Woodcutting

“ Far up in the wild and wintery hills in the heart of the cliff-broken woods,
Where the mounded drifts lie soft and deep in the noiseless solitudes,
The hut of the lonely woodcutter stands, a few rough beams that show
A blunted peak and a low black line, from the glittering waste of snow.
In the frost-still dawn from his roof goes up in the windless, motionless air,
The thin, pink curl of leisurely smoke; through the forest white and bare
The woodcutter follows his narrow trail, and the morning rings and cracks
With the rhythmic jet of his sharp-blown breath and the echoing shout of his axe. ”

“ Common trees and bushes, with Boston ivy on the post, and Berberis Thunbergii in front.
General treatment of cuttings.
In the growing of all greenwood and leaf-cuttings, it is well to remember that they should have a gentle bottom heat; the soil should be such that it will hold moisture and yet not remain wet; the air about the tops should not become close and stagnant, else the plants will damp off; and the tops should be shaded for a time. In order to control all the conditions, such cuttings are grown under cover, as in a greenhouse, coldframe, or a box in the residence window. ”

“ Hard-wood cuttings give better results when kept dormant for some time after they are cut. They are usually made in the fall, and stored during the winter in sand, sawdust or moss in a cool cellar, or buried in a sandy and well-drained place. This, at least, is the practice with hard-wood cuttings of deciduous plants. Hard-wood evergreen cuttings, when taken in the fall, are usually set at once, as their foliage will not allow them to be buried with safety ”

“ But in general it is not well to remove more than twenty per cent of the stand nor to repeat the cutting on the same spot oftener than once in five or six years. The first cutting will, of course, be the heaviest and all subsequent cuttings will become lighter and lighter until the woodlot is put in good growing condition. On private estates and parks, where beauty is the chief aim, the woodland should be kept as natural, informal and as thick as possible. Where the woodland is cut up by many paths and drives, density of vegetation will add to the impression of depth and distance. ”

“ By early autumn he must change his trade anew; in September the woodman becomes a charcoal-burner. The suns of August have dried last winter’s logs; they are ready for the next metamorphosis. The woodcutter, who knows by heart each glade and clearing and coppice of the forest, selects some open space, far from the century-old revered Reserve, and cuts the turf from a chosen circle. Having beaten hard the ground, he plants in the middle three or four stout stakes and swathes them together ”

“ A cutting that has flagged is useless, as it never revives. Deciduous flowering shrubs are usually propagated by summer cuttings, which generally root well in a fortnight or less. Autumn cuttings are taken during August and September, and are made from the partially ripened growths of the current year, inserted in sandy soil, in a close frame, without bottom heat. Winter cuttings are made from thoroughly ripened wood at any time between October and March, and are laid in rather thickly in rows outdoors, and only about an inch or less is left above the soil. ”

“ It seems that the smallest branch or sprout can turn the ax toward the foot of the chopper.
When chopping down timber the tree can nearly always be thrown either of three ways — the way the tree inclines or to either side, but not the opposite way from its inclination. In addition to the incline of the tree, the influence of the wind and the weight of the branches must be considered, and when all of these forces are brought to bear the timber cutter must be well "onto his job" to know just how to cut the tree to make it fall in the desired direction. ”

“ The old wood does not grow any better than young wood, generally not so well, and, besides, such cuttings with heels are more difficult to plant and handle. When the cuttings are made, they should at first be placed in small piles, with the top ends all the same way, and as soon as possible afterwards tied up in bundles, with at least two strings to every bundle. For tying, any string will do, but split basket-willow twigs are probably the strongest and least apt to root. ”

“ The cuttings are made in various fashions, some allowing most of the leaves to remain, and some preferring to cut most of them off, as in Fig. 56. They are commonly cut to one-bud lengths. Long cuttings of ripened wood, handled in a cool greenhouse or in frames, may also be employed for the various perpetual and climbing roses. Most growers feel that the best plants are obtained from cuttings, but most varieties do well when budded upon congenial and strong stocks. Budding by the common shield method is considerably employed, and veneer-grafting is sometimes used. ”

“ WOOD-CUTTING is not so difficult as our correspondent, "L.," seems to imagine, and seems to us especially adapted to be an employment for females. It has been taught successfully in the Philadelphia School of Design. She is right in thinking it the first established. A history of its commencement and progress has been already given in the "Lady's Book." The designs for wood-cutting are drawn on the block, usually of pear-tree wood, made as smooth as satin letter-paper. The designer is not always, or often the engraver. ”

“ Cutting a deep notch round the whole circumference of a tree, and letting it stand until required for use, much improves the quality of the wood. When practicable, and time will allow, it is well to leave logs of timber intended for seasoning to soak in rivers, lakes, or arms of the sea; but it is wise, at the same time, to ascertain, by the examination of pieces of wood which have fallen accidentally into the water, whether any of the creatures addicted to timber boring are found in the locality. ”

“ Cuttings are taken off as fast as buds form during the winter, and they are forced in close frames with a good bottom heat. The cuttings may comprise two buds, with the leaf at the upper one allowed to remain, or they may bear but a single eye, in which case the leaf, or the most of it, is left on. This rapid multiplication from small, soft wood usually gives poor plants; but strong plants may be obtained by allowing the wood to become well hardened before it is used. Soft cuttings will root in two or three weeks under good treatment. ”

“ If the cutting is performed during the spring or summer, the bark, twigs and leaves of the surrounding young growth may be seriously damaged by the falling trees. The trees should be cut as low to the ground as is practicable, as high stumps waste valuable timber. Care should be taken so that they will not break or split in falling. Trees should be dropped so that they will not crush young seedlings and sapling growth as they fall. It is no more difficult or costly to throw a tree so that it will not injure young trees than it is to drop it anywhere without regard for the future of the forest. ”

“ Once at home, the next step is to obtain permits from the State or proprietors, securing, at a stipulated price of so much per thousand feet, the exclusive right to cut timber within certain bounds. Then comes haymaking—a most important part of the loggers' duty; for on nothing does the success of the wood-cutting campaign depend more than on the good working condition of the sturdy teams of oxen which drag the logs from the snow-covered forest to the river's brink. ”

“ I had stuffed and rammed the rocks into it, and buried deep in its mouth the body of another woodchuck that my neighbor's dog had killed. All was cleared away. The deceased relative was gone—where and how I know not; the stones were scattered on the farther side of the tree, and the passage neatly swept of all loose sand and pebbles.
Clearly the woodchuck had come to stay. I meant that he should move. I could get him into a steel trap, for his wits are not abiding; they come only on occasion. Woodchuck lives too much in the ground and too constantly beside his own door to grow very wise. ”

“ About the practice in the Latin countries at this period we are less well informed, Italian and French woodcuts being much more rarely signed than the German, Swiss and Dutch. We seldom know the names of the artists who designed the book illustrations; but in Italy, at least, we know that it was a very general practice for drawings and, later on, even pictures, to be reproduced by professional woodcutters.
That was the case also in the seventeenth century, when wood-engraving enjoyed more favour in the Low Countries than elsewhere. ”

“ But for general planting, especially direct in the field, seldom more than one or two cuttings can be made from a branch. The cutting should be cut immediately below an eye or joint. Such cuttings grow better, are easier to plant and are less apt to dry out. The more eyes a cutting contains the better is the cutting, as the roots mostly form at the joints. Many make the cuttings with a heel of old wood, but I do not believe such cuttings are in any way preferable to those made of only one season’s wood. ”

“ Perennial plants, such as our flowering shrubs, are grown from cuttings of the ripe wood after the leaves have fallen in autumn. From North Carolina southward these cuttings should be set in rows in the fall. Cuttings ten inches long are set so that the tops are just even with the ground. A light cover of pine leaves will prevent damage from frost. Farther north the cuttings should be tied in bundles and well buried in the ground with earth heaped over them. ”

“ This, after being faced and hewn with the adze, is passed through a double-handed cutting instrument known as a treenail tool. A skilfully-handled axe, a spokeshave, or a drawing knife, will, although less expeditiously, produce with ease well rounded and serviceable treenails. In wild countries any tough straight-grained wood may be selected for treenail making. For bridge and roadway work pine wood will answer the purpose very fairly. A dead log is best when it can be obtained for making these wooden holdfasts. ”

“ After trimming off all but a few of the upper leaves, which should be clipped to reduce transpiration, the cuttings—never more than 4 or 5 inches long—should be plunged nearly full depth in well-shaded, rather light, porous, well-drained loam where they should remain undisturbed until they show evidences of growth. Then they may be transplanted. While in the cutting bed they must never be allowed to become dry. This is especially true of greenwood cuttings made during the summer. These should always have the coolest, shadiest corner in the garden. ”

“ The bamboo branches bent with their weight of white, the pine boughs broke under their load, and even the stone idols along the wayside were covered up. At first, even with the hardest work, the young woodcutter could scarcely get and sell wood to buy enough food to keep them both alive. He often went hungry himself, so that his father might have his warm wine.
One day he went by another path up one of the mountain dells with his rope basket strapped to his back, and the empty gourd-bottle at his belt. ”

“ Reverse the position of the gouge and cut from the other side in the same manner to form the other half of the semi-circle. The cutting should always stop at the base of the cut as there is danger that the tool will catch when cutting against the grain of the wood on the other side. Repeat this operation until within about 1/16" of the required size. At the end of each successive cut the tool should have been forced far enough forward and upward to bring the grind or nose of the chisel well out on top of the cut. ”

“ The way to cut down a tree is first to chop out a chunk of wood near the bottom of the stem on that side to which you want the tree to fall, then go round to the other side, and chop away on the opposite side of the stem a few inches above the first cut until the tree topples over. It is a matter of practice to become a wood-cutter, but you have to be very careful at first lest in chopping you miss the tree and chop your own leg. ”

“ As a rule, however, hard-wood cuttings are buried on a sandy knoll or are stored in moss, sand or sawdust in a cellar until spring. (See page 50.)
There is no general rule to govern the length of hard-wood cuttings. Most propagators prefer to make them six to ten inches long, as this is a convenient length to handle. Two buds are always to be taken, one bud or one pair at the top and also at the bottom, but in “short-jointed” plants more are obtained. Sometimes all but the top buds are removed to prevent the appearance of too many shoots. ”

“ Where the fires as yet have not penetrated too badly, the cutting, which leaves only what is worthless, determines the impression the forest makes. At night this impression is distinctly uncanny. Like gigantic brooms, with their handles stuck into the ground, the dead wood stands up ”

“ Although in connection with the printing press the wood-cut has not the same usefulness as the wood-engraving on account of the soft wood necessarily used and the impossibility of doing the finest work with the same degree of precision, nevertheless, as an independent art that of wood-cutting is on an [pg 53] equality with any other, and, in one respect, the fact that only soft wood can be used is an advantage; for such wood, pine or pear, is more easy to get than a hard foreign wood like the Turkish box-wood. ”

“ The woodchuck stopped all that. He began early in the summer on the vine tips and worked inward well up to the stump at each meal. The vines were husky and had more latent buds than I had believed possible. Every time the woodchuck cut them back they started something in a new place for his incisive pruning shears. Some people trim evergreens on their lawns into grotesque shapes. My woodchuck invented that sort of thing all over again on Hubbard squash vines. ”