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.
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