Pastures Past: Firewood, forests and farming over the years

Napier's Daily Telegraph reported on the value of tree planting on-farm in 1925. Photo / Alan Gibson

Kem Ormond takes a look at the world of farming back in the day.

Planting pine trees was seen as a valuable option for farmers back in the day.

In 1925, this was “strikingly proved” by a farmer who made £55 off one Pinus insignus tree, as reported in Napier’s Daily Telegraph.

According to a Nothern Advocate article in 1935, the State Forestry Service was busy planting eucalyptus, pitch pine and slash pine in Waipoua and Waitangi.

They were also trialling other varieties such as gum, western red cedar and Lawsoniana.

It had become a learning curve for those who had cleared the bush in the 1930s.

The Gisborne Herald reported in 1945, on “denuded hillsides” and road damage caused by slips coming down, especially in the winter.

As a result, replanting had started on a big scale to try and repair the damage done by the clearing of the bush from the hillsides.

A giant pine

From a Pakowhai farm

The value of tree planting

Daily Telegraph, Napier, September 24, 1924

The value to farmers of planting Pinus insignus trees on their property was strikingly proved by the return yielded from a tree recently felled by Messrs Fourneau Bros., on their property at Pakowhai.

The director of the State Forest Service (Mr L. Macintosh Ellis) has just received advice from Mr Fourneau stating that the tree, which was 45 years old, was felled on August 8 and milled at Tracey and Son’s mill.

The tree yielded 4300 superficial feet, 300 battens, and six cords of firewood.

It measured 126 feet in length and was 15½ feet in circumference.

The butt was oval-shaped, and the tree gradually tapered to the top.

The logs sent to the mill varied in length from four to fourteen feet.

The firewood was taken from the branches and the extreme top end of the tree, which was too soft for milling.

The tree realised £55 in value, which shows the wisdom of planting timber.

Forestry Field-Day

Hastings Reserves Visited

Farmers impressed

Hawke’s Bay Tribune, July 22, 1935

That a very real interest has been aroused in arboriculture and problems of afforestation by the Hawke’s Bay Agricultural and Pastoral Society is evidenced by the fact that, at the three forestry field-days organised by the society there has always been an interested group of farmers of the district participating.

The third of the series, which have been principally arranged by Mr R. H. Tod, of Otane, was held on Saturday morning, when an opportunity was taken of visiting the two forestry reserves of the Hastings Borough Council at Ngatarawa and Bridge Pa.

Mr W. Adams, borough superintendent of reserves, escorted the party round, and members evidently found much to interest them.

Saturday’s field-day was the first that has been made to what can be termed a commercial forestry, as the two other visits were made to farms where afforestation is only a part of the farming operations carried out.

There are many borough ratepayers, no doubt, who are not acquainted with the Hastings forestry reserve, and to these people such a visit as was paid on Saturday would be an eye-opener.

The block first visited was the Ngatarawa reserve, of some 83 acres, composed of pine and gum trees.

The trees were planted at the rate of 686 to the acre, the gums being planted in 1924, and the pines in blocks in 1925, 1926 and 1927, some 20 acres being grown in each of these years.

On this reserve the land is practically pure pumice, and is evidently well suited to tree growth, as, with the exception of a few experimental varieties, all the trees have done well and have attained a good height.

In the gums the principal varieties planted were Eu Studiata, Viminalis, Gunni and Stuartina.

Of these, the Gunni has not done so well, but the others have fulfilled expectations.

The Eu Obliqua (stringy bark) was tried out, but failed to do well, and went out, as did a similar planting at the Bridge Pa reserve.

The pines grow exceedingly well on the pumice soil and relish the conditions and have grown better than most of the gum trees, but the latter have done quite well when the type of soil is taken into consideration.

Pinus Radiata is the main variety of pine that has been grown, as the Corsican pine, planted experimentally, proved a failure.

After inspecting this block, the visitors visited the Bridge Pa plantation, where the trees are growing on a different class of soil, the soil on this reserve being very shingly.

On this reserve, a number of the gums planted died following the earthquake in 1931, and the theory advanced by Mr Adams in this connection is of interest.

Mr Adams said that the roots of the trees were all loosened up in the shingle, and, following the ‘quake, drought conditions were experienced, which sounded the death-knell of a number of the trees.

The growth generally has not been so good on the Bridge Pa reserve, the soil being less suited to the requirements of the trees, but the trees are all doing quite well.

Members were very interested in two experimental plantings of Californian redwood, and Oregon pine.

The former proved unsuited to the conditions experienced, but the latter, while rather mixed in the take secured, have grown quite well and produced some good specimens among the survivors.

At the conclusion of the morning’s visit, Mr Adams was accorded a hearty vote of thanks, members all agreeing that the reserves presented a wonderful asset to the borough.

Soil conservation

Large scale planting

Denuded hillsides

Gisborne Herald, August 29, 1945

Tree planting is in full swing on the slopes of the scarred, denuded hillsides bordering the State highway in the Tangoio district, and keen interest is being taken in what is regarded as the Dominion’s first practical effort to bring about reafforestation on a large scale.

Already 60,000 oregon pine and 4000 pinus insignus have been planted, and planting is proceeding of 25,000 macrocarpa.

A further 208 acres of land have been acquired, and 15,000 oregon pine are to be established.

This area was originally cleared of bush in 1936, and, in the intervening years, wholesale erosion has reduced the land to vast slips and barren hillsides.

Road maintenance costs sharply increased and keeping the highway open in winter was a constant problem.

The need for immediate and effective remedial action was recognised, and the Main Highways Board and the Soil Conservation Council formulated a policy which is now being implemented by the Public Works Department.

With judicious planting, it is hoped that part of the area will revert to native bush.

In other areas large scale planting of trees of the pinus variety is in progress for experimental purposes.

Pampus grasses are being established on slips, and American grass of the kudzu variety, which is suitable for stock grazing, is being extensively sown.

Though tree planting will be suspended in the summer months, the sowing of grasses and tree lucerne for cover will continue as weather permits.

Rabbits and goats are causing a good deal of trouble, but they are being effectively dealt with by poisoning and shooting.

- Source: Papers Past