Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1886 [PAGE 265]

EXTRACTED TEXT FROM PAGE:

257

SECOND CLASS.

White Sugar Maple. Black Sugar Maple, American Chestnut, Shellbark Hickory, Cucumber, Norway Pine, Silver Leaf Maple, TuJip, White Willow, Black Walnut.

THIRD CLASS.

lied Maple, White Elm, lied Elm, Butternut, Catalpa, Hemlock, Basswood, White Oak* JSlaek Spruce, Burr Oak. The White Pine, Austrian Pine, Norway Spruce and Hemlock to be planted eight by eight feet: all others four by four feet, The former requiring six hundred and eighty trees to the acre, and the latter two thousand, seven hundred and twenty. The above distances to be varied to some extent by way of experiment, to ascertain, by actual trial, the most proper distances for the planting of the several species."

In accordance with this report an appropriation was asked from and granted by the State legislature, from which $1,000 was set apart, March 11th, 1869, for trees and seeds, and W. P . Bliss, Professor of Agriculture, (there being at the time no professor of horticulture,) was authorized to make the purchases. H. K. Vickroy, having been employed as Orchardist and Gardener, assisted in the selection of the young trees, and afterwards, until March, 1874, had the direct superintendence of the forest-tree work. Since March, 1870, the general management of the experiment has been in the charge of T. J. Burrill, as Professor of Horticulture. Most of the trees were purchased as seedlings, one to three years old, of various nurserymen, and were placed in nursery for about two years. The Larch were planted directly in their forest when one year old, and the first Chestnuts at two years, the Catalpa, Butternut, Black Walnut and Burr Oak were grown in nursery from seed, the White Willow from cutting, while the Box Elder, Chestnut second planting, and the two Hickories were planted as seed directly in the forest. In this latter way were also planted White Oak and Pecans, both of which failed—the former mainly from the depredations of rabbits and mice digging and eating the acorns, the latter by being plowed up by a careless employe. These have not been replanted. The Ailanthus, Honey Locust and Linden were transferred from the nursery about six to eight feet high, and the Apple when four or five years from the root-graft. All of the early planting was done in rows four feej apart, and with the exception of Scotch and Austrian Pine, two feet in the row. At this time it was strongly argued that the trees would make a better upright growth if planted very close, and that the trimmings from time to time would be a source of profit. The later plantings, however, were made in rows eight feet apart, and 'the trees .usually four feet apart. The method of planting for all small trees was as follows: The ground being put in good condition by plowing, harrowing, and the use of a plank "clod-crusher," a line was stretched the length of the proposed row, when by walking upon the line a straight mark was made, sufficiently distinct for the purpose, after the line itself was removed. Two men went together, one with a spade or shovel, the other with an armfull or basketfull of seedling trees. Guided by the line-mark the former raised a shovelfull of earth, the latter put into position a young tree; the earth held upon the shovel for the purpose was now thrown on the roots, and was tramped down by the man carrying the trees. In this expeditious way the work was well done, and at comparativelv little cost. rDhe Ind.—17