug a beauliful lawn. Walking beueath these noble lords of the forest and looking up chrough nature to milure's Uod, one exclaiing, Oh, how beautiful ! A-rain, when the chili winds and frosts of autumn come, and the folinge begins to chaiige from a deep green to a ligh biown, yellow, pluk, red and crimson Oh liow glorioua the scène! It seemi llke tairy land, and yet tliis beautifu scène can be wltneued in a bi ight autuun ilay iu front of my little forest borderinü the street. I was glad when I read the notice ot the meeting, that it was to be one o deep interest to the jfood ptopleof thic State nnd our (onimon country. It is a noble subject, and I hope this' meeting will be one of deep interest, and grea good be the rei-ult of said meeting. Would love deaily to be present and ad( my mite, but my agb warns me that my 1 1 1 Atl lUiil L' iú i , n i i I i li mi.