TREE-PLANTING

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXVII, Issue 12822, 17 August 1939, Page 4

TREE-PLANTING

RAILWAYS FORESTRY BRANCH The following references to the Forestry Branch are made in the Railways Statement: The tree-planting and other work of the Forestry Branch has been continued throughout the year, a fairly favourable, if somewhat dry, .season having facilitated the general operations of the Branch. During the year approximately 242'acres were dealt with by planting, blanking, and beautification, the areas receiving attention being distributed as follows: Athenree: Blanking, 9 6 acres; new planting, 4 acres. Whangarei: New planting, 44 acres. Maungaturoto: New planting, 11 acres. Foxton: New planting, 72 acres. Hutt: New Planting, 10 acres. Kaiwarra and Trentham: Beautification, 5 acres. The nursery operations of the Branch have met with considerable success during the year. At the Athenree Nursery the output during, the planting season was 159,000 trees, while the tally of this season’s crop, which is now ready for planting, amounts to 205,000 trees. The trees grown at Athenree 'are mostly of the eucalyptus species. At Woburn Nursery a great proportion of the trees raised were growm in pots to ensure striking. Some 26,416 trees of, various species were distributed from this nursery during the year. The other operations of the Branch during the year comprised the clearing of firebreaks in plantations, the control of the Pokaka bush operations, the clearing of heavy scrub land at Hutt, and elsewhere, and maintenance duties of a general character. Timber-Supplies . Several large orders for hardwood timber and sleepers were placed in Australia during the year. During the year the Department’s supplies of native timber have been drawn from Mamaku Sawmill. At Maroa the Department’s new sawmill is about to be brought into operation, all arrangements in connection with the erection of the sawr mill buildings, etc,, having now been almost completed. The Department’s timber area at Pokaka has throughout the year been operated under license to private interests under the oversight of officers of the Department’s Forestry Branch.