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Tltfl SOlMEiRN WORLD, MAY 16, 1882,
7
its desirable qualities. It is not necessary
that you should have.your trees furnished
ready made by other parties. You can grow
your own black walnuts, and that, too,
without the risk of loss, or the backaching
labor of transplanting. Prepare your ground
by breakingandharrowing in the fall. Fur
row it off each way as you would for corn, ex
cept that the rows should be seven feet
apart Take the fresh nuts from the trees,
it Is not necessary that they should be
hulled, placing two nuts in each crossing.
This is to insure getting a good stand. The
nuts should be covered very shallow. Just
enough earth to hide them. In the spring
the land should be harrowed off midway
between the rows of nuts, and the spaces
planted with corn or potatoes. Cultivate as
you would a corn crop by cross plowing,
being careful to give the young trees a
fair chance and good clean culture. The
second spring thin out your plants to one
tree to the hill. If there are spaces entirely
missing, they may be tilled by transplanting
from the hills containing duplicates. The
second and perhnps the third year, it will
pay to cultivate corn between the rows,
after which the trees should he regularly
cultivated until they fully occupy the
ground so as to keep down by their shade
all weeds and grass. The period at which
cultivation may be discontinued cannot be
definitely stated, as much will depend on
the character of the seasons and quality of
the soil. Of course seven feet
each way will bo too close for
permanent trees but as they
will protect each other when
small and make much better
growth, it is preferable to
have them closely planted.
’ When they begin to crowd,
the alternate tree in each row
may be removed. The trees
thus removed will be of suffi
cient size to be useful in
various ways on the farm. A
second thinning will in a few
years be necessary, taking the
1 alternate tree the other way.
Your permanent trees will
now stand fourteen feet apart
each way,a sufficient distance
fora number of years, though
not for large trees, but the
thinnings will always pay a
large per cent on the value
of the ground occupied. I
sliull not weary your patience
by an array of ligures to con
vince you of the probable
value of a n acre of black
walnut timber at a given age,
but only remark that at four
teen feet each way you should
have something over two hun
dred trees, and that trees that
have grown with culture,
within my recollection, and I
am not yet fifty years of age,
will now reudily bring $5
each, and that such trees are
sought after with diligence
and are being skipped from
every railroad station in Cen
tral Indiana. I will now close
this paper already too long,
with the prediction that he
who plants a walnut grove,
caring for it afterwards, will leave to pos
terity a richer inheritance by far than the
man who buys and sells on margins.
Trees of Texas.
Denison, Texas.
Editor Southern World—Your favor of
April 20th, received. I would gladly com
ply with your request to give the points in
my paper on "The Forests and Forest trees
of Texas," prepared for the American For
estry Congress, if I could so abridge as to
present any practical or valuable knowl
edge. The best I can do is to detcribe the
paper, as it was a very condensed report of
the species of. the trees and their distribu
tion, with remarks as to comparative values,
their adaptability to forest culture, etc.
There are over one hundred species of
trees in the State, worthy of the name. The
most valuablo of these are Post Oak (Quer-
cus Obtuailoba) found more or less through
out the State wherever timber grows on the
uplands, but especially on the higher sandy
lands of Eastern and Northern Texas. There
are heavy forests of it along Itcd River.
White Oak (Q Alba.) A belt of exceedingly
line timbers of this species extend down
the Sabine river, or rather the tine uplands
adjoining It, in Eastern and Southeastern
Texas, but is not found elsewhere in the
State.
Live Oak (Q. Virens,) occurs In the lower
watersof the Ilrazos, Colorado, San Antonio
and other Btreams in Southern and South
western Texas in large forests of the finest
trees of this kind found in the world. Itex-
tends Southwesterly to the Rio Grande river
and Northwardly through Central Texas,
West of Fort Worth nearly to Itcd river In a
more stunted and spreading form. It isalmost
an inexhaustible supply for ship-knees, etc.,
and tho most beautiful of all oaks. Many
other species of oak are found in various
parts of the State, especially in the South
eastern parts.
Longleaved Pine (Plnus Australia or Long-
ifolia) There is a grand body of this noble
and valuable tree extending down theSu-
bine and Neelies rivers in East and South
eastern Texas, to within about 50 or GO miles
of the Gulf, but not West of the Trinity
river to any great extent.
Loblolly or Old Field Pine, (P. Tirda) also
occurs in very extensive forests Northward
to Red river and Westward to and in some
place beyond lower Trill ty river. These
two species cover most of what is termed the
Pine region or solid forest section of the
State. But all through this region there are
numerous other species of trees. The Cy
press (Taiodium tlestichum) grows to fine pro
portions and great abundance in the bot
tom lands of their sections and extends
though like hickory the heat is so intense
as to rapidly corrode grates and stoves. It
makes almost as good material for forging
as charcoal, even when green. There is
little flame at first then intense glowing
heat. The gum extending from the tree
is said to be equal in adhesive properties
to Gum Arabic. The pods and beans
within are much relished by cattle,
sheep and horses, and will fatten rapidly
when in quantity sufficient. The trees are
said to be prolific.
Little has been done in the State to ascer
tain the bestspecies of trees for artificial for-
l est culture. The Catnlpa Speclosa though
not a native, is perfectly at home. Osage
orange, walnut, honey locust, white ash,syc-
umore, box elder, cottonwood, elms and
some others seem well adapted to cultivation.
The Tcxns umbrella tree (iftlia Aztdarach)
grows quickly into a most unique and per
fect shade tree but if not useful for any
thing else. There is prairie in this State to
the extent of four Georgias, so you see wo
liuve need of all our flue timber, and must
soon plant more. T. V. Mdnson.
Iti'lollon of Forests to Water Supply.
Adirondack Survey Office,
Ai.rany, N. Y., May 1, 18S2.
Ed. Southern World—In acknowledging
your very courteous letter of tho 27th ult.,
I beg leave to say that some time will prob
ably elapse, before the publishing in com-
monthly precipitation of rain in the Middle
Eastern States. Here it is known that the
proximate limit of safety of forest cutting
has been reached, as torrential action began
to show itself In sections where much tim
ber had been cut away.
The topography of the country was shown
to have a most important bearing upon the
quantity effect of forests upon the rain-fall,
the mountain ranges, when forest-covered
and extending across the path of the South
winds, acting as powerful condensers of
moisture. The way in which the limbs of
trees entangle and kill the wind, to which a
house or block of houses forms hardly any
obstacle, was explained in an interesting
manner, and was shown to be dependent on
the angle of incidence.
The true relationship of atmospheric elec
tricity to rain-fall was traced through the
reactions of the correlated force so often in
correctly termed "latent heat." The limbs,
boughs and leaves of the forest were (when
considered mechanically) natural ma
chinery most wonderfully adapted to the
purpose of grasping upon the atmosphere,
and thus aiding those dynamic changes,
which induce the precipitation of moisture.
The forests were, in fact, singularly com
plicated condensers, and performed their pe
culiar office in the atmosphere far better
than the most skillfully contrived alembic
of the chemist.
Forests were shown to be essential to a
uniform rain-fall when exist
ing in the proper localities, as
• determined by the great local
meteorological laws.
A knowledge of the path
of storms in any locality, and
of the topography—-the eleva
tions and depressions, tbo
rivers, marshes and lakes—
was shown to be essential to
any exact estimate of the
limit of safety of the cutting
of forests. The only way in
which the wide-spread knowl
edge necessary could be ob
tained would be by a general
system of observation by
farmers and others through
out the whole country of the
great facts of the local rain
fall, direction of winds, Ac.,
which could be easily done
with a little trouble. —
With these observations,
and an accurate system of
topographical aud forest
maps, (which every State
should have made,) it would
be possible to make close
estimates as to where forests
must be preserved, wliero re
planted and where they
might he safely cut. To
secure this information re
quires the intelligent co
operation of all citizens. The
lecturer told of his personal
experiences on the mountain
peaks of tho Adlrondacks and
Rocky Mountains, and traced
the origin of rain from its
evaporation by the sun’s rays
from the sea to its condensa
tion to cloud—and showed
how Buys Ballot’s law readily
enables meteorologists knowing the path
of storms, from a mere knowledge of
the present direction of the wind and the
area of the last high or low pressure,' to de
termine the probable maximum or mini
mum liable to follow, and probable change
in the direction of the wind; but that tho
location of forests greatly modified the ex
act application of the law, and renders im
perative that we should study the path of
storms on exact topographical maps show
ing tho location of forests, and that then
only should we be able to make exact pre
dictions. _
Persons who indulge in a dreamy and vie-
ionary habit of mind, are frequently both
unpractical and unsuccessful; but this pro
ceeds not from an excess of imaginative
power, but from the lack of training it
aright, and of supplementing its action by
determined industry.
Truth is one of the rarest gems. If it still
shines in your bosom, suffer nothing to dis
place or diminish its lustre.
Make yourself useful, and you will always
be In demand at fair wages.
Homes without books and periodicals are
destitute indeed.
Anger dies soon with a wise and good
man.
MAHOGANY PARTRIDGE COCHINS.
Southwesterly to the Rio Grande and beyond
into Mexico. The oaks, gums, maples, lin
den, cedar, magnolias, elms, hickory, pe
cans, walnut, ash, cottonwood, sycamore,
birch, beech and many others of less impor
tance are found represented by one or more
specie each in their respective habitats
throughout this wonderful tree region,
which is a solid forest, about as great in area
as the State of Georgia.
Outside of this region, in groups and belts
aggregating area equal to another Georgia,
are the live oak, post oak, osage orange
(macliura auranticu) in Middle and Northern
Texas and extending half way through the
Territory North of the Red river. Ash,
elm, pecans, black-jack, scarlet oak, cotton
wood, sycamores, red cedar, mountain ce
dar and in far Western Texas, mountain
pine and mountain mahogany.
Extending through most of the prairie
region of Central, Western and Southern
Texas into Mexico is the great region of
Mesquit (Alyaroba Qlandulota) or Texas Gum
Arabic tree. Though a low scraggy tree or
bush, yet itisof immense value as fuel; more
especially is this the case with the roots,
which are exceedingly large in proportion
to the tops, so much so as to be called "un
derground forests." Tho wood Is very heavy
takes a fine polish and makes a good fuel
plete form of the paper which I read last
Friday before the American Forestry Con
gress, but that when it is issued, I shall
take pleasure in sending you a copy. En
closed please find an abstract which gives
an idea of the character of the paper and
may serve your present purpose.'
Very truly yours,
Verplanck Colvin, Sup’t.
The influence of forests upon tho water
supply of any given drainage area is directly
proportional to the ruin-fall, and it is from
the stand-point of evaporation and rain-fall
that the effect of forests must be considered.
The data for the information must be
searched for in the East, where the destruc
tion of the forest has been i^reat. Here,
rather than on the frontiers of civilization,
we should look fortracesof climatic change,
if the destruction of forests lead toany such
change. The records of the United States
Signal Service of the mean monthly precip
itation in this country for many years had
been searched by the lecturer for statistical
information on this subject, and he had
based upon these records a series of compu
tations which showed where the greatest ir
regularities in the monthly rain-fall oc
curred.
These differences were presented in tabu
lar form, and showed a favorable uniform