a considerable quantity of dead wood on the ground which should be used
first. I wanted to clear out much of the useless underbrush, but we had
only time to make a beginning in this effort at forestry. We went over
perhaps ten acres across the north line, removing briers and brush.
Everything that looked like a possible future tree was left. Around oak
and hickory stumps we found clumps of bushes springing from living
roots. These we cut away, except one or possibly two of the most
thrifty. We trimmed off the lower branches of those we saved, and left
them to make such trees as they could. I have been amazed to see what a
growth an oak-root sprout will make after its neighbors have been cut
away. There are some hundreds of these trees in the forest at Four Oaks,
from five to six inches in diameter, which did not measure more than one
or two inches five years ago.

As the underbrush was cleared from the wood lot, I planned to set young
trees to fill vacant spaces. The European larch was used in the first
experiment. In the spring of 1897 I bought four thousand seedling
larches for $80, planted them in nursery rows in the orchard, cultivated
them for two years, and then transplanted them to the forest. The larch
is hardy and grows rapidly; and as it is a valuable tree for many
purposes, it is one of the best for forest planting. I have planted no
others thus far at Four Oaks, as the four thousand from my little
nursery seem to fill all unoccupied spaces.

Fresh mulching was piled near all the young fruit trees, to be applied
as soon as the frost was out of the ground. Several hundreds of loads of
manure were hauled to the fields, to be spread as soon as the snow
disappeared. I always return manure to the land as soon as it can be
done conveniently. The manure from the hen-house was saved this year to
use on the alfalfa fields, to see how well it would take the place of
commercial fertilizer. I may as well give the result of the experiment
now.

It was mixed with sand and applied at the rate of eight hundred pounds
an acre for the spring dressing over a portion of the alfalfa, against
four hundred pounds an acre of the fertilizer 3:8:8. After two years I
was convinced that, when used alone, it is not of more than half the
value of the fertilizer.

My present practice is to use five hundred pounds of hen manure and two
hundred pounds of fertilizer on each acre for the spring dressing, and
two hundred pounds an acre of t