Northern Nut Growers Association, report of the proceedings at the sixth annual meeting | Page 8

amount out into other states to the south and to the west for
timber which New York is capable of producing in amount, at least, in
its forests and on its idle lands. The report shows further that New York
is producing very large quantities of pine and hemlock and the
hardwoods, and, much to the surprise of those interested in forest
conditions in the state, it was shown that a large proportion of the
hardwoods come from the woodlots in the farms of the state. This
would seem to indicate that there is a real opportunity for the growing
of such hardwood timber as black walnut, butternut, and hickory, not
only on the idle lands of the state which are not covered with forest
now, but also in the woodlots of the farms. That is, it would not be a
difficult matter to show the farmers through publications and possibly
through public lectures that it would be very advantageous to them to
favor nut-growing trees and to plant them where they are not now
growing, both because of the value of the nuts which they produce and
of the value of their wood.
If the people of a great state like New York are more or less ignorant of
the extent and value of their forest holdings, how much more ignorant
are they of the character and the value of a particular species which
make up their forest lands. How few people are able to go into the
forest and say that this tree is a shagbark hickory or that that is a
butternut or that that is a red pine, and if this is the case, as you will
agree with me that it is, is it not time that propagandist or general
educational work be done that will bring forcibly to the attention of the
wage-earners of the state that it is a financial necessity for the state to
consider better use of its forest lands, so that all of the soils of New
York may share in the burden of the support of the commonwealth
rather than a few of the soils which are now being given up to
agricultural use? The wage-earner should know also that nuts used as
food are conducive to health and that possibly a more extensive use of
nuts with less of meat will mean a considerable difference over a period
of a year in the amount that is saved in the living expenses of an
individual or a family.

It is often difficult for the forester to interest the average farmer in the
planting of trees, even though those trees may add to the beauty and
value of the farm or the comfort of the home buildings, but your
organization will make a place for itself most decidedly if it will go to
the farmer or to a group of farmers and show them that they can
actually save money in the purchase of their needed lumber and wood
of other kinds if they will cut their woodlots co-operatively and
produce in the woodlots trees of greatest possible value and trees which
will give such by-products as nuts as well as direct returns from the
lumber. Just as soon as you can reach the pocket-book of the average
wage-earner, it makes little difference whether it is nuts or books or
clothing, they are going to be interested in a thing that will allow them
to get more for the amount which they make from their day's labor.
The Association May Accomplish Much by Demonstrating the Value of
Nut Trees as Trees and the Value of Their Products as Food
Many organizations in our Eastern States are becoming interested in the
beautification of communities and the tremendous development in the
use of the automobile is interesting even more organizations in the
beautification of rural highways. It would not be a difficult thing for the
Nut Growers Association to interest civic associations or women's
clubs in the planting not only of forest trees alone along rural highways
but a certain number of nut trees. We are literally in the age of the
"Movie" and if a man who walks or drives along our highways can see
as he passes the growing nut trees and the bountiful harvest which they
may be made to yield, he is being convinced that not only elm and
maple are of value along our highways, but that the nut-producing trees
may give equal satisfaction in beauty of form and comfort of shade and
at the same time yield fruit of very definite value.
Even though the fruit of the nut-bearing trees of our woodlands and
highways may not give an annual return to the town or village or
county it will bring immeasurable joy and possibly better health