TREES ON FARMS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXXIII, Issue 4800, 21 June 1939, Page 3

TREES ON FARMS.

A SPLENDID INVESTMENT. SHELTER, TIMBER AND BEAUTY. MUCH PLANTING YET TO BE DONE. A serious defect on many farms in New Zealand is the inadequate or inefficient provision of farm shelter states a bulletin issued by Canterbury Agricultural College. Trees provide not only protectior for homestead and farm buildings, but a future source of timber for firewood, posts, stakes and rails. The pioneers fully realised the aesthetic value of trees. Today we can see the results of their foresight and planting—the beautiful trees that surround many homesteads. This should be an example and encouragement to us to go and do likewise. The benefits of shelter to cropping lands often tend to be overlooked. Unchecked winds on cultivated areas remove valuable surface soil, withdraw soil moisture, “shake” ripening grain, and directly injure maturingcrops.

The effect of shelter in conserving moisture and increasing humidity is readily illustrated by the quicker growth of grass or the more speedy germination of seed on the sheltered sides of any field. It should be observed that a belt GGft. high affords direct protection for a distance of five chains (or five times its height) and partial protection for 15 times the height.

Utilising Waste Country

Tree planting will prove worthy of adoption as a means of utilising waste or scrub-infested country. In certain areas schemes are being developed to plant thousands of acres of otherwise waste land in quickgrowing trees. Areas which have reverted to gorse, fern, manuka, and blackberry can be improved by developing the only economic “crop” which will compete successfully with weed growth. The value of provision of shelter for stock, both for protection from wind, rain, cold and for shade purposes, should be much more generally appreciated. Timber for farm purposes is also an immediate need. Hedge shelter alone is insufficient but good hedges are invaluable apart from their boundary or subdivision function.

Site for Shelter Belts

High shelter belts should be established across the prevailing winds on the farm boundaries or well away from buildings. In the past many tall-growing trees were planted too near buildings which are now unduly shaded especially during winter. High shelter belts should be at least five chains away from buildings on the north, east and west sides. They can be closer on the south side. It is considered that the greatest need throughout New Zealand is for low shelter as distinct from that already mentioned. This is required within the boundaries of high shelter and should be in the form of isolated clumps, short lines of low-growing trees, or lines of trees kept topped at about 20ft. The ideal would be for each field of any property to be provided for a few chains along one or two of the fence lines. There is no need to plant the whole length of the subdivisions, but rather aim to establish short breaks of a few chains across the prevailing winds.

Such low shelter belts are of immense value to stock under conditions of rain, wind, or excessive heat. These inner belts need not be high nor should they occupy as much space as does high shelter.

Farm timber should be established in suitable corners of fields, in shingle pits, or in patches of otherwise waste land. In such situations shelter and shade will be obtained, but these trees must be regarded as a source of farm timber rather than as shelter belts.

The problem of fire risk must be borne in mind during tree-planting. In some districts grass fires are likely to occur regularly with a rapid spread to plantations. If this danger exists the blocks of trees may be protected by ploughing firebreaks by establishing farm roads or tracks, or by the presence of ditches or water races. Gorse hedges should be removed from the vicinity of the plantations. Fire danger can be considered also when the cropping rotation is planned, an endeavour being made to separate blocks of trees by green crops which do not carry fire or by cultivated land.